My previous experience with Arizona has been limited to the brief encounters on 15 heading west into the Las Vegas area or on 93 crossing the Hoover Dam out of Nevada just to turn back around. This year we made Scottsdale our base of operations, had amazing weather at the early part of June, and took three great detours to see other parts of Arizona while staying there. It is not meant to be a travel guide for the area but perhaps it could spark some ideas for planning your own visit.
First Detour: Sedona
We were all up and out just a little past our target time of 8:00 AM to leave for Sedona. It was pretty close to a two hour drive from Scottsdale to get there and one of the first things you notice after getting on 17 going north is your not anywhere near the East Coast anymore with a speed limit of 75 miles an hour. Though we certainly have our share of crazy drivers who think this is the norm it feels strange to be pushing the rental this fast just to get up to the limit!
The trip itself is interesting as you see all of the saguaro cacti as you start out change into grass lands as you reach higher elevations. If you have an external temperature sensor in your car you will see that start to swing lower as well. The most striking change, however, is when you reach those final miles getting into Sedona as the red rocks appear out of no where in the distant ‘mountains’. You truly enter a different world by the time you park your car in Sedona to begin your adventure.
Our ‘Sedona Moment’ was having our guide get to our meeting point at exactly the same time we did. Meeting at the Hilton Sedona, Näthan Gangadean from Sedona Private Guides was our adventure guide charged with taking us around all that is Sedona. Soon we were off in his car to our first stop of Bell Rock. With this being a bit of a whirlwind orientation tour we only walked the path to just the base of the rock and our moment of reflection began. People seem to approach the feeling of Sedona from many different angles; energy meridians, vortexes, and so on. I believe the trouble with finding the right description is we simply have not evolved enough to be able to measure why this place is different. Do read the books, do listen to the experts, and above all find what works for you. Besides the physical dangers of doing something stupid climbing the sandstone there are certainly no bad vortexes to steer away from. The best explanation I have heard of the so called bad vortexes are areas of the land that promote introspection. It would seem that this could be interpreted as a negative experience by some yet quiet introspection can be extremely valuable, so again, find what works for you.
View From the Chapel of the Holy Cross
As we traveled about we saw many sights. The Chapel of the Holy Cross is a must visit and while you are up there you will have an overhead view of one of the most interesting pieces of over the top architecture in Sedona – be sure to take the time to scratch your head wondering how they got that one past the town planners. For lunch we packed a wonderful meal from New Frontiers Natural Martketplace (and for me it was a Vortex Veggie Sandwich plus GT’s Raw Organic Kombucha #9) and ate in the park near Oak Creak. After eating we dipped our feet in the cool waters and had probably the best view of Cathedral Rock you could ever hope for. One of the last stops we made before doing some shopping was to visit the Airport Mesa. The view was simply tremendous and no matter how wide of a lens I tried there was no way to capture the feel of the land before us.
Leaving Sedona I had a true sense of being cleansed. I felt lighter and was looking even more forward to life ahead. Perhaps it could have been just being outside and walking around all day but sleep for some of us was more deep and fulfilling than it has been in recent memories. I am already looking forward to returning at some point and next time I want to go deep into the experience of Sedona with a long hike and meditation and end the day seeing the sun set from the Airport Mesa.
Montezuma Castle National Monument
On the way back from Sedona we made a quick stop at Montezuma Castle National Monument. An amazing site and even more amazing to hear that the structure home to a mere 35 people. For a virtual tour of the inside (which is no longer accessible by the public) go to the National Park Service’s site.
Second Detour: A Balloon Ride
Getting up super early we actually made it out of the house near on time at 4:50 AM and met up with Hot Air Expeditions at the Deer Valley airport parking lot. There we met another couple going on the same ride with the four of us and got into the van to be driven over to the launch site maybe 20 minutes away. As soon as we got to the site the crew trucks came in right behind us and started to set up. The baskets moved into position, the balloons were unrolled, and soon the fans started inflating them on their sides as much as possible before firing up the propane. With people that obviously do this very often the process is smooth and goes by in the blink of an eye. It is amazing how very little time it takes when the fire is turned on before the balloons lift to their vertical positions and you need to climb into the baskets to give weight for a controlled takeoff.
