The familiar facades are just as beautiful. The sun is shining against all expectations. And I'm almost under a cyclist. Amsterdam is exactly as I left it. I am amazed by all the traffic moving around each other on foot, by bike, driving trams, scootering, and behind the steering wheel of cars. I'm not used to this anymore. Even though it may have the busiest streets in America, New York is orderly. Straight lines, no fuss. Straight lines and no fuss, that is not the case here. But here are my friends. The ones I've had for 10 and sometimes even 15 years. So I turn off my phone, enjoy those friends without phone pinging, and make sure I don't end up under a cyclist.

So it will be a calm overview of the week. Because of that time on the terrace at George W, that coffee with my most wonderful wedding planner Lotte at Coffee & Coconuts, the out-of-hand drinks at Bar Mash that ended in a smoky The Butcher with gin tonics, the Sunday terrace with a lot of rosé at De Kleine Valk and about ten other places where we ate, drank, and laughed about stories from then and now. All those times my phone was dutifully in my pocket. Just a little photo vacation. Except here, at hotel The Dylan. I was too early for my appointment, so I took a few pictures of this idyllic spot by the canal, where they serve coffee with double hearts. Isn't it beautiful?

Flowers, flowers, flowers! Everywhere is blooming in Amsterdam.

Blue met a few days ago his brother and sister from Oregon. Well, biologically they are not related, but they do come from the same breeder and that creates a kind of family bond, I think. The female all the way on the left didn't care much for our Blue. But with Harry in the middle, it was instant chemistry. Despite the mutual noise, they sat nicely for this photo and immediately turned it into a who-has-the-longest contest. The length of the tongue, of course.

Good night, Amsterdam. I'm already wearing my Friday shoes again. We're going out with friends to drink, eat, and laugh about stories from then and now. Next week I will surely have exciting records to show, but for now, that camera will stay quietly in the bag.