Canals, diamonds and red lights an Amsterdam getaway COMPLETED - Page 11 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Thursday 9 February part six: skating on (not so!) thin ice...
We walked a little further down and found some skaters and stopped to watch them and photograph them, hot chocolates still in hand!
From there, we walked a little further down and found a couple more skaters...
Then we found the tram stop back to the hotel. We had a bit of a wait, but nothing too terrible and then they were on our way back to the hotel.
We thought the name on this van was classic!
Our room was now ready and very nice it was too....
The view outside...
We spent a couple of hours back in the room just warming up and watching some British TV, while I caught up on trip report writing, photo uploading and the boards and someone else slept.
When we headed out, we seriously layered up, as no doubt it would be a lot colder now that the sun had gone down. And my goodness, it was! The wind was just piercing and within a few seconds, I could feel my cheeks and nose starting to freeze, so we both hauled up our scarves to try and protect our faces as much as possible.
Thankfully, we didnt have long to wait for the tram and then we were on our way to the Liedesplein, which is where wed seen various restaurants earlier and we figured we could find something to eat there.
When we got off, we took a few photos of the square at night and actually it felt warmer here than it had at the hotel. I guess its a bit more sheltered.
We headed off to look for a tapas place that wed seen advertised earlier, where it said that you could get unlimited tapas dishes for 18.50. That would be worth it if there was enough for me to eat, but we soon realised it was a sign, directing us to where it was, so we set off that way.
On the way, we had a look at Pancake Corner, but what put us off was a) the guy outside trying to entice people inside (never a good sign) and b) they showed live football. Not my idea of a nice, quiet dinner!
We walked a little way down the road next to it and saw a little Italian place called Cucina Typica Italiana. The menu outside was certainly extensive, with a huge variety of pizza and pasta plates and it looked busy inside, so we decided to give it a try. I figured it would either be an amazing find or one of the worst meals ever...
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World Its hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Finally caught up! Looks like a great trip so far! A bit cold, but you're not letting that slow you down.
Funny, I'm craving hot chocolate with a pile of whipped cream now....
Finally caught up! Looks like a great trip so far! A bit cold, but you're not letting that slow you down.
Funny, I'm craving hot chocolate with a pile of whipped cream now....
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World Its hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Thursday 9 February part seven: this is some place!
We were seated immediately and I chose a table as far from the door as possible, as we wanted to warm up.
We spent ages going through the menu, as there was literally two pages of pasta items and a page of pizza items, plus appetizers, meat and fish dishes, drinks and desserts. It was certainly comprehensive and made choosing anything a real issue!
Finally, we got there, with me opting for the eggplant with tomato and cheese for appetiser, which was lovely and packed with flavours.
Mark started off with the fried calamari, which he really enjoyed. I sampled a bit and it was well cooked and not stringy, as it can sometimes be, if overcooked.
For entree, I eventually opted for the seafood lasagne, on the grounds that it was something unusual that I wouldnt normally have. It was wonderful, although there was too much of it and I just couldnt finish it, although I did give it a good go.
Mark went for the tortellini con carne in Bolognese sauce and seemed to enjoy it. There was certainly nothing left on his plate by the time he finished with it!
Id made sure to leave room for dessert by not finishing my main course, as I had seen one of my favourite desserts ever on the menu, tiramisu and I just had to try that. Oh my goodness, this seriously had to be one of the best tiramisus Ive ever had. It was so lovely and light and, although I had a couple of mouthfuls left, I pretty much managed to clear my plate. Im so glad I saved room for it!
We finished the meal with two shots of limoncello to warm us off before we headed outside and that certainly gave us a warm glow!
The meal came to 60 in total, which we thought was good, considering the quality of the food wed enjoyed.
Cucina Typica Italiana:
Appetiser 9 8
Entree 8½ 9
Dessert 10 N/A
Service 7½ 8
Atmosphere 8½ 9
Value for money 8 8½
Average score:
When we came out of there, we certainly werent feeling the cold, thanks to the limoncello, but within a couple of minutes, it did start again!
We headed across the square, seeing a number 5 tram turn up. We didnt race, as we assumed that it wouldve gone by the time we got there. Not a bit of it, although with as we walked over, of course it went. The stop didnt show another number 5 tram, although eventually it came back up, saying we had another 10 minutes or so to wait.
As it was so cold, I suggested walking over to the American Hotel, which was quite a radical departure from architecture of its day when it was built in 1902, as you can see.
Some of the advertising was erm interesting...
We wandered back over to the tram stop, getting a few more photos on the way...
We stood there for another five minutes and, just as the tram was due to arrive, we noticed that the times had shifted and, instead of 8:43 pm, suddenly it saying 8:49 pm. Oh for goodness sake! As you can see, by now we were both seriously bundled up...
Finally, it arrived to save us from the cold and everyone around us rushed for it. We passed the first door and headed to a second that didnt seem to have as many people waiting to get on. We crammed ourselves in, then a load more people did. To be honest, there just wasnt the room in there and we were like sardines. We were not impressed.
We rode along like that and no-one got off at the first stop we got to. Then, at the second stop, a load of people did want to get off and we all got pushed and shoved out of the way, which I accept happens, but my goodness I arched my back and that really hurt. I was not impressed. Thank goodness that gave us some air to breathe and we were off at the next stop. Not a pleasant journey back.
We walked back to the hotel and walked a bit of British TV (they have both BBC1 and BBC2 here! ) and then it was off to bed. It had been a long day for us...
Total amount we got free from the I Amsterdam card today:
De Nieuwe Kerk 15
Amsterdam Museum 10
Total for today: 25
The weather today was very cold, but at least dry, with temperatures only in the mid 20s. The best thing today was watching the skaters and our amazing Italian dinner. The worst thing today was how cold it was outside! Today we tried going to the Amsterdam Museum And the result was it was fascinating and definitely worth visiting. The most magical moment today was watching the skaters out on the frozen canals.
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Good choice in the Italian restaurant! That's my favorite cuisine, I could eat it every day, and your meals looked wonderful! Brrr, it's cold outside!
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The wind was just piercing and within a few seconds, I could feel my cheeks and nose starting to freeze, so we both hauled up our scarves to try and protect our faces as much as possible. 
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The stop didnt show another number 5 tram, although eventually it came back up, saying we had another 10 minutes or so to wait. 
Thank goodness that gave us some air to breathe and we were off at the next stop. Not a pleasant journey back. 
Brrr, it's cold outside!
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