Day One - Amsterdam - October 2025

On Friday, October 17, we flew from Birmingham to Houston ...and then from Houston to Amsterdam. Those overnight flights are tough!! We arrived in Amsterdam at 9:20 am on Saturday, October 18 and after we went through customs and grabbed our luggage, a lovely driver was waiting for us in the airport and we were whisked into a waiting Mercedes van and driven to our Barbizon Palace Hotel. We assumed we would be leaving our luggage and wandering around town or waiting in the lobby until our room was ready, but...unbelievably...our room was ready! We grabbed a glass of water and followed our luggage to our room. We promptly set a 30 minute alarm and took a quick snooze. Mark did NOT want to get up, but I finally convinced him to get up. We had 2:00 pm tickets to Our Lord in the Attic museum. Mark kept calling it "The Church in the Attic." You can read about it Here.. We had a map and the concierge had said go left and left ...but we almost gave up because we were so tired and our map was labeled in Dutch ...but we finally found the building just a few minutes past 2. Whew!!

The minute we left the hotel, we saw cool canals immediately. We saw thousands of bicycles. There are 900,000 residents in Amsterdam and a million and a half bicycles. The saying is, "If you hear the bell, it is too late."

We most often travel with a group of friends so we had to figure out how to take photos of each other! A co-worker showed me how to use the timer on my phone which makes selfies look somewhat better!

Let me tell you a little about Our Lord in the Attic where we saw some really old things. The downstairs floors were homes and the churches were hidden in the top floors. This was during a time when Catholics were not allowed to worship openly so they had "hidden" churches all over Amsterdam.

It amazes me how old things are in other countries. Below are the robes from one of the priests.

For the musicians reading my blog - below is the organ. If you zoom in, you will recognize some words even though they are not in English.

The ceiling in the worship space was lovely!

Isn't it amazing that this whole church was hidden away in the upstairs portions of a building!!

We rented a small device and ear pieces to act as our guide. When you entered a room, you scanned a QR code to hear about the rooms. Then you could listen to info about the families or the art. It was fascinating.

These stairs are original to the house dating back to the 1600's. They evidently had tiny feet. There were sooooo many steps. The houses on the canal were taxed by frontage measurements so most are 15 feet wide and then 30+ feet deep and multiple stories tall.

The piece of furniture below was really cool. The story of the Prodigal Son/Loving Father was painted in each of the squares. The people in the paintings were obviously Dutch which lent even more depth to the story.

These room below had all of these symmetrical features. One example was how the ceiling matched up with the floor pattern. There was also a fake door on one side of the room to make it symmetrical!!

Below is a part of the tiny kitchen.

These kitchen tiles are original to the house. One set showcases tiny animals of all kinds.

The tiles behind Mark showcased tiny people.

We walked back to the hotel - and after our crazy walk-around to find the museum, we had realized that the museum was actually very close to the hotel! I think we rested a minute - maybe!

We then headed back out to a Pub near the hotel.

Mark loves dark beer. They had dark beer and he was happy.

He ordered a beer immediately.

The Pub was tiny and intimate- we loved it! We ordered what we thought was homemade Guacamole...but instead it was homemade hot mulled wine! The hot mulled wine was tasty.

The girls behind Mark were playing cards. We assumed they were local folks since it was Saturday.

We ordered fries - which they LOVE in Amsterdam! There were places that served JUST french fries. They serve them with a mayo based sauce, which was actually tasty.

A group of people were sitting right behind me (and we were very close) and one of the men and I started talking. They were from Australia and he sounded JUST like Crocodile Dundee. He loved listening to me talk with my southern drawl.

Our "friends" we met in the Houston airport had told us to eat at Loetje (Lucha) so after a quick trip back to the room, we realized we needed to eat dinner so we walked across the canal and found it!

I don't look like I haven't slept in 36 hours, do I? (besides a 30 minute nap) - Looked again -- yes, yes I do! haha!

The city of Amsterdam was gorgeous at night!! This photo (below) is looking back toward our hotel and the church that was located next door.

The restaurant was located in the white building in front of the train station.

Mark ordered a filet and I ordered a burger - I ate the meat and cheese and lettuce and tomato. Supposedly this is a Dutch chain restaurant, but it did not feel like a chain nor did the food taste like it was prepared in the kitchen of a chain. The restaurant was PACKED and the food was tasty! At this point, we were so very tired.