Hot Air Expeditions
The transition between the ground and liftoff was almost non-existent. At one moment you see the crew still hanging around the basket on the ground and the next moment you look around you see the other balloons still inflating from an ever growing distance. It has been probably 30 years since my first and last balloon experience and it truly is something you will never forget in your lifetime. The peace of the flight is only interrupted by the extreme heat of the propane blast into the balloon to either gain or maintain altitude.
For those who have never been in a balloon before the wind tells the balloon where to go and the only control a pilot has is to change altitude in hope of catching a different direction. If there are balloons up ahead of you they are a great source of information and if you are the lead balloon (as we were) then you are on your own.
Ballooning in Arizona
For the trip we flew at different altitudes taking in both close views of the beauty of the desert, including the wildlife, and tremendous vistas of the surrounding area. Flying over a desert makes for an interesting landing challenge. As barren as a desert might seem it is truly hard to find a place large enough, flat enough, and especially free enough from saguaro to make a landing. Oh, and did I mention the rocks? When we did come down they were doing their best to keep the basket in one place as the balloon still had a different idea with the gentle wind of the morning. Though it seemed like we would tip over that moment never came and touch down was complete!
The crew van was minutes away and soon a breakfast table of celebration was prepared at our landing site. It was a wonderful experience in all ways possible – from the weather of the morning, to the crew and pilots, to all that we saw during the flight, and of course what it feels like to be in a balloon to begin with. Be it in Arizona, or somewhere else in your travels, find a way to make this experience a part of your life.
Third Detour: West Rim of the Grand Canyon
At 7:00 AM and were driven to the Deer Valley Airport for our Grand Canyon West Rim Adventure Tour by Westwind Air Service. After checking in and waiting for some other people to arrive we soon boarded our eight seater plane and headed out to the canyon. It was about a one hour flight that took us over an ever changing landscape until we reached our destination.
Upon landing we got weighed in for our helicopter ride and I managed to get front seat status! Cool! From there it was not long before we headed over to the helicopter pads and boarded for an amazing ten minute flight down to the bottom of the canyon. Thus far I am surprised at the pace of the tour as everything is moving very fast for, as we touched down and got out, we walked straight down a hundred stone steps or so to a pontoon boat waiting to for a fifteen minute ride on the Colorado river. The water at this point in the river is about 18 feet deep and though the white water is probably 40 to 50 miles away from here the current is still noticeably fast moving somewhere above 10 miles an hour. The boat trip was smooth and peaceful and of course the fifteen minutes pasted in the blink of an eye. Our boat captain brought a bucket of the river water on deck for us to feel the cool temperature and splash some on our foreheads for good luck and offered answers to any questions we could think of in the short period of time we had with him.
Getting off the boat we walked back up the stairs and almost immediately boarded a helicopter for the ten minute journey back to where we started. Yes, our trip to visit the bottom of the canyon was indeed quick but was is more amazing is seeing just how many trips were being made. The helicopters were literally on the ground for perhaps three of four minutes total. It was a constant shuffle back and forth and the tour we were on was obviously not the only one taking place in the area either.
Back up at the airport we had some down time to poke around the gift shop while waiting for the bus to be ready that would take us on the next leg of our adventure. The trip to Eagle Point was only about ten minutes and of course the big attraction there was the Skywalk. Our pilot, who would be following us for the rest of the trip as well, informed us no cameras were allowed on the Skywalk anymore. It seems that at some point someone dropped one and chipped the glass surface. This would not be a safety hazard but given the cost of the glass panes it would be a maintenance nightmare so I guess it is understandable. The good news is that our pilot offered to hold our camera for a photo from afar and photos where available for purchase from the skywalk itself.
Upon entering the building we headed to the Skywalk where we lockered the rest of our belongings, past through the metal detector, donned our disposable booties, and finally walked out above the canyon. It is truly an amazing experience but not scary at all. Despite the extreme height of the walk there is no reference point for anything familiar so the perception of depth is almost impossible. We did get photos taken when we were on the walk and our photographer said that during the winter they collected a trash bin of snow and dumped it over the edge. It took a full ten seconds to hit the bottom and when it did it looked like a dot and sounded like a shotgun blast.
