Gosh, what a morning . . .

Our first train was at 9 this morning, and we had to catch two others -- one in Antwerp and the other in Rotterdam -- before ultimately arriving at Amsterdam's Centraal Station. We had close connections each time, but it all went off without a hitch (other than being busted for sitting in first class while holding 2nd class tickets, but we were able to feign ignorance as we are just simple tourists). In our defense, the train cars aren't labeled clearly and first and second class basically look the same. It's not like there was a piano bar in there.
Anyway, the trouble began once we actually got to Amsterdam. Our hotel is in the southern part of the city, which would have been about a 1.5 mile walk through crowded streets while carrying our luggage. We opted to take a tram, but the maps at the station were useless, so we didn't know which one to board. The ticket machines were also not working, so we had to take a number just to wait to buy a single fare ticket. After about 20 mins of mulling, we got out tickets and the man told us the best way to get to out hotel was to take a bus. Having an aversion to this mode of transportation, I still figured we'd chance the tram. Ultimately, we boarded basically the first tram we saw, not knowing where it was even headed, but since the water is to the north, and we had to go south, we felt it was a fairly safe bet.
So here we are at our hotel . . . finally. We plan to walk to Anne Frank's house and explore the area. It's much more congested here than Bruges, so it will take some adjusting. Since I haven't taken any pictures yet today, here's a collection of shots of Bricole!

Location:Nieuwe Looiersdwarsstraat,Amsterdam,The Netherlands