18 August 2001. We are still in Amsterdam. We have been exploring on our own for a while but are now joining the rest of the coach party.
Our rendezvous point is the restaurant where we shall have our evening meal. Ben's Bar. When we get there, there are already a few familiar faces from the coach milling about. We get a drink apiece and wait for our guide Chris and the rest of the folks.
We sat in a corner of the restaurant by a window that is only just out of sight to the right of the photograph above. On the left of the photo and directly opposite us over the canal are a few bicycles, chained against the railing. We were kept entertained throughout the meal by the antics of various tea-leaves, who were put out at the presence of chains, but who proceeded to remove wheels, seats, handlebars and any other bits they could before one persistent chap came back after having already taken the saddle. He produced a huge bunch of keys and tried them patiently until he finally was able to hoist the frame onto his shoulder and set off, accompanied by a rousing round of applause from the restaurant...
It started to go dark and an air of expectancy crept over Chris's party. She was about to lead us through Amsterdam's notorious red light district! She warned us against taking photographs. Although a quick visit to Google images will show that taking photos can be possible (you'll have to do your own searching - I'm not providing any links!) apparently both cameras and photographers have been known to be thrown into canals...
I didn't risk it. Although this could be because Fran didn't let me stand still for more than a second and also because shortly after spying a rather delicious form in a window lit by red fluorescent tubes, I walked straight into a crotch-high bollard and thoughts of making a transaction suddenly didn't seem as appealing... The rest of the group did however find it very funny...! There were very many windows, most of which were occupied by a comprehensive assortment of women. All ages (over 21 most if not all), sizes, shapes and colours were there. Dressed in lingerie, some were miserable, others bored and others enticing. Some could have been supermodels, really beautiful girls. The coach picked us up and delivered us back to the hotel. Then a "men only" optional trip returned for a couple of hours. I wasn't allowed. In fact Fran maintained a firm grasp of my ear throughout the evening...
Now I know... The lack of photos may be a disappointment! So my final offering for the 18th of August 2001 is this. It was done just to illustrate this entry. The research I've had to do to produce this has been exhausting... And as I'm sure I've mentioned before on this blog - I'm rubbish at drawing people!
Were those people actually stealing bikes in broad daylight? Next thing you know, they’ll legalise all kinds of things in Amsterdam!
ReplyDeleteYep - we were told it was cheaper to buy a bike than it was to buy a lock so consequently very few were locked up. This then makes them more of a prize...
ReplyDeleteNice fill someone in on and this enter helped me alot in my college assignement. Thanks you for your information.
ReplyDeleteNot sure what sort of college assignment that was... :-)
ReplyDelete