Today was the gay pride parade on one of the canals in Amsterdam and we were invited to attend. I wouldn’t normally take the kids to this type of event but I felt like we should go for a short while to be with our extended family and to experience a celebration that is not usually ours to share. We like to learn about people, religion, culture, and geography, and when we are invited, we like to show our respect and participate along with our loved ones.

People were so happy and crowded all sides of the streets near the canal and over the bridges probably 10 people deep that you couldn’t hardly see. There was music and dancing and flamboyant costumes and streamers and horns and bright pink boas and tiaras every where. The canals were filled with boats and dancers and groups of people celebrating diversity and acceptance, including the police and the mayor of Amsterdam. I liked that and I liked seeing so many happy people. But I didn’t like my kids seeing nearly naked dancing people whatever their orientation is. So we kissed our cousins goodbye and went on with the day, looking for the best Frites place in town.

There was a little shop near the Singel that sells french fries in little paper cones with whatever type of sauce you’d like. They are hot and thick and fresh and the line wrapped around the side of the building. They have been in business since 1957 and they just sell frites and sodas and they aren’t cheap, so they must be making a fortune! We all enjoyed them, except for lil’ C who order BBQ sauce on his and it tasted like Thousand island dressing.

We decided to walk with our snack into the indoor shopping mall and just look around. That was until a security guard approached us and told us we couldn’t eat in the mall. Another learning… Looks like we should do one thing at a time and relax and enjoy our fries. Good idea! We walked back out and finished and then went back up to the top floor of the building to check out the 360 views of the rooftops of the city. We sat and ordered drinks and just hung out together. It was very relaxing and quiet and peaceful. Just what I needed after the stressful earlier part of the day. I don’t much care for crowds.

We also got experience with the fickle weather. We all left the house in short sleeves, and we’ve learned to carry umbrellas, but we’re not used to the weather going from hot to pouring rain and then back again. That’s ok, we’ll adapt and get used to it and add light rain coats to our day bags.

It’s nice to be home and watching the Olympics. We enjoyed watching the mixed doubles tennis, but it’s making me really want to play again and dust off my racket. Know anyone in Amstelveen area that wants to play with me?

Hope you have a good day and experience all that life offers you. xo