It Goes On and On - Avett Brothers

Amsterdam, home of beautiful canals, crazy bicyclists, bridges, "coffee shops", the weirdest language I have ever heard, delicious two day old chocolate covered waffles, amazing fries with mayo, leaning houses, terrifyingly steep and skinny stairs, and of course the red light district!

So we get into Amsterdam a couple hours late because our flight had "traffic" at 6am so we left the ground an hour late, even though there was only one other flight at the airport that morning... We get on the train towards the hostel and eilis tells me that Amsterdam is full of canals and boats! I am very excited and picturing Venice. Well as we wander around trying to find our hostel I fall immediatly in love with Amsterdam. I don't know what it is about me and water but it immediatly makes any place better. First thing we noticed was of course Dutch! This language seriously sounds like a cross between gibberish and baby talk. No offense to the Dutch but Eilis and I would giggle any time we heard anyone speak!

Eilis has been having a really bad cough over the past couple of days so we decide to go to the Red Cross to get it checked out! Turns out she has broncitis! So we get her meds get back to the hostel, check in and take naps! That night we walked to a chinese place that someone at the hostel recommends. We then wander around afterwards. Our hostel is a couple of blocks away from the red light district and I learn why it is called the red light district as well as the difference between an cafe and coffee shop. As we walk around the beautiful canals with bikers ringing bells and attempting to hit you with there bikes and crossing bridges and windows lit red with half naked women and wiffs of pot hitting us at each turn, I felt like I was in a dream. I just kept looking at Eilis mouth open saying "I mean I dont" "I mean like seriously" "Like why... how..." It was very surreal. So in order to take a break from the overwhelming lifestyle of Amsterdam we go to a cafe and have a delicious Palm beer and decide we really want popcorn and that we will go to the movies!



After googling movie theatres we found one near our hostel. After wandering around for about 20 minutes trying to find it, I realize we are in the middle of the Red Light district and the movie theater is in fact called "Venus" and is probably not the movie theatre we want! So we just hightail it to the hostel and ask them where to go. After a long walk (not in Red Light District) we get to the cenimas, but the only movie playing is Salt (Angelina Jolie action movie). All I will say is we enjoyed it a lot even though it was very unrealistic, I don't like her, and the ending was terrible. It was a movie in english and popcorn!



The next day we did the New Europe free walking tour that has tours in a lot of major cities in europe. It was really great and long! We learned a lot about the history of Amsterdam and that many of the houses lean on purpose to pull sugar to the top floor by the hooks on the tops of all the houses (which Eilis and I never noticed!) We wandered around a bit and had a BAGEL! I was soo happy and excited! We explored the city that day but took it slow because Eilis has to get better! We did of course make it to the Anne Frank House. I really enjoyed it. It was very inspiring to remember reading the book in middle school and actually seeing the space she and seven other people lived in for so long. It was amazing to see what Otto Frank said and all the work he put into preserving the secret annex. He is one of my new heros!



Friday we moved out of the hostel and bunked up with my friend Karly's (see brazil blog)
roