From Dutch to Deutsch in an Afternoon

We slept very peacefully knowing that our ship was being protected by our neighbours...

Sleep was very good...so good that we missed breakfast which had ended at 10:30.  I decided that we should head to the station where we could pick-up some food there.  The sun was shining and I also wanted to get some train shots before our 13:01 departure to Rinkerode, Germany.



Our neighbour protecting our starboard...

...and to our port, this ex-Soviet sub had the honours.



Kathleen was able to score a few croissants for our voyage across the bay to Centraal Station plus retrieve my forgotten hat from the restaurant that we had dinner the evening before, thanks darling.



It was another delightful crossing to Centraal Station.  Also, it was nice t sunny so I could take a decent photograph of Pierre Cuypers fine building.  This Dutch architect had designed over a 100 churches in his native Netherlands plus Amsterdam's famous Rijksmuesum. The station which opened in 1889 was built on 9000 wooden pilings is served by ferries, trams busses and recently by a subway.  There are 14 through tracks and one stub end track on the west end.  Although the interior is very modern the ceiling in the head house is original as well as the 1st class waiting room by track 1, now houses a Starbucks.

Rijksmuesum by Pierre Cuypers and his Centraal Station below.

As nice as the front facades are, it's in the back of the stations where all the action takes place.  Kathleen with her book and I with my camera took advantage of this fact as we had 55 minutes to wait before our departure.  Kathleen read her book and I took photos of the parade of trains that pass through the station.