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Our lovely houseboat home in Amsterdam. From top: full kitchen, front door showing the boat moored, living room and laundry (big treat) and view from the deck out front.

We enjoyed a comfortable overnight flight from JFK on JetBlue, our first transatlantic flight with this airline which has not had the best reputation in the past. We were pleasantly surprised by the comfort of the business class cabin and the friendly and helpful staff. (I have found both Delta and American cabin staff to be less than pleasant in recent years.)

I booked a houseboat on the canal for this stay, and it has been a delightful experience on every level. If you have traveled to Holland in recent years you will know that hotel rooms in Amsterdam are extremely expensive, so we were thrilled to have a full "condo" with large bright open plan living room and full kitchen, right on the water, and a generous bedroom and bathroom upstairs. Beautifully designed and decorated, with every comfort inlcuding a washing machine and dishwasher. Our hosts who live next door, have been wonderful. It's on a quiet, treelined street, a short walk to resturaunts and shops. We have enjoyed watching the waterfowl sailing past our door, including ducks with their fluffy chicks sailing behind them, moorhens, seagulls and a swan. I think that our room in Paris is going to be a sad comedown from this lovely lifestyle!

The reason for our trip to Amsterdam was to visit an old friend here, who has not been well. We did not have plans to sightsee and we have spent most of the time sitting with my friend and talking about the good old days. We were lucky to also meet up with other friends from our early years in Cape Town and that is a real treat. Friendships going back to childhood and college days are precious, especially as one ages!!

Larry connected with friends from the Tesla community and we have a rental Tesla but parking in the city is challenging and some of the old streets barely have space for one car, so catching an Uber or jumping on a bus is a better way to get around.I have always enjoyed Amsterdam which is a small city, easy to navigate and very relaxed and safe, except for learning to avoid instant death from the phalanxes of very fast bicycles whizzing by at alarming speeds everywhere in the city.. Many streets have dedicated bicycle lanes but one has to train oneself to be mindful at all times.

On Sunday we drive to Paris where we will join Lenore and Joel Raphael, friends from Cary, for a jazz concert at the Swedish Club. Then it's off to Provence and the art residency. The weather in the South of France will be a lovely respite from Amsterdam's grey wet days, but we expected the weather and are grateful to have this time to reconnect.

Below: Larry enjoying fresh oysters and a large gin at the food hall nearby, De Hallen, a convered old tram depot.