LAS ADVENTURES DE CARLOS-MANUEL: July 2012

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

WHEN IN LONDON... VISIT AMSTERDAM PART 3

ALL IMAGES ARE COPYRIGHTED AND THEY ARE MY PROPERTY. THEY ARE NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN

Bikes rule in Amsterdam. They get their own traffic lights and bike lanes, not a bike lane to the "side of the rode" but several lanes on the road.

High fashion is one of the best things in Amsterdam. The best labels are all over the place, not in retail stores but their own main label stores. And he shoes! Oh, dear Gods! The shoes!!!

Clogs, of course are the signature of the Netherlands. There are all over the place. Some of the cutest things.

Fascinating strange things are in Amsterdam: A "pot" store, a condom store, a man's urinal on one of the many street corners, a graffiti wall, a music wagon, and a automatic food restaurant.

Honors are given to educators, iron workers, sex workers, playwrights, and strange habits.

And since bicycles reign, little cars with orange fur are the norm; then there is street art and, um, magic!

Monday, July 30, 2012

WHEN IN LONDON, VISIT AMSTERDAM PART 2

ALL IMAGES ARE COPYRIGHTED AND THEY ARE MY PROPERTY. THEY ARE NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN

Amsterdam is broken down into section and this sections are marked by the different canals found all over the city.

The canals are so beautiful and so wide that when there is a parade, it takes place in the canals rather than the streets.

Some people say all the canals look the same but I found it unique because each has something different to offer.

The canals are used by boats which take tourist on different tours.

There are so many different type of canal tours with different teams and different points of view that it could be overwhelming to decide which boat tour to take.

Even though it was tempting, I did not take any boat tours. I decided to do my touring by foot and on my own.

What amazed me the most about the canals is the fact that there are 'boat houses,' and they are beautiful boat houses.

Some decorated very artistically.

Some very simple.

And others are simply "pet shelters." Talking about loving animals!

And the views are magnificent!!!

WHEN IN LONDON.... VISIT AMSTERDAM

ALL IMAGES ARE COPYRIGHTED AND THEY ARE MY PROPERTY. THEY ARE NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN

Let me start by stating that I have never seen a city so beautiful and so inspiring than Amsterdam. I've seen many beautiful cities but Amsterdam is the one I've chosen as my retiring city. I was asked what I thought of Amsterdam and I said, "To me, it is like a box of expensive and succulent chocolate and I'm INSIDE the box eating each piece." And this is why....

An with more elegant stores and restaurants I've seen in my entire life.

An airport with a ceiling where grass grows. Talking about going green.

The airport connects with Amsterdam Central by train.

One good great thing about the trains is that they come in all colors, RAINBOW colors!!!

Amsterdam Central is the parting point to ANY point in the city. It seems like the city starts here.

The two means of transportation are the TRAM...

And BICYCLES, lots and lots of bicycles, with five-story parking lots always full to capacity. You can see cars here and there but very little. In fact, a new bill is being worked out to "prohibit" cars from being in the city. Amsterdam could become the first carless city in the world.

My hotel was located in the southeast side of the city, just two short blocks from the famous "Leidseplein," which is exactly 2 miles away from Amsterdam Central. My hotel was gay owned and operated, located on Kersktraat.

Amsterdam has many attractions and I suspect most people like to go there because they can get "high" in a coffeehouse. I don't smoke at all so, that was not my reason to be there. But, one of the things I love to do is look into the history of things. So here you have "Bulldog Coffeehouse," the original and oldest coffeehouse in the city.

Interesting thing about Amsterdam. It is legal to smoke mariguana inside such coffee houses but it is against the law to smoke cigarettes, so most people smoke pot inside and step outside for their regular cigarette smoke. Also, starting January 2013, selling "pot" to tourist will be illegal. So, those young people planning to go to Amsterdam and get high next summer, sorry!

The "Red District" is a national attraction. Prostitution is legal in Amsterdam so those sex workers are busy day and night. There aren't any red districts for "women" or for "gay men" for that matter, but I most gay clubs have "dark rooms" so don't need to pay to have sex. When it comes to women, I don't know anything about it. Sorry.

As an interesting fact, the "red district" shares its streets with a famous chapel.

And while the men walk the narrow red district streets looking for "the one," I simply admired them without care because they think I'm there looking for a lady of my own. Little do they know.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

WHEN IN LONDON.... VISIT CARDIFF & DR WHO

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Ever since the new wave of Dr. Who came onto the screen, I got hooked into such series. And when actors I actually admired became incarnations of the Doctor, I felt in love with the show.

With that in mind, I decided to go to Cardiff and become part of the "Dr. Who Experience."

Cardiff is an easy two hour train ride from London Paddington. Once in Cardiff, the place was easy to find. Either signs told me where to go...

or unique structures guided me in the right direction...

or when asking people, they tried to describe the building for me...

Either way, arriving at the Dr. Who Experience was no problem.

On the way there I saw wonderful things:

The Millennium Stadium, where the first Olympic game was played (Soccer: Britain vs New Zealand...)

The Bay with its magnificent structures and patios...

The Roald Dahl Plaza (Roald was born in Wales and its the author of many famous books such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, and Matilda to named a few...)