Leaving the walk we took some of our own photos overlooking the eagle formation in the canyon across the way and soon boarded the bus to our next stop – Guano Point. Here we had lunch sitting at a table outside where maybe thirty feet away was a drop to the bottom of the canyon. Being on an Indian Reservation there are no safety fences or such and the view is 100% available to be taken in. It was truly a one in a life time experience sitting down to eat with that kind of view.
Guano Point
After lunch we walked out to the edge of Guano Point where our pilot became our personal tour guide cluing us in on some great photo spots, telling us interesting facts he knew about the area, and probably most importantly –showing us the best ways to climb on the rocks. He told us the story of the car wreck (that dark brown dot at the bottom of the ‘V’ shaped out crop of rock you see in the middle of the photo above) you can see at the bottom of the canyon at one point – how it was part of a film shoot and of course I forget what the name of the movie was – and various other points of interest. The tour in general was spectacular, however, the way the pilot seemed to go out of his way to always keep track of us (which must be a huge challenge in itself given both the enormity of the areas and the other people visiting from various tours and self guided trips) and to guide us to special areas we simply would not have experienced just wondering on our own made the whole experience over the top.
The bus took us back to the airport and soon our pilot collected all eight people that were on the tour together and we were off. With an early start it was a tiring day already and though it was sad to leave the amazing sights we saw we were ready for our flight back. I would definitely use the tour service again and perhaps next time take advantage of seeing a different part of the Grand Canyon.
Fourth Detour: Food
If you are in the Scottsdale or Phoenix areas look up my reviews on Yelp to see some great places to try. The surprise of Scottsdale was the Pinnacle Grill. Of all the places we tried this will be the most missed and a certain return whenever back in the area. For Phoenix, yes, I did have The Big Unit at Alice Cooperstown!
Growing up in the Tri-State Region area I certainly knew what a cheesesteak was. My mother was probably the first to serve me one and in my older years I made more than a few of my own with, dare I say, Steak-umms. The thoughts of those years make me cringe at present day as my diet has changed drastically. I believe I eat a lot better than I did in my earlier days and always strive for constant improvement in at least understanding how to treat my body better. For the most part my allergies (not including quinine) are gone and I rarely, if ever, get a cold anymore.
So, where does the great cheesesteak smackdown fit into all of this? Zig-zagging was brought to Tony’s life by Sage Robbins and as I went through my master cleanse a couple of months ago I enjoyed watching the Travel Channel making my own wish list of zigs. (or are they zags?) The first road trip was an adventure to where the cheesesteak began – Philadelphia. No, I am certainly not craving the taste from all of those years ago, but I am fascinated with what has become a piece of American history. The bottom line is if you are going to take in the early part of American history while you visit Philadelphia, do take the less than 1.5 mile detour away from the Liberty Bell to see where the cheesesteak phenomenon took root.
Liberty Bell
The story seems to be that Pat and Harry Olivieri invented the cheesesteak and sold it at their hotdog stand in the south Philadelphia Italian Market. Due to the success the of the public’s response Pat decided to open up a store called Pat’s King of Steaks dedicated to the sandwich in 1930 on the same site it is today at 1237 East Passyunk Avenue.
When you come to visit Pat’s you will probably see quite a crowd surrounding the place but do not let this deter your resolve to buy a cheesesteak from the source!
Pat's King of Steaks
The lines move very quickly as the 80 years of experience seem to have certainly paid off at least in the form of efficiency. When you are close to the ordering window you will have a set of instructions you can follow to help keep things moving fast.
How to Order a Steak
Of course just when you have finished all of your practicing, and have your money ready, you then get confused when you see the array of options to choose from. No worries, as the panic passes quickly – just let your hunger choose for you and sit back and enjoy the experience.
Pat's King of Steak Menu
In what seems to be an instant after you place your order and tender your money you will then have your little piece of American history in hand. If you so desire you can move onto to the next window to order something to drink or some fries to go ‘wit’ your steak. Otherwise, find a seat or eat it standing and be sure to take it all in while it is still warm.
