We Made It

Our first couple of days in Amsterdam have been kinda rocky. But our cats survived. With a little sickness on landing in Amsterdam (AMS). Arwen and Minou have been adjusting well. No extreme crying, and no extra sickness. It almost seems like they haven't noticed the change. Almost... Hehe.

The one strange thing that we are still getting used to is the lack of customer service. Waiting for help before sitting down and after finishing a meal is tough. Though there are acceptions, it is still not the norm in AMS.

We were thrilled though to find a place that was similar to Target (HEMA). We got all of our needs in one go. Then we proceeded to get SIM cards for Kyle's unlocked iPhone 5. Thank goodness for little tricks like trimming the old iPhone4 SIM Cards. Now we can actually get around without asking for help!!!



One of the first restaurants we ate at here was a pancake house that was put into a carousel building.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g188590-d816326-Reviews-Carousel_Pancake_House-Amsterdam_North_Holland_Province.html

As per usual, the service is not great... but the pancakes were sooo yum! They also served hamburgers, but if you are used to American/Stateside burgers, I would not suggest getting them. They look kinda bread-y and the patties looked extremely thin. The server also got our bill wrong. You should always look over your bill to make sure it is correct or they will overcharge you.

The other restaurant we went too was NamKee. (http://www.namkee.net/). 

We had the food from the Chinatown location and the one behind the Heinikenplien (Heiniken touristy building). I have to say the food was MUCH better at the Heinken one. It might be because they get tourists more often than any other location. I would recommend the hot and sour soup and the soy sauce chicken. Excellent, spicy and succulent! *YUM*

Some snacks we had recently was Olibollen from the food stalls around the Centers in AMS. They are technically called "Oil Balls" which, from research, are where donuts first came from.


They had so many available. Plain, Berliner, Chocolate glazed, Apple, Raisen, and probably others but I couldn't remember them all.

From Research:

Olibollen is a traditional Dutch food. Oliebollen (literally oil balls) are traditionally eaten on New Year's Eve and at funfairs. In wintertime, they are also sold in the street at mobile stalls. In the Flanders part of Belgium and Brussels they are called smoutebollen (literally lard balls although the real "smout" is of rapeseed oil). In English they are more commonly known as Dutch Doughnuts or Dutchies.

More information can be read here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliebol

So many food adventures!

Though this week we will try to get a tram card and look at some used/rebuilt bicycles. Anywho, thanks for reading! Dank u wel en tot ziens! (thank you and see you later!)




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