It seems every tourist that visits Amsterdam makes an obligatory stop at the iconic I amsterdam structural sign located in front of the Rijksmuseum. I am no exception. The catchphrase was initially used as a marketing campaign to promote the city and its businesses, but quickly became a motto that represents the pride and dedication the people have for their beautiful city.

The pride extends to tourists as well, as I am proud to have visited this lovely city myself this past September. Seeing and experiencing with my own eyes this charming city filled with tree-lined canals, abundant art and historical architecture, it has become one of my most favorite destinations to visit. Even just the simple observation of the many flowers adorning almost every home’s front steps has made me fall in love with this city.

I have a couple more posts lined up for the next few days — one of a photo essay of bicycles in Amsterdam and another of the flower auction in Alsmeer. I’m looking forward to sharing them with you.

Happy Friday and have a wonderful weekend!



Photo Postcard: The Iconic I Amsterdam Sign — Amsterdam, the Netherlands is a post from: my. Traveling Lens

It’s a heaven of sweets and indulgence. I found it by accident and at the last minute. I had to leave for the train station to go to the airport in a couple of hours. After a relaxing six days in Amsterdam, alas, it was finally time to leave for my next vacation destination to Morocco. My friend, Nikolaus, was a gracious host by letting me stay at his apartment, so I wanted to go out to buy him a card to write a thank you note.

I walked a few blocks and turned onto Haarlemmerstraat. I had done a lot of walking throughout Amsterdam during my stay. I found the streets and alleyways so charming, especially with all the flowers lining almost every front doorstep, but there’s something about Haarlemmerstraat that was so cute. The street seemed a little cleaner, the trees a little greener, the boutique stores and restaurants a little trendier, and the coffee shops a little hipper. It was a gem of a street. I bought my card and was getting ready to turn back, but out of nowhere, a magnetic force of some sort pulled me into this space that had an unassuming, elegant storefront. When I play out this scene in my head in slow motion, trust me that it’s quite dramatic. Uh, yeah.

And there it was. A cute little bakery called Unlimited Delicious. On a cute little street.

The name Unlimited Delicious is quite apropos. It is a heaven where bonbons, chocolate truffles, raspberry cheesecakes, custard tarts, madeleines, macaroons, chocolate caramel cakes tease each other to see who is sweetest and the most indulgent. I wanted to stay a little longer in heaven to play their game, but I was already playing my own mind games with the clock and the train. Tick tock. Choo choo. Tick tock. Choo choo. Time was running out, so I quickly picked out a few things to take back and took some photos.

Now that I’ve accidentally discovered this heaven of sweets and indulgence, I surely won’t be waiting until the last minute to visit the next time I’m in Amsterdam.

And below are some photos of the cute little street of Haarlemmerstraat.



Unlimited Delicious
Haarlemmerstraat 122 (Map)
1013 EX Amsterdam, The Netherlands
+31 020 622 4829

Unlimited Delicious — A Cute Little Bakery on a Cute Little Street in Amsterdam is a post from: my. Traveling Lens

The poor guy probably didn’t see it coming. The waterworks suddenly came running down my eyes. Just an hour earlier, I greeted him with an annoyingly chirpy hello and smile, probably in nervous anticipation of what I suspected was about to come.

I apologized profusely because I was embarrassed for my lack of self-control on showing the weaker parts of my emotions. He, John the plumber, told me that the pipe is broken and that he would need to dig up the ground to find and replace it. Yes, break the tiles, jackhammer the cement, flying dusts, dig the dirt, expose the broken pipes, replace those little suckers, smelly sewage, get the picture?! Breathe. I had experienced this two other times in the past few years — comes with the territory of occupying an older building. It’s no fun in every mental, physical, financial, and yeah, olfactory sense. And just in the past couple of days, my car also broke, the refrigerator, the dryer, the computer … all broken. Not exaggerating. So when John told me that he needed to dig up the ground for a massive repair job, my spirit also broke. And then my eyes broke, and thus, the waterworks. It felt like the last straw and too much at once.

The poor guy didn’t see it coming, but he was so understanding. He joked how he’d been married long enough to know how a woman’s emotions work. Hmmm, should I have taken comfort or offense with that? Kidding.

So I didn’t mean to have the highlight of this post be about my pathetic little problems. Because really, in the grand scheme of things, I know that I’m just a very tiny speck in a vast sea of sand. My problems are nothing compared to so many others in this world who have real life and death sufferings to deal with. And they probably don’t even have any plumbing, much less broken plumbing. But I also know that I’m human. And as humans, when our spirit breaks, like they occasionally do for whatever personal reasons, it’s okay to let it out. Right? I would have wanted to wait until John left before the waterworks started, but it is what is.

So getting to the real highlight of this post is how crucial it is for our spirit to heal in times of stress. I took a vacation to Amsterdam last month for some unwinding. One of the most relaxing things I did during my six days in Amsterdam was walking around the neighborhoods and taking photographs of this charming little city. Some of the things I’m always drawn to capturing with my camera are flowers and plants. It never gets tiring for me. Seriously, how could one look at such colorful flowers and not have their worries melt away, even for just the brief moment it takes to scroll through these photos below. Just as there are many things in life that could upset us, if we allow them to, there are as many other things that can brighten our spirits.

Since it’s not always possible to just get up and go whenever I deal with the occasional stress, it’s nice to have these to look back and remember the calm state of mind I felt when I was walking around taking pictures. The Netherlands is a beautiful country, rich with culture and history and people who are proud to show off nature’s beauty. I was truly impressed how so many homes maintain such beautiful plants and flowers on their front steps. Going through these photos and writing this post has been very therapeutic.

Just like nature has a way and reason for breaking our spirits every now and then, it also has a way of displaying beauty that lifts our spirits back up. Thank you, Amsterdam.

Amsterdam, Netherlands — A City of Flowers that Lifts the Broken Spirit is a post from: my. Traveling Lens