Poppies...

 At the end of May, the field where I walk Kati was extra colorful with a big influx of poppies.

Most were red.

Some were clustered...

...while others were orange like the ones in California.

A few pink ones were sprinkled around...

...while this red one with a white edge seemed especially rare.

The poppies are definitely spreading as they were even growing along the canal on our old street.

The swans were also multiplying with six cygnets. Apparently a seventh didn’t survive, but we saw the rest grow up over the summer.

This is something else that popped up in our neighborhood while the road was being repaired. Can’t tell if this sign is just confused since it’s usually boys who grab their crotches and girls who cross their legs, or if this is some kind of statement on gender fluidity.

Lady and the Tramp...

Back in March, we had Gillian and David over for dinner and Beauly joined us as well.

It wasn’t long before Jimmy attempted to recreate that infamous scene from Lady and the Tramp.

Lady was clearly confused by what was expected of her.

Tramp would have definitely gobbled up any spaghetti.

At the end of May, I brought my camera along on some of our walks in hopes to get photos of the dogs for a farewell gift that I had planned for Gillian, who was repatriating to Scotland in August.

Sadly, Beauly, who had a heart condition, made it to his 11th birthday in Edinburgh but then passed away shortly thereafter.

Unfortunately, there was a major delay by the artist—a graphic designer who specializes in using maps in her artworks—that I had commissioned to make Gillian’s gift and it wasn’t finished until months after she moved. Luckily it turned out great and was finished in time for her first visit back to Holland.

Seafood and Hashing with Stacie...

That evening Stacie treated me to a delicious seafood platter at The Seafood Bar.

The following day, I was thrilled that Stacie joined us in Utrecht for a hash, her first. Loved this cool street art on trail.

Also loved the beer stop at Fort aan de Klop, built around 1850 as part of the Waterline, a series of water-based defenses.

Stacie couldn’t have picked a nicer day to hash. Luckily there was also a great trail with a mix of city and woods.

She had so much fun that she even bought a hash shirt. Hopefully she’ll eventually hash in California.

An Unexpected Ride...

Then we walked up one floor to the 11th to see one of the suites that has a glass-covered hole in the floor.

Around the corner we realized that some exterior windows were missing and that people appeared to be walking through them. We had to talk ourselves out of thinking that people were voluntarily plunging to their deaths before following them.

Turned out that they were queuing to get into a construction elevator. Stacie immediately said there was no way she was getting into it. After I reminded her that she clearly wasn’t a chicken because she doesn’t hesitate to throw herself down a mountain wearing skinny little sticks attached to her feet and that she could always close her eyes, she agreed to join me.

Rest assured, neither the hotel chain nor construction company could afford the PR disaster if the elevator went into a free fall.

Clearly it wasn’t built for sightseeing, as the view was obstructed.

Here’s the view once we arrived outside the 17th floor.

Once inside, we queued past a lot of pipework for an elevator to take us to the top on the 24th floor.

Once back on the ground, we were in awe looking back at the elevator and realizing that we had gone up from the top of the first section to the top of the second on the outside of the building. And all without having to sign a single liability waiver.

On October 4, 2020, we finally hashed by the finished hotel.

Open Construction Day...

When Stacie, who moved back to the US in 2007, asked me to help her at a conference in Amsterdam, I was surprised because I know nothing about her industry. I was even more surprised when I found out what my assignment was: taking photos of slides during presentations that I couldn’t even begin to understand. Turns out I didn’t even have to do it on the sly as most of the audience was taking photos of the slides.

In between committing corporate espionage, I convinced Stacie to come with me to the hotel next door which was under construction and was hosting an open house as part of Construction Day 2019, where construction projects around the country are open to the public to see their progress.

We had to walk across planks over giant puddles...

...around to the back of the building...

...before we could finally go inside.

Our first stop was to see a sample room without furniture. Apparently the 650-room nHow Amsterdam RAI Hotel will be the largest in the Benelux.

Back in The Hague...

After the canal parade, we made a quick stop in The Hague to go to the grand opening of Our Embassy, a new temporary museum within the former US Embassy (a new one was built towards Wassenaar that I was able to tour with the AWC).

I’ve always thought the building was a monstrosity and should be torn down, but apparently it is a national treasure since it was designed by Hungarian-American Architect Marcel Breuer in 1959 and will be sold in the hopes it is converted into a hotel.

In the meantime, we weren’t overly impressed with the scattered artwork, but enjoyed seeing the building itself, eating some free snacks...

...and taking a few selfies.

The following day was an Amsterdam H3 Hash with an unusual theme: Sex Workers. Only Lisa and Jimmy dressed up at the end of the trail.