Tea Time Travels

What better time to experience Amsterdam than when tulips are in full bloom?! In April we planned a trip to Amsterdam for my birthday, and were so excited that this would line up with when the tulips were at their peak. Unfortunately, we had to very sadly put our beloved dog down a week before we left, so we were in very low spirits. However, we thought it would still be good to be away from home and take our minds off everything. 

We were able to take the Eurostar to Amsterdam, which took us from Kings Cross to central Amsterdam in about 4 hours. We had a peaceful lunch right next to the canal and admired the water, bikes, and buildings before checking into our Airbnb. 

When I booked our bed and breakfast, I found a listing that that was a bit outside the city, had bike rentals, and was set in rustic farmland. As we were strolling through the countryside and approached our bed and breakfast, a familiar scent filled our nose… Cow manure. The bed and breakfast was on a working farm with cows, and so all the lovely smells were included in our stay. But it was the sweetest bed and breakfast- they hung up a banner in our room that said ‘congratulations’ in Dutch for my birthday and gave us a bottle of champagne. 

We took advantage of the bike rentals but instead of navigating through the busy streets of Amsterdam we went up north. There was a small city called Volendam that is a picturesque Dutch village and looked perfect to explore on my birthday. It was about a 50 minute bike ride (which ended up being a little longer after Clay got a flat tire), but was a beautiful journey with vibrant green grass and bluebird skies. 

One of the highlights is when we stopped at a cheese store and were able to sample about 20 different types of cheese. As cheese lovers we were in heaven, tasting anything from aged goat cheese to lavender cheese. We could have spent hundreds of dollars there but settled on two types of cheese that we wanted to bring back home with us. 

We continued to Volendam and strolled through quaint shops and restaurants by the water. It was so peaceful to get away from the hustle and bustle, especially living in busy London. We biked to an Italian restaurant for dinner and had a lovely evening filled with pasta pizza and wine. We biked back home and chatted about anything and everything along the way. It was a beautiful day. 

The next day we booked tickets to go to Keukenhof- one of the best places to see the tulips in Amsterdam. Normally, tulips are in bloom toward the end of April/early May but this year they bloomed early and we were certainly happy to be in Amsterdam while the tulips were at their most beautiful.

It was stunning to see the variety of different tulips, and admire the vast fields of vibrant colours. We wandered around the flower fields for hours and were impressed by all the creative names given to each type of tulip.

That night we took a canal tour during and got to see the city from the water as the sun set. It was a magical experience, the city became more radiant as the sun went down. We continued to walk along the peaceful canals before heading back to our cows lol. 

The next day we had a very relaxing day starting with the most delicious bagel sandwich, then strolling through Voldelpark- a beautiful large park in the middle of Amsterdam. We spent the day wandering around the city and parks, and that night went to the Pathé Tuschinskic cinema. This movie theatre was built in the 1920s designed by architect Hijman Louis De Jone with a strong art deco style throughout. It was easily the most beautiful place I have watched a movie.

Our last day was a bit rainy, but that couldn’t have stopped us from getting some homemade stroopwaffel. What better way to start your morning than a ginger cookie stuffed with caramel?! Delicious!

We headed to the Reiksmuseum, the largest art museum in Amsterdam and one of the most famous museums in the world. My favourite piece was the Night Watch by Rembrant, which is one of the most famous paintings in the museum. Art museums have always been my favourite type of museum, and this one was one of the most impressive I have been to. 

We made our way back to the Eurostar to head back to our London life. I was very grateful for this trip to experience the bliss of a beautiful city to shine some light during an otherwise dark time in our lives.