At the end of yesterday, in the cafe, I met a local man who is quite nice and a self-taught inventor. He has led an interesting life, currently consumed by his fight to keep contact with his daughter, who was kidnapped by her mother who Polish courts awarded custody to even after this. I have heard in law classes about similar Polish legal issues, and it is very educational to have this concrete example. After a long discussion with him, I went home which took me through the red light district. This is a very interesting place; sex workers have very hard jobs, even with the liberal system of regulations Amsterdam uses to make things easier for them. For anyone ready to condemn the red light district, I offer the reminder that every city has its own prostitution districts, but that in most cities it is not safe to walk through these areas, and the police offer no recourse for women against violent crimes. Here in Amsterdam, at least, things are kept civil. ( . . . Rain drives me away and I visit the Rijksmuseum . . .)
After the rain drove me from my cafe, I toured the Rijksmuseum, which has a wonderfully manicured small garden in which the entrance line forms. The museum itself is a wonderful example of Dutch architecture using varicolored bricks to create ornamental patterns in the building without adding to the cost. The Rijksmuseum has a smaller collection that I had expected from the outside, but it features Rembrandt's enormous painting, Night Watch. It also has a 4 meter, 1/12th scale model warship that is over 300 years old, and numerous amazing examples of Dutch realism. Their use of light and their advances in color theory really make these masterpieces stand out. Another noteworthy piece is a doll house which cost as much as a small villa, with ornate perfect miniatures by very skilled artisans. The level of detail and quality sustained in this doll house is sufficient that I would be delighted to live in a life-size replica of it. 
After the museum, I went off for a random bike ride. I found several things you might find interesting: First, how do you get pianos into your house when the staircase is really a ladder? You construct houses with outward-slanting faces so people can attach a pulley to the top and lift without breaking windows. And what if you're just too lazy to take the stairs? Put an elevator outside! 
Can you think of a better way than this for two kids to have fun in traffic? 
Don't forget that you're never too ill to bicycle. 
This is a pigeon party.This is a Jon party.
This is a high quality rental bike. It looks like crap so it won't get stolen. When the Germans lost the war, they fled Amsterdam to Germany by bicycle, which is only a 12 hour ride; but they stole all the best bikes they could find to do so. To this day, Amsterdam has had only crappy bikes because good bikes stand out from the rest and are almost certain to be stolen. To this day, Amsterdam shouts at soccer matches against Germany "Give us our grandfathers' bikes back!" This is VondelPark, just next to the StayOkay Hostel.
Incidentally, all the canals around Amsterdam make it a wonderful place for night and evening photography or just walking. 
If you're a guy and you need to use the bathroom on the street, you can use one of these public urinals. It's all the fun of peeing in a dark corner of an alley but without the loneliness of peeing alone.
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