A Cheesestake from Pat's King of Steaks
Okay, enough of the original! For this to be a smackdown there needs to be competition, and competition there is only a street crossing away. Looking from Pat’s front step you can see the following:
Geno's Steaks
Geno’s Steaks was founded a staggering 36 years after Pat’s in 1966. The output is generally the same with the following exceptions: Pat chops his steak before it is put on the bun whereas Gino’s are layered pieces of steak and in either case they are similar in thickness. Pat also seems to have a much larger menu of options for how you can build out your desire whereas Gino seems to stick to the core values of what makes a cheesestake a cheesestake.
Beyond the food at Geno’s there are some interesting other facts about the establishment. First, at least when we were there the police seemed to prefer eating there. Yes, it could be the fact that the founder, Joe Vento, is a supporter of the family of murdered police officer Daniel Faulkner, or it could be the food. I made no attempt at polling the officers there but one thing is for sure: Gino’s has a vocal opinion on America and is proud to display it boldly.
Proud to be an American
In fact they went as far as to post a sign near the ordering counter that reads, “This is America, when ordering ‘speak english’.” It seems it has sparked controversy as some people call it discrimination. I find this amazing for if I where in the Netherlands would it be discrimination if they asked me to speak Dutch when ordering? I do not think so. To me the sign does not mean you are not welcome. To me it means, for goodness sake, try to communicate in the language people are using behind the counter! No matter the course of your beliefs on the subjects it has all come together quite well to make Gino’s have quite a name for ‘steaking’ ground right across from Pat’s.
So, the battle took place. Going in, I knew one chopped its meat, the other one did not, and one of them was the originator of the meal. I did not know which was which up front, and we tried Gino’s first. It was strange to have the cheesesteak taste in my mouth after a pause of probably 25 years but I must say it was quite good indeed. Looking at the sandwich I saw that Gino’s was the one that did not chop its steak and moving onto Pat’s I thought it would be a slam dunk that they would be better.
To our surprise (that is the both of us that were in the smackdown together agreed without a doubt) we found Gino’s a much better experience overall. That is not only was the food better, but from ordering to the way the cheesesteaks were handed to us (wrapped as opposed to in the middle of an open paper) Gino’s wins hands down. No contest. Game over.
Later, when we did the research, I was also surprised to learn Pat’s was the original and came into being 36 years before Gino’s. The bottom line is if you are ever in the area my recommendation would be to try both. You need to try Pat’s simply because that is where the history started. From there try Gino’s to decide your personal favorite. Although the sign is on Pat’s building you certainly will not make a ‘misteak’ at either place.
Perhaps not the first place you would think of for enjoying Spring Break, at least for a college youth looking for specific entertainment, but if you find yourself in a different demographic, here are just a couple of tips on tours to take and things to do in the area.
I never thought more about the timing of the busy season in Florida other than it being too hot in the summer and a nice place to thaw out during the winter. It turns out, however, there is a little more to the busy season than tourists. For at least the Naples, Bonita Springs, Ft. Myers areas you may find yourself competing with more snowbird locals than tourists when attempting to park at a popular restaurant at what seems to be the key hours of maybe 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Even with the increased traffic, from mid October through mid April, this side of the coast could be a welcome break from other parts of Florida.
On this trip we enjoyed several great places to eat and the full commentary can be found on Yelp for Bonita Springs, Naples, and Venice. Beyond restaurants we enjoyed a few key experiences worth sharing:
Captain Seth Hayes took us out on a challenging, cloudy water, windy day, right after a lot of rain, and if that was not bad enough it was after one of Florida’s coldest periods in a long time. As Captain Hayes is also a chef the larger goal was to catch enough fish to take home and have a wonderful meal experience the following evening as well. He helped cast out the first line and immediately snagged a trout the instant it hit the water. Wow! I thought it was going to be an amazing day. Unfortunately that turned out to the one and only keeper fish that was interested in being caught.
We came home empty handed and still managed to have an outstanding half day on the water catching numerous snook (all of which were off limits due to the cold weather that killed so many), a lot of red fish (all too big, yes, too big to keep), a few other hits here and there on things like jack, and something that got away well before coming up to the surface that seemed to behave a lot like a stingray.
We came no where near our primary goal of getting a meal for the evening to come yet still managed to have a great time. If you are in the area looking for a captain that certainly seems to know his business give Seth a try. If you are luckier than us you might just want to try his chef services as well.