We crashed and burned and got up the next morning ready to roll with our group! Many more posts to come. If you want to know anything about Amsterdam, River Cruises down the Rhine, Amawaterways, the food, the people we met - let me know and I'll try to include. I don't know which days I will write these posts . . .but I have a lot to share. (If you get bored, that is ok -- I'm writing these so that when I'm old, I can remember what we did!!)

How Can It Be November Hodgepodge?

 

1. Besides Thanksgiving, something on your November calendar you're looking forward to? Let me begin by saying, "I LOVE THANKSGIVING"! Our daughter-in-law's birthday is Tuesday and she will be 40! Our twins will celebrate their 39th this month. I am working on getting everyone together at the same time. As a mother, I love when we can all be together.

Also, by the end of November (plus one week of December), I will have completed two more courses at Samford University. Between June 1 and finals week in December, I will have accumulated 18 more credit hours. I am chipping away at that BA.

We also have a couple of gatherings with friends - always a good time!

2. Dictionary.com's word of the year is '6-7'. Huh? 

Is it even a word??? I had to consult the internet to find out it's meaning because apparently I'm old and this particular slang is not part of my vocabulary. Is it part of yours? According to the article I read, it's a viral term, more of an inside joke with an unclear meaning driven by social media.

What do you think? 

Dictionary. com says it's selection each year is a 'linguistic time capsule reflecting social trends and events, but they also admitted to being confused by '6-7'. Some say it means so-so and is sometimes accompanied by the up and down hand motion we associate with the phrase so-so.

What word do you think would have made a better choice? 

I know all about 6-7 because I hang out with much younger people! The original (I think) 6-7 was on Friends and Monica said it. I'm 67 this year so I laughingly said I have a legit reason to say it! My friend, who is a high school teacher, said the next numbers coming are 4-1 (I think). I don't know the meaning of those yet.

I don't know what word I would choose for the word of the year.

3. What's a food, trend, activity, or thing people love but you think is just so-so? I answered a similar question recently -- I'm not sure if this is a trend . . .and I have stronger feelings about it than "just so-so," but I do not want to be on the Sushi bandwagon.

4. Are you a tea drinker? Hot or cold? How do you like yours and at what time of day? Do you like flavored teas or teas billed as calming, energizing, healing, etc? Mark just made a cup of cranberry spice tea for himself. I am not overly fond of hot beverages of any kind. Hot chocolate is ok, as is Irish coffee. Regarding tea - I'm a tea over ice person. I like sweetened, but drink decaffinated tea with no sugar. Mark's mother made it every Sunday for lunch. I don't drink a lot of tea during the rest of the week.

5. The November Hodgepodge has always included a weekly gratitude question. Here's the question for today-what are three things that make your heart sing? 

a. granddaughter #1

b. granddaughter #2

c. granddaughter #3

Also, my first diet pepsi in the morning is a simple pleasure that I truly enjoy!

6. Insert your own random thought here. I found this meme online and thought I would share! Give thanks in all things!

Quick Weekend in Review

Happy Monday to you!! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. Here is what went on at the Elliott house over the weekend.

Mark went to the farm on Thursday morning, so after work, I did lots of homework! Normally I do not set the alarm on Friday mornings, but since I had MUCH to do, I granted myself an extra half hour of sleep. Instead of getting up at 5:00 . . . I got up at 5:30. I immediately stripped the bed and started the washing machine. I did some more homework. I took a quick shower. I then had a zoom appointment with the nutritionist. I started meeting with her once a month back in August and she has been so helpful. In between those things, I ordered groceries from Publix through Shipt. Then I hopped in the car and drove to the hair salon where I had my roots covered and got a trim! I stopped at their Dollar General to get a couple of things and the young woman working the register was the rudest person I've ever seen. I cannot even put words to her rudeness. She smarted off to her supervisor in front of all the customers. She slid the scanner across the counter to me and told me to scan my own diet pepsis . . .which I had no problem doing . . .it was just the way she spoke to us and the way she did everything. When I returned home after my errands, I did more homework . . . until 5:00. My friend, Hannah, always comes over on Halloween to help me give out candy. We gave out 1,000 pieces between 5 and 7:15 and then we called it a night. There were some cute costumes this year. We (Mark) received a lot of compliments on his skeletons. Harry Potter, Hermione, and Dumbledore plus Crookshanks were sitting around the table under the floating candles.

