Going to Pot.

Don't let the piccy fool you. We didn't come in by train but instead used the hire car and managed to park in the practically deserted car park under the Hilton Doubletree Hotel, which is also right next to the station.

The deal we'd done with the girls is that they could stay out late last night as long as they were up early this morning.  Did that happen? Well, sort of, but not as early as we'd have liked.  They were all tired, Madeline wasn't feeling well and we had to delay slightly until the Tiki-bad opened at 10 so Megan could retrieve her shoes which - as if by magic - mysteriously appeared underneath a duvet at 9:45 where they had actually been all the time.

I don't think I'd actually put the car into gear before one of them piped up "I feel sick" from the back and our short 45 minute drive was punctuated by a mercy stop at a petrol station where there also happened to be a KFC, the sight of which immediately perked up the health of the previously nauseous passengers. We were going to have a proper meal in Amsterdam so there was no way a KFC was on the menu.

Our first stop was at a large restaurant on the banks of the canal by the station, called Smits Koffiehuis, where we received our fuel for the day.  A canal trip, visit to Anne Franks house and who knows what else was on the agenda.

As this was next to a load of places offering Canal Tours, that was next.  Dawn and I found it really interesting, going down just some of the 160 canals in the city and learning about the history and architecture.

However, if I'd known that the girls would have slept through the whole thing, I might have re-considered spending 15 Euros a head on it!

On the Tour we went past Anne Franks house and the queue to get in stretched halfway around the block.  Conservative estimates put that as at least an hour so we gave it best; maybe something to do on our own another time.  I really didn't want to hang around for ages trying to get in and then be rushed through it by the girls just so they could examine the Visitors Book!

So we just wandered down a street where there seemed to be some shops and here are the first three the girls made a bee line for - 

Yes, all selling Cannabis plant seeds, weed itself, magic mushrooms and all other sorts of things that would be illegal in the UK.  One of them was selling Cannabis lollipops which the girls were going to buy until they discovered it was just the flavour, not the actual drug itself so they wouldn't get high. Disgruntled, they opted for a tube of sherbert, a bar of chocolate and a waffle with maple syrup, clearly opting for SUGAR as the drug of choice.  In a final attempt to shock and rebel, one of them did purchase a pair of Cannabis Leaf socks though.  As you can see, she's trying to get high on tiptoe...

And that was about as good as it got, with the day "Going to Pot" in more ways than one. Soon the bickering started and we decided to give it best and head back home having accomplished very little of what we wanted to achieve.  This carried on a bit in the car journey home, then while getting dinner ready and then through dinner itself before Dawn frustratingly exclaimed that she wasn't doing this again.  Still, we have a few days on our own next week in Edinburgh which will be BLISS and that's more than most get so I'm thankful.  

In all seriousness, they haven't been too bad but they all have their quirks and foibles that drive you mad.  I've now decided I am going to write a book called "Living with Girls" which should make me an absolute fortune and be a decent addition to my pension.

There's only one problem; no-one would believe it.