Captain Steve Forgione and First Mate Terresa Siebert were our guides on another challenged trip this time from both the weather side (extremely low tides) and from an accident in the morning that closed the only route to their dock which shortened the trip by an hour. On this trip we had two goals in mind – shelling and seeing some wildlife (particularly dolphins or manatee).
Not far out of the dock one of these goals was quickly met when our captain cranked up his secret music of attraction for the dolphins that seem to know his boat very well. It was magical to see them surf in the wake not many feet from where we sat.
With the low tide we needed to implement plan ‘D’ for getting to a beach for shelling. It was a pretty good detour to get there and though I cannot say for sure if we were the first ones to step foot on it in the morning we still managed to find a lot of interesting samples you certainly would never see on a more accessible shore line. We are not shell experts and could not even begin to classify what we put in our bags. For us the fun was being on what seemed to be an untouched shore and exploring the world where the sea touches the land in a way we have never had the privilege to do before.
It takes a little over an hour to get out to Wooten’s from the Bonita Springs area and it is well worth the trip. Along the way you will start to pass competitors as you start getting close and I really do not have much in the way to comment on what the differences might be. I know if you get to Wooten’s before 10:30 AM you should not have a problem pretty much getting right on a boat. They do have several classes of boats available to accommodate different sized groups so check their website and give them a call to make sure they fit in with your expectations. They did comment that they actually own the land they tour so obviously they are very familiar with every twist and turn and it makes for quite a ride.
This is my second time on an airboat (the first was on the other side of Florida not far out of Miami) and my comments for comparison would be as follows: The first time we went out there was more of a feel of exploration riding through the tall grass on a relatively quiet boat. We saw wildlife, even though it was very hot going into the summer period, and most interestingly we also saw homes that were built out in the glades. Yes, homes. I guess it would be Florida’s version of a mountain man? Certainly living way outside the normal grid though some have gone as far to run generators to power satellite dishes and so on. On the contrary, you will see more mangroves than grass at Wooten’s and they have large power plants on these boats. In other words, they are loud and fast. Thus, being so different it is a matter of preference as to which one would like better. For me, I believe I have seen enough in the Wooten’s area but would try another ride with Captain Parker Priest when I am back on the east cost.
Though we did not take advantage of it, you can spend more time at Wooten’s on a swamp buggy ride and touring their animal sanctuary. Overall they seem to have a lot going on there and it is up to you as to how much you want to get out of your travel time getting there.
This certainly was a trip of challenges and trying to take the one and a half hour detour up to the Venice area to hunt for sharks teeth would be no exception. To hunt for teeth you really need to have a Florida Snow Shovel. Doing research online I knew Walmart sold them so I thought it would be as easy as going there first and then to the beach. The problem was the change for good in the weather cleared them out of all the stock they had and to make matters worse by the time we got to Caspersen there was no parking anywhere available. We snaked back towards Venice and found parking somewhere in between and at least walked the beach up to the pier.
The Florida Snow Shovels are supposed to be available at the bait shop on the pier but they were sold out as well. Their advice was to try Walmart – yeah, I know that is not going to work. We had a good lunch at the pier and on the walk back towards where we parked at least I found one tooth just laying there on top of the sand.
I even came prepared to look in the water for them with snorkeling gear but if there was not enough in the way already for this experience the jelly fish washing ashore certainly made for the icing on the cake! For next time the bottom line is to call ahead to see if Walmart has Florida Snow Shovels in stock!
This is something I have wanted to try for a very long time, and I am not sure where it even came into my knowledge base. I have some recollection of speaking to someone at Life Mastery in 2001 who was familiar not only with the indoor sky dive experiences but also understood how they evolved over time with the modern ones being safer due to solving the issues of losing up draft around perimeter found in the original concepts.
Fast forward to March 23, 2010 at Indoor Skydive in Roosendaal, The Netherlands and my chance to experience it finally came. I was with a business group and the first task was to go upstairs to get suited up for the flight. All loose articles out of pockets, etc, check. Flight suit, check. Helmet, check. Goggles – wait, what the heck are these things? Basically a piece of thin plastic that has some folds in it to bend into a semi-goggle shape with a small adjustable bungee cord attached. Okay, they fit on my head but aren’t these things going to be ripped off my face in the 170 mph wind? Obviously they have done this before so, “Have faith,” I tell myself.