This is how they looked by day . . .

and by night!

Beetlejuice is a neighbor. His costume was
fantastic.

This little family was so cute - the tiniest Dorothy ever.

Saturday morning, I went to weigh in at WW. I am feeling so much better since I've lost some weight. I have to keep it off. I ran to Hobby Lobby afterwards and purchased some more pilgrims. I love Thanksgiving and will decorate some over this next week. Then I headed home to do more homework. On Saturday night, we had Mark's siblings and spouses over for dinner. Only one from the younger generation was available and I'm sure we bored her to death with our talk! She was a great sport and Mark sent her home with left-overs. I didn't take a single photo.

Y'all know what we did on Sunday morning - I worked and Mark went to worship and Sunday School. I had to pick up lunch for a 12:15 meeting so I didn't get home until after 2:00. I meal prepped my lunches and rode the bike . . .and did homework. I had to watch a video on healthcare around the world. It was actually very interesting. We ended the night with an episode of Eli Stone.

All Saints Sunday is one of the most beautiful worship services.

What did you do this weekend?

Sunday Stealing - How Can It Be November 2?????

Welcome to Sunday Stealing. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!

Maria called these questions "The Monday Morning Meme." (We are answering on Sunday!) Unfortunately she didn't link back and I couldn't find the original blog that posted it. OK, I admit I didn't try very hard, but still I found the questions and am sharing them with you. That counts for something, right?

Monday Sunday Morning Meme

1. What was the last thing you laughed at? We had Mark's siblings and spouses over for dinner last night and we always laugh at something!

2. Who among your friends/family "gets" your sense of humor? I don't know if anyone gets my sense of humor :-)! I love to laugh! I laugh loudly, too.

3. What jewelry are you wearing at this moment? My engagement ring and wedding ring, apple watch, and earrings.

4. If I could offer one bit of etiquette that everyone should follow while dining out, it would be to be mindful of the people around us — the people at our table, the other guests in the restaurant, and the waitstaff. Being mindful means paying attention to the flow of conversation and inviting others to join in. It means not being loud or disruptive. And it means thinking of others — like the waitstaff — if we notice we’re the last ones in the restaurant and they’re waiting to clean up and go home. In that case, good manners mean it’s time to leave.

5. What's the first thing a guest would notice when they walked through your front door? I hope that they would notice and feel that YOU are welcome in our home.

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

Hodgepodge is a Risky Business :-)

 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 626

Here are the questions to the mid-week Hodgepodge. Thank you to Joyce for questions for 626 blog posts - amazing! Answer on your own blog or in the comments and meet us over at Joyce's for connection!!

1. Are you a risk taker? To what degree? Mark always says that Elliotts are "squatters," which means we find a home or a job we love . . .and we stay. I think that I can be a risk taker -- if I feel like it is the right risk. Our daughter-in-law started her own business a few years ago and her business grew and she opened a second clinic . . .and in the late summer, someone bought her business. She took a risk and worked hard and it paid off. I'm so proud of her. Mark and I just returned after being away for 11 days, and I guess traveling abroad carries some risks.

2. What's your favorite candy? Would you say you have a sweet tooth? I no longer eat them, but I love Reese's holiday candy - you know . . .the trees, or the pumpkins, or the Easter eggs. I love Reese's cups - yum. I no longer have a sweet tooth, though I do eat a protein bar and sometimes a no sugar added fudge pop every day.

3. Somewhere you've been recently that had you feeling 'like a kid in a candy store'? On Sunday, I was in an actual "candy store" in Lucerne, Switzerland purchasing Swiss chocolates to bring home. The chocolates were lined up in display cases and they were so beautiful.

4. What do you think is the most effective way to make a positive change in the world? I have jet lag as I'm typing these words, so my words may sound silly . . .but I think a simple thing we can all do is to be kind and smile a lot! Over the last week, I cannot begin to tell you how many people commented on my smile and Mark's smile. Last night, after traveling for 20 hours, we boarded our third plane of the day (I'm writing this on Tuesday morning). The last flight was a very small commuter plane from Chicago O'Hare to Birmingham. There was a woman across the aisle from us who could not manage to get her carry on luggage into the correct location. Mark stood up and helped her . . .and I heard the lady who was next in line, say to Mark, "that was so kind." We were exhausted and sweet Mark took the time to be kind. Go forth, people - smile and be kind!!

