She is from the UK so she isn't as far from home but we shared stories about watching the children and compared things we've noticed so far about Dutch culture. Then we went out into the rain, walked through the flea market at Waterloo Plein, and then stopped on the bridge by Rembranthuis to watch the Gay Pride parade moving slowly down the canal. Despite the weather there was a fair number of people out and those on the boats didn't seem to mind the wet too much. Most of them played loud music and danced with very few clothes on, probably chilled to the bone but clearly having a blast regardless.
Even though it was still early in the evening and we weren't particularly hungry we walked toward the city center to find a place to eat. Mostly we just wanted to get out of the rain. On one of the smaller streets just east of Rokin we found ourselves stuck in the midst of some Gay Pride street parties. No one likes being pushed between strangers, having their toes stepped on, and getting elbowed in the back but this is the one exception because everyone was happy and dancing and laughing. Clearly it was all about celebrating the love. I really like that a place can be so open and accepting as that. I really like Amsterdam.
