Amsterdam

We spent June 14-16 in Amsterdam with our friends, Whitney and Matt. Whitney is a good friend of mine from high school and she and her husband Matt were our first visitors from across the pond! They stayed with us in London and we joined them on a trip to Amsterdam (they also visited Paris and Brussels). 

Amsterdam was so much more than I was expecting! I guess with it being known for pot and the red light district I expected it to be a party city and maybe even a little seedy which was not the case at all! It was a BEAUTIFUL city and everywhere you walked around the city was an amazing view of canals, adorable Dutch houses and quaint streets. 

We rented an amazing house from airbnb in the Jordaan area with a great living room with retractable ceiling where we enjoyed hanging out every night. We arrived early afternoon on Saturday and immediately went out to explore.

We had dinner at Cafe Sonneveld, I had the Dutch Stew- very yummy:

Then we did a very small guided tour of the Red Light District which was very interesting and informative to say the least. Of course no photos are allowed of the girls but I did sneakily snap this one of one of the alleys where the girls were in the windows.

We ended the tour at a small bar where we hung out with our guide for a bit and asked any questions etc. It was a great, informative and discreet way to see the Red Light District and learn how this was a legitimate profession and industry in Amsterdam.

Sunday we started off our day with lunch at The Pancake Bakery which was amazing. Anything you could imagine baked into your pancake! Bacon and egg below:

 Then we went by the Anne Frank House:

And on a canal cruise:

We had drinks at the DoubleTree SkyBar with great views.

We had dinner at a restaurant in the Jordaan area and hung out in pir rental house. 

Monday Matt and Whitney left for Paris and Matt and I just walked around Amsterdam and got lunch before our flight. We have 2 other trips to Amsterdam planned before the end of the year with other visitors and we had such a great time that we are very much looking forward to going back! 

Italy part 3: Venice

We arrived on Friday to Venice. From the train station we realized the apartment we were staying in was a 35 minute walk away. I decided that since Venice is so beautiful we should walk rather than take a ferry...with all of our luggage. Big. Mistake. About 26 cobblestone bridges (all stairs) and over an hour later we finally arrived. BUT it was a beautiful walk and a great sunny day.

We walked to the Rialto Bridge before dinner. 

Had dinner at a pizza restaurant, Antico Forno.

Then just wandered around the Venice streets getting lost- literally. It is so difficult to navigate around Venice and if you dont have a working smart phone I'm not sure how it is possible. But it is always a romantic stroll and so much to see!

Saturday we started our day off with a goldola ride. For everyone who says you cannot negotiate prices, you definitely can so just ask the next gondolier you see. This is definitely a bucket list item and I am so glad Matt and I were able to experience this romantic ride together. Apologies in advance, I went a little crazy with the gondola photos.

Check out our gondoliers form!

We had a wonderful lunch at Alfredos Fresh Pasta To Go. We found a great spot on the steps by the canal to enjoy lunch and watch the goldolas go by. 

Then we went to Saint Marks's Square-the place you always see when they show Venice on movies and TV. The pigeons are no joke there are TONS of them.

Toured the Beautiful Saint Mark's Cathedral

The outsidr of the Cathedral was under construction when we were there :(

Almost everywhere in Venice is the prefect opportunity for a photo op.

We had bought a bottle of wine at Verrazzano Winery in Florence which we enjoyed on a beautiful bridge off the beaten path before dinner.

We had dinner reservations at Impronta Cafe for dinner. It was on the other side of Venice so we had a long walk at sunset with the most beautiful views. The dinner was amazing- one of the best ones we had the whole trip.

Pictures just don't do it justice. 

Caprese salad with prosciutto 

Tiramisu

Sunday was our last day and we spent it having lunch and wandering around this beautiful and unique city.

Venice is famous for its beautiful masks .

Out trip to Italy was amazing and unforgettable. Experiences like this make me SO grateful for this opportunity to live abroad. We probably would never have done this or been able to spend so much time in this wonderful country. I LOVE everything about Italy.