5. Do you like surprises? I like good surprises. I do not like bad surprises. ha!

6. Insert your own random thought here. I can't wait to load my pictures - probably about nine million in total - and write about our trip. I'm trying not to feel overwhelmed. Our cleaning lady has evidently quit on us (I've used her for many years). The new semester started while we were gone. I was able to work in the "library" on the boat a couple of days and didn't get behind . . .yet, I certainly didn't get ahead. We are hosting a dinner party here in less than two weeks. ok - enough about that. Reality is just tough after a lovely trip! haha!

Sunday Stealing

Welcome to Sunday Stealing. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!

We found this one at CreativeGene, who stole it from someone named "Randy" because "it looks like fun." Let's see if you agree.

I'm going to go ahead and post, even though it is Saturday!

Four 5's

FIVE things on my to-do list: First of all, I keep a running to-do list in a steno notebook . . .but we are cruising down the Rhine River toward Switzerland and I intentionally left my notebook at home. I'm on vacation or holiday, as it is called here. 

1. This afternoon (Saturday), I have to attend the disembarkation meeting (boo!).

2. Tonight (Saturday) is the Farewell Party with the captain and crew.

3. Sunday - we will spend all day in Lucerne, Switzerland.

4. I need to nswer these questions -- because we toured Strausbourg, France this morning and we are now back on the boat and Mark is t!king a nap . . .so I have a few moments.

5. Drink more water this afternoon!

 

FIVE snacks I enjoy:

1. Built Bar (not puffs - but original - coconut and salted caramel)

2. Peanuts, pecans, almonds (NOT cashews).

3. Fresh fruit - they have had so much wonderful fruit on the boat this week - all sorts of melons and pineapple and kiwi

4. Mini saltines

5. Quest Birthday Cake Bar

 

FIVE places I have lived: (I've lived in the state of Alabama for my whole life!)

1. the house I grew up in

2. the house my daddy purchased after my mom died (plus a million apartments when I was young)

3. the first house that Mark and I bought (we lived there about 7 years I guess)

4. the second house that Mark and I bought (we lived there for 22 years)

5. the third house that Mark and I bought (where we still live -- this house sort of counts as two since we bought it in 2014 and it burned in 2022 and we rebuilt it and updated it and moved back in after one year and ten days.

 

FIVE jobs I have held:

1. Gift wrapper in a family owned store when I was a senior in high school

2. Steno at South Central Bell

3. Secretary to the Area Vice President at AT&T

4. Membership Coordinator at Trinity UMC

5. Executive Assistant to the Senior Pastor at Trinity UMC

6. I added #6 - I was a SAHM for many years when our kids were growing up -- between number three and number four - plus I worked a couple of part-time jobs when they were little - secretary for Area Manager at Tambrands (the company that made Tampax - free perk!) and I don't remember my title, but I worked for a while at Birmingham Crane and Hoist.

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

Where in the World is Lisa?

 Hey y'all! I've missed you. I will check in next week!! For now . . .

Last week, we were able to join our oldest granddaughter for Grandparents’ Breakfast! We picked her up at her house so she didn’t have to ride the bus, then headed to her school. I love seeing our kids and grandkids in their “natural habitat.”

Just two days later, we were off again — this time to Birmingham Airport for our international flight. Even though it’s officially called Birmingham International, you can’t actually fly internationally from there without connecting somewhere first — Atlanta, New York, Philadelphia, Houston, or Chicago.

This time, our route took us through Houston. We had a couple of hours to kill at the Intercontinental Airport, so I wandered off to find a drink and a restroom. When I came back, Mark had already made a new friend! A couple from the Netherlands was also on our flight — they’d spent three weeks exploring Texas (San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and more) and shared some travel tips for when we arrived in their country. His English was excellent; hers was more limited, so she simply showed me her phone and said, “Take a picture!” of her favorite recommendations.

We’re no longer in Amsterdam — we’ve been cruising along the Rhine River since Monday (I think we departed on Monday?). I’ll post more about the trip once we’re back home. For now, I just wanted to share a quick update before we board the bus for our next adventure!

p.s. I haven't read anyone's blog posts this week due to time constraints. I apologize! I will try to catch up with reading and commenting when we return!!