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Dawn in the Piney Woods...we've been here before.

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overheard in East Harlem

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Two women at the bus stop at 103rd and 1st Ave. in front of the projects. "I didn't grow up here. No. I moved here in '66. I lived at 429. Then we moved to 446 and then 419, where I am am now. You like it back where you're staying? " "Oh yeah. Its real quiet back there. I don't hear no gunshots or nothing."
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Juxtapose

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Some final words on Amsterdam.  It's a city of great juxtaposition where, for instance, you might have a corner gambling casino next to an apartment building next to a law office, next to the motorcycle shop, which we noted while waiting for a tram. Even more startling, at least to me, is the prostitutes on the right, the cities oldest church on the left and down where the people are walking is a day care center. Amsterdam is a city on built on a human scale and, because of the canals, a city whose center has changed little for centuries. It is a very easy city to walk, very compact with many streets too narrow for cars. An easy city to bike, of course.  I read that 78% of Amsterdamers have bikes. No one wears a helmet and their fatality count is usually 5-6 per year, which means the death per kilometer pedaled is tiny. Bikes get their own lanes everywhere, which no doubt helps tremendously, but the bike lanes constantly cross streets and sidewalks. And the riders must contend...
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Derde Zondag van de Advent

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We have seen many impressive churches in Europe but I think I have found my favorite:  Sint Nicolaaskerk in Amsterdam. Facing the Central Train Station, just north of the Red Light District and "coffee shops" east and west, St. Nick retains its beauty amid the detritus of modern Amsterdam. Fittingly,  the walls are covered in wonderful paintings and gorgeous tiles. The stations of the cross are each huge scenes of about 10x15 feet painted onto the wall and the painter, Jan Dunselman, labored on them for 40 years. St. Nicholas is the patron saint of seafarers and the fate of this city has always been tied to the sea.  Tonight we attended vespers there. The 11 monks and priests came up the main aisle in their plain white robes and chanted, in Latin, the evening prayer. It was lovely.
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