All dressed up and ready to go we all entered the training room where the instructors gave us an overview of what to expect and what to do. The good news I found out somewhere between getting through the front door and arriving in the training room is discovering that this is going to be a one-on-one experience in the tunnel – yourself with an instructor. The bad news was being in the training room where the primary language was Dutch. Though some of us (like me) knew no Dutch, I would say most of the group did, so it was humorous to listen to what seemed to be like three minutes of the instructor speaking in Dutch. He would speak, make gestures, most of the room would laugh, etc. Then, he would pause at the end of the teaching segment and say, “Now for the English version. When I move my fingers like this (holding two fingers up and separating them) it means to move your legs out.” Ah, yeah, that was the entire English translation for that part and he quickly moved onto the next key point, again, in Dutch.
You see it is not rocket science by far and the problem is that in the tunnel (as in space) no one can hear you scream (or speak) so everything is done through sign language. It is not much to learn quantity wise but when your brain is on overload to begin with, and you only get a few precious understandable words for each movement, it is all a bit overwhelming.
So, again, obviously they have done this before so, “Have faith,” I tell myself.
With our training done we entered the airlock and headed into the tunnel area. There was a queue up on the monitor screens that showed who was up and each of us would get a one minute turn in the tunnel, three times total. Seeing the people go before me there was certainly nothing to panic about – the bottom line here is that no matter how crazy the concept of entering a 170 mph wind might seem no one was even close to getting bounced around in any violent or dangerous manner.
When my turn came I entered the doorway to the tunnel. The doorway itself is an odd experience as it is alway open and does not seem to have any type of discernible event horizon, yet there is not much wind coming out of it, and there is certainly a lot of wind inside of it! You fall forward… Did I say “fall”? I have no idea what the word for it is but somehow you lean into the tunnel and you are immediately lifted into a horizontal position quite effortlessly. That, however, was the easy part.
Once in the tunnel it was difficult to understand the feedback of moving your body parts around but the instructor did a great job of helping compensate for your idiocy. There were times when you found yourself headed straight for the wall – but at a speed where just putting out a hand was all that was needed to keep safe. There were times when you found yourself floating to the bottom of the floor – and you just did not understand why this was happening. Most precious, however, were the times when everything seemed to be going just right and you were able to take in the brief moment of total peace flying around in violent rush of air.
So, the big question for anyone who has not tried it would be of course what was it like. The crappy answer is the only way to find out is to experience it in person. Though it may seem like a cop out for the most part it is true for no matter how accurately I might describe my own experience I am sure your perspective will be completely different. For me there was absolutely no sense of falling. (Which is not surprising given that you are staying relatively in the same place in regard to the floor) There is certainly a lot going on around you as the 170 wind is something I do not believe you would experience anywhere else. (At terminal velocity it is humorous to see the contortions on people’s faces!) Maybe my SCUBA background and zero-G experience has given me at least some reference points to make it more comfortable but none the less I think I would do better taking everything in the next time around.
The minutes lasted for what seemed to be a long time but not long enough to really learn anything. Next time I hope for an experience where the newness has worn off at least a little bit and I could spend more time understanding how to fly. If I could find one of these places more locally I might just be in trouble getting other things done as I spend a lot of time there. To see the way the instructor could fly around when our fun was over is what dreams are made of…
…and no, the goggles did not get ripped off my face!
Traveling on business with some pleasure mixed in offered a chance to take in some of the offerings of the Netherlands that I have either never seen or have not been back to in many years. Here are a few of the notable items from the trip…
Amsterdam
Take a canal tour. I guess if you do research you might find a difference between all of the offerings but hopping on any one will still give you an incredible overview of the city from the unique perspective of traveling almost under it. Due to the omnipresent nature of the canal system you get a chance to touch on almost every important landmark you might wish to visit while spending time there.
Not having enough time left before the NEMO museum closed (for a visit there to make sense) we decided to take a tour of the Amsterdam which is currently docked next door to the NEMO. How 203 crew, 127 soldiers, and 5 passengers could ever fit on the ship, never mind be fed by the extremely small cooking area we saw, is amazing. If you have the time to take a self paced walk through it is an interesting detour from the surrounding area.
