Amsterdam

We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.
— anonymous

It took me to a place I had never been to a world I never knew and to a city where bikes, art and water ruled.  That is Amsterdam in a nutshell to me.  The weather was sometimes dreary and wet and dark in September. The fall foliage was coming to an end but flashes of sunshine popped out of a corner of sky every now and then.  It reminds me of another city I know: Seattle... No one likes to tell you in Seattle that the weather is not always as bad as it seems it is a little known secret that it keeps tourists from taking over the city and Amsterdam gave off the same vibe.  Of course they have the tulips in the spring that brings people from all over the world and lovely summers so I heard but the fall and winter seemed for the lesser known. Bikes splashed up sprays of water as people pedaled at high speeds pelted by raindrops.   The museums were a refuge from storms brewing outside.  The Anne Frank house would not have been the same in sunshine as it brought on a haunt of things past that should never have been.  The quiet of the canal waters surrounded by lights and sometimes a siren or yapping dog off in the distance to break the silence to remind you, "Yes I am a city. Yes I am Amsterdam."  People who could only love a cith both at it's best and worst. That is Seattle. That was Amsterdam.  

Dank U Wel Amsterdam