Created on Sunday, 01/13/2008 4:02 PM by Unknown User
| We began our day at the Aalsmeer flower auction, the largest one in the world. Thousands of different kinds of flowers of many shapes, colors, and sizes filled the gigantic warehouse. It was bustling with activity in both the warehouse and the auction rooms, where people were buying flowers left and right. After the Flower auction we made our way to the Kasteel de Haar. The castle grounds there looked very beautiful even in the middle of winter. We took a guided tour and learned about the history of the Netherlands in the 13th and 14th centuries. We were able to go into several rooms, each filled with the original furniture-the kitchen even had a complete set of copper utensils and cookware. Our last stop was to Solvay Pharmaceuticals, where we were split up into 3 groups and given different tours of parts of the plant. Their main concern right now is the influenza, and bird flu vaccines. Each group got to see different parts of each process in producing the vaccine. Most of the groups had to wear protective suits, boots and hats to get into the facilities. Overall it was a great experience and a splendid day. | |
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Day 02 Amsterdam (permalink)
Created on Sunday, 01/13/2008 3:55 PM by Unknown User
| Sunday, January 6, 2008 Today we woke up bright and early to enjoy a great Dutch breakfast in Amsterdam. We then walked down the road to the English Reformed Church. Inside the church we able to admire a building built over 400 years ago. The service took roughly two hours, but it was refreshing to see a different, relaxed, yet traditional service. During the service the church welcomed a new deacon and participated in communion. Following the service we had free time for two hours to explore the city and eat lunch. We later met for a Canal Cruise through the city. It was a great opportunity to capture pictures of the canals, bridges, houseboats, old harbor, and architecture of the city. The tour ended at the Anne Frank House where we took a self guided tour. Seeing the actual house really made her story come alive. We were even able to walk past the famous bookshelf which was used to hide her family. Some people even took the opportunity to send a “leaf” and a video message to friends and family members via email. The rest of the evening was free time. People were able to shop, walk the city, eat dinner, and embrace the Dutch culture of Amsterdam. | |
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Day 01 Amsterdam (permalink)
Created on Monday, 01/07/2008 6:04 PM by Unknown User
We exited the airport and boarded our tour bus. We took a nice scenic drive through Amsterdam on our way to St. Bravo church. The church was beautiful with its high ceilings and amazing organ. The organ was said to have been played by both Handel and Mozart. We were then given some free time to roam the markets of the town. Then we traveled to our hotel which was located centrally downtown Amsterdam. After we had settled in the hotel we had a group dinner at a nice restaurant across the street from our hotel. We had the rest of the night free to walk throughout the downtown area and to see what it had to offer. There was plenty of shopping available, some great architecture, and even some ollebollen to enjoy.
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Trip to Amsterdam (permalink)
Created on Monday, 01/07/2008 5:30 PM by Unknown User
The trip started (for some) as a puddle jump flight over Lake Michigan to the O'Hare airport. This flight was short and, thankfully, uneventful although the landing was quite rough and provided a rude awakening to those that fell asleep on that flight. The flight to Amsterdam was long, dull, and a good time to catch up on some needed sleep. The in flight movies included Ratatouille and Rush Hour 3. When we finally exited the airport to reach fresh air we were greeted by the pleasant scent of a very Dutch treat: ollebollen. This pretty much sums up the trip to the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.
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