We have arrived!

My final day at The Guild went really well yesterday (despite having had a very late night), I completed a project I had been working on and left promptly with plenty of time for last minute packing and the journey from home to the ferry was uneventful. Well, apart from seeing that the cats had brought home a toad just as we were about to go out the door! Thankfully I managed to rescue the toad and pop it outside.

The crossing was smooth and we both slept like the proverbial logs. An early morning breakfast call when we docked at Hook of Holland, and we were in Amsterdam by about 10.30am. Luggage left at the station, Amsterdam 'i-cards' bought (valid for 72 hours) which would give us travel on trams and buses, free or discounted entry to many museums, discounts at loads of restaurants and a free canal cruise and we were sorted.

I had forgotten to pack more than one pair of socks so our first stop was to C&A where I bought a pack of 8 brightly coloured pairs for 7 euros. Being quite shameless and as the pair I had on had developed 'sock creep' I parked myself down on a bench in Dam Square and put on one of the new pairs. No-one batted an eyelid.

After a leisurely stroll it was time for lunch and we discovered a lovely little cafe - Van Dael - just a step away from the square. Great for people watching and attracted a nice mix of Amsterdammers and visitors.

We checked in to our accommodation mid-afternoon and it seemed like only yesterday that we'd last visited.

A full set of my general Amsterdam pics can be seen here.