10/23 - 10/30/04: I took my wife, son and mother for a week in Amsterdam. We spent our week at the Suite 259 B&B on Overtoom. Our stay with the proprietors of this wonderful property was very enjoyable. Peter and Aziz have taken countless steps to ensure the room was comfortable and inviting. As advertised the rooms are decorated using a tropical theme, but what goes unmentioned is the personal care that has gone into the selection of the decorations and their work to obtain these items from around the world. While we were there they were working to obtain high quality towels from Hong Kong for the suites, as they felt the quality of towels they could obtain on the local market were not acceptable. Little details like this abound. We stayed in the Grand Suite Sahara. The bed in the upper level bedroom was extremely comfortable and made for many nights of good sleeping. The showers are piping hot, and there were two full bathrooms which helped with the morning rush to get ready. There is a wonderful patio made for relaxation and the cool Amsterdam weather, being enclosed on the sides to cut down on the cool breezes, yet open on the top to let in the world. Large green parakeets from the Vondelpark sometimes visit the neighboring trees. Vondelpark is a few steps from the doorway, and for the runner or early morning walker, it is extremely handy. They have included a small kitchen type area outfitted with a refrigerator, microwave, hot water pot, and coffee maker. Enough tools to prepare simple meals if desired. There is a nicely stocked grocery store located about 300 yards down Overtoom towards Amsterdam Central. They have a large selection of freshly prepared meals stocked that simply require reheating in a microwave. This was a very nice discovery that first night of jet lag when we were feeling a little out of it, grungy and not quite in the mood to venture out into public to eat in a restaurant. In the morning Aziz prepares outstanding breakfasts unlike anything we have ever experienced. He is very willing to share his secrets and discussed the finer tips of his fabulous french toast recipe with my mother. My son is 9 years old and Aziz bent over backwards to make his breakfast enjoyable. He would make him pancakes most mornings as my son took a liking to Aziz’s special dutch pancakes. Aziz even went out of his way one morning to obtain smoked salmon for my boy after he had mentioned he liked salmon. We of course loved the special breakfast creations Aziz made for the adults and I won’t ruin the surprises by describing them. Finally, on our last day Peter arranged for the friendliest cab driver in all of Amsterdam to take us to the airport, bringing a wonderful conclusion to our trip. I highly recommend a stay with Peter and Aziz at their fine accommodations, you will not be disappointed.