It was afternoon tea once again with the ladies – with one colleague planning her wedding and another just back from a holiday in Africa, it proved a good time to meet up and share notes. At the stroke of three on a Saturday, amidst the classic environs of a 17th century house on a UNESCO-approved, ultra prime canal-front setting, our trio sat down for a quick  catch-up meal.
The conversation revolved all around the ladies since there was nothing much to report from my side – I barely engaged in the storytelling – simply nodding along and listening to the banter about their plans and about people at work. As luck would have it, any more talking would simply have just gotten in the way.

Afternoon tea in Amsterdam has consistently been a tricky proposition, our first two attempts having left me disappointed or wanting. It was the Tassenmuseum this third time, an oddly-popular museum singularly focused on bags and purses, but which ended up being the best as far as any of my experiences with afternoon tea in Amsterdam are concerned. The setting beats out any other for being historic, sedate, and classic, the food was satisfying, and more importantly traditional, and the presentation as well as the service unfailingly good.
I’d been to the Tassenmuseum a million years ago and found it interesting enough but didn’t feel the need to see what was new after all this time. As I recall I was with Teko who for some reason couldn’t last more than a few minutes and without mincing words couldn’t wait to leave. Perhaps a return visit for a nice round of tea, scones, sandwiches and sweets would be able to change his mind.