The Red Light District is a must see if you are in the city. There is nothing more visible than you would see on a beach in the summer so it is relatively safe from that perspective and more dependent on your personal views of the subject especially if you are traveling with family. What I find amazing is that extensive tours are available. One must learn a lot about the entire subject on a tour that lasts for two hours and does not, obviously, partake in the service!
Walking the The Red Light District
I am not, but if you are into cannabis you can of course find it here in all forms. Yes, it is available in the coffee shops more surprisingly you see it in candy, drinks, and even in seed packages amongst the floating flower market. Even more interesting was seeing bags of mushrooms with bar graphs depicting the types and magnitudes of the different mental effects they would produce. With all of this available you would think you would see more people acting strange on the streets but from my perspective you would have better luck finding people doing odd things in New York or Los Angeles.
A Typical Shop View
On the more serious side the Anne Frank house is a must visit. Order tickets on the internet to avoid the long queues and take in a journey back in time as you visit the rooms she hid in with her family and was later joined by the van Pels family. I was amazed by the amount of information and photos from her life and struggle that have survived. The ultimate horror was fact that she passed away in the concentration camp only one month before its liberation not even knowing her father was still alive.
The Anne Frank House
Madame Tussauds is worth a visit. Though there are a few of the figures that look a little waxy most have eyes that stare into your soul as if they were real. I was surprised by the openness of the exhibits and the encouragement in some areas to pose with the figures for photos. There is one scary diversion that the faint at heart can bypass. While it does not seem to fit into the overall theme of the museum it is still a fun detour none the less.
George W. Bush
Yes, a bit on the cheesy side but with that said still worth a visit is the Heineken Experience. See the historic brew room, become a virtual bottle of beer, and learn as much as you would ever want to know about the history of the brew.
The Historic Brew Room
Finally, if you are looking for a fabulous place to eat check out Casa di David for an amazing Italian meal.
Casa di David
Madurodam
It is a must see if you can make there for as it is said on their website:
For almost 60 years Madurodam has been the smallest city in the Netherlands. Canals, gabled houses and all kinds of other typical Dutch scenes: the miniature city offers you the highlights of the Netherlands on a scale 1:25.
Madurodam
Kinderdijk
The Netherlands is famous for its windmills. Today there are still more than 1.000 mills. Nowhere in the world you will find as many windmills as near (the Dutch village) Kinderdijk. Around 1740 no less than 19 sturdy mills were built here. They have been well preserved to the present day.
Pumping water to reclaim land and manage what has already been reclaimed is what built most of the Netherlands. Learn about how this was done in the days long before modern forms of power by visiting a windmill.
Kinderdijk
Tilburg
Okay, so if you do not speak Dutch, or at least know someone who can be a tour guide, this one might be also a stretch… Tagged as the strangest zoo in the Netherlands on their web site Dierenpark De Oliemeulen is an interesting place to visit to see a variety of animals including birds, monkeys, spiders, and especially a wide variety of reptiles. You even have a chance to touch a snake and hold a while listening to one of the several talks about the animals at the zoo.
Holding the Tarantula
Delft
For years I have been familiar with the amazingly detailed blue and white delftware. In visiting the De Porceleyne Fles factory, founded in 1635, it was fascinating to learn a little bit more about the history and also understand why the original pieces are so expensive. With only a handful of master artists under the roof all of the designs they create are hand drawn onto the raw works that are turned into what we see as the final product through various layers of process and of course a lot of heat. If you are in town, take a tour, buy a piece from the source, and if you want – learn how to create a tile of your own.
De Porceleyne Fles
Okay, unless you are traveling with a large group, and make plans ahead of time, Stadsherberg de Mol is not a place you are going to get to from a walking tour. With that said, however, it is worth a note simply because it was a lot of fun and, at least for someone writing and living in the US, a very unique experience. What is it? For those familiar with Medieval Times there is some cross over with the time period, having dinner, and eating with your hands, but that is where the similarities end. Here you sit down to a meal where you are entertained by people playing a couple of parts from the period including slight of hand, music, fortunate telling, and so on. If that was not enough add being dressed for the times and playing period games in competition with the rest of the people in the room. It all makes for a welcome detour well away from present day done in a welcoming atmosphere that even made this non-Dutch speaker comfortable.
