Giddy for Gidsy!

My absolute favorite thing about travel is meeting people who live in those destinations and if they take me somewhere they love to go... well I'll just be giddy from such luck!

That is why I thing Gidsy is PURE GENIUS!!!  Think Etsy but for Activities!!!!

I tell you a secret.  Once upon a time when I lived in NYC, I wanted to start a walking tour company.  Then I took a huge shotgun and shot myself in the foot about 38 times.  (Over thinking things like, nyc tourism activity permit, insurance, taxes, etc, etc, etc...)

Now for example, you're on your way to Amsterdam and you're walking around taking in the sites.  You come across one of the many picturesque canals and see lovely house boats.  You lean accross the bridge railing wistfully thinking... "Oh if I only knew someone who lived on such a boat, they could invite me over and I can see what it's like inside..."

Well GUESS WHAT!?  Few clicks on Gidsy and you're in!!!!  I myself have not used it yet, but the next time I'm going somewhere I can't wait to give this a try!  As for the house boat dinner, a total MUST quintessential Amsterdam.


Eat Dutch stew with houseboat crew! by Mark & Cynthia V. on Gidsy.com

Security declaimer: of course the jaded New Yorker in me is screaming not to go into any stranger's house as it could end in a bloody mess.... but I realize that it's a personal problem to work out privately with my team of psychologists so for now I tell the voice to shut it, and enjoy life ;)

Where would you take a tourist to in your town?

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It's a shipping container... it's an oil platform? ...it's a...

...RESTAURANT!  How cool is this!?

photos via

The Dutch really know how to do atmospheric eating.  I haven't been there yet, but my husband took his clients there.  Next time I have out of town friends over we'll take them there!  There is something definitively romantic about industrial landscapes!!  Can't wait to try it.  Want to go?

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Spring- effective immediately!

Gorgeous days are in effect! Wow! And to think, I took a pic of this very spot all covered in snow for a christmas card. Same tree but from the oposite side.
Verzonden vanaf mijn draadloze BlackBerry®-toestel

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Starbucks in the wilderness

Are you kidding me!? There is a line of about 20 people at the starbucks at the central station!!! Well maybe its because its the one and only starbucks in the netherlands. The ones at the airport don't count.
Verzonden vanaf mijn draadloze BlackBerry®-toestel

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Christmas Dinner in details...

Starter was a salad of fresh greens with vinegrette, walnuts and grapes. The ham rolls had yummy apple salad inside. The sweet and salty combo was just the thing to get our apetite going!

Next came my Tom Ka Kai soup. I was really glad with how it turned out, I'll put up the recipe later. It was a bit spicier then perhaps expected by the 'general public' as to my horror I heard some people totally started caughing. But I think once they realized that it's stuff for a serious palette they toughened up whiped their tears and ate it.

Main course was done by the hosts. Duck brest with fluffy potatoes, green beens and marinated zucchini, with a chutney of mango, pinaple and peach. Delishious enough to lick your little fingers!

Miele, Vito's lovely cousin, made the desert. Crumble apple pie with cinnamon ice cream!! Yes indeed it was that exciting. I for one, never seen cinnamon ice cream in the US. Perhaps PR/Marketing people have decided that Americans associate cinnamon with warmth and would not like it in an ice cream. Those PR/Marketing people, how dare them decide our lives!?

Anyway and there you have it, our Christmas Dinner on the farm.

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a Dutch farm house...

Vito's aunt and uncle live on a typical Dutch farm. I love going there and trying to imagine what time must have been like back in the day. There is something so quietly happy about it, I don't know how to explain it.

We got a surprise this morning when we woke up, the snow that has just about all melted yesterday was back again! It snowed overnight and was all white again!

Above is a shot of the farm and here is Vito with Shakira.

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"The Princess Diaries" Part 2 - My lands

So what! Don't you imagine when visiting a new city that you're simply looking over the developments in the far side of your kindgdom!? No...? Oh, well, it's just me then...

Haha

So we went for a ride around town, rivers, fields, cows, gardens, orchards, castles... yes EVEN castles!
The whole thing was unbearably romantic! Even the sun was smiling down on us in approval! It was unseasonably warm as we wore just t-shirts!












It really felt like the top of the world. What a great feeling it is when you have a whole beautiful day to do nothing but enjoy and have fun with a special someone... who is willing to make out with you in the courtyard of every castle you pass... or while sitting on any stone wall overlooking the river and a picturesque village on the other side...

Ahhhhh..... yes, aren't you glad you had your barf bag ready!?? :)

Just so this isn't all enveloped in some kind of mystery we were in this lovely town (and surrounding areas).

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