Amsterdam

Dreaming of: Schiphol Airport

Shopping, Souvenirs, ,

After spending a week in Amsterdam – including that touristy classic, a stay on a houseboat – I was actually pleased that bad weather in the U.S.delayed my flight home.

Because that gave me more time to hang out in Schiphol Airport, where I was really temped to buy these (somewhat corny, I know….) souvenirs.

The ginger cake would have been a nice gift for my neighbor (I bought her a tote bag from the Cat Cabinet – shh, don’t tell her..) and those wooden tulips – spotted for sale everywhere in Amsterdam that by the end of week I was tired of them – would have been a long-lasting spot of color in the gray Seattle winter I’ve returned to.

I know… just another reason to go back. Soon.

AMS WOODEN TULIPS

AMS Ginger Cake

Cheap and Offbeat Amsterdam

Air Travel, Museums, , , ,

On Monday, ash from the Icelandic volcano caused the cancellation of a lot of flights and left a lot of people stuck at the airport.

Again.

I was one of those people. I’d booked a one-day return trip from Amsterdam to Liverpool just to tour the John Lennon Airport, where the slogan is “Above us only sky.”

The airport has this 25 ton, 51-foot long yellow submarine sitting out front and I bet a lot of volcano-delayed travelers would have liked to have fired this up as an alternative form of transportation.

There’s lot more to Lennon stuff – and a fun-looking fossil ‘mystery tour’ – at this airport, so I’m determined to make my way back there soon.

But since I was stuck at Schiphol, I used to the time to work on the slide-show-style story about Amsterdam I had due. You can see the full story – Cheap and Offbeat Amsterdam on msnbc.com, but here are a few photos that didnt’ make it into the story.

These suitcases, carry-ons from another era – are on display at the Museum of Bags and Purses –

And it’s hard to miss these giant eyeglass frames at the National Museum of Spectacles.

Love the layover: Museum of Bags and Purses

Art, Exhibits, Layover, Museums, ,

There are a lot of things to love about Amsterdam, including the canals, The Van Gogh Museum, The Rijksmuseum, the cheese, the bicycles and the chocolate.   On my most recent visit, I discovered one more: The Museum of Bags and Purses Hendrikje.

The 4000 piece collection includes pouches, pockets, purses, suitcases and accessories dating back to the 16th century and tells a wide variety of stories about fashion, art, history, decorative arts, and industrial innovations.

Here a just a few of my favorite items in the collection, starting with, of course, this assortment of trunks and suitcases:

This bag is actually a working telephone!

And this tortoise-shell bag inlaid with mother of pearl is the purse that started the collection.