Dear Anna,
Flat Stanley arrived in Amsterdam after a long ride on an airplane and he was really, really flat! Amsterdam is a very nice, old city in the very small country of Holland (also called The Netherlands). It has a lot of pretty canals filled with water right in the middle of the city. It rains a lot here which fills the canals. Flat Stanley enjoyed riding with me on my bike to work each morning. A lot of people here do not have cars because there is not enough space for them. It is not big like Texas here! There are more people living in Texas (approximately 25 million) than there are in Holland (17 million).
I work on the most famous square in Amsterdam, Holland called The Dam. When I look out my window I see the Palace where the Queen of Holland is sometimes!! Flat Stanley loved the view.
Flat Stanley in front of the palace on Dam Square
Flat Stanley got to travel to Lisbon, Portugal with me. I had to go there for work. I think Flat Stanley liked it there because it is in Southern Europe and a lot warmer – like Texas! He was really excited because he got to go swimming with a really big lobster!! He also liked the airport and riding in the airplane and reading the magazine. It was in Portuguese AND English!
Flat Stanley swimming with big lobster
Flat Stanley hangin' at the airport
Flat Stanley reading magazines on the airplane
For the weekend, Flat Stanley flew with me to Bodrum in Turkey. Turkey is to the east of Holland and is also a lot warmer. He liked it there because he could hang out on the beaches and go see lots of different boats. It looks different from Galveston, doesn’t it? He also got to eat interesting foods there, like shawarma, which is Middle Eastern fast food.
Flat Stanley lovin' Turkey
While we were in Turkey, we saw a Flat Stephanie with another woman! Flat Stanley liked meeting Flat Stephanie.
Flat Stanley helped me pack up all my stuff to move back to the USA. Now I live in Boston, but Flat Stanley is back on his way to Texas and didn’t get to see Boston. I think he was sad about that but happy he got to see so many different countries in Europe. He is excited to head home and see Anna.
Love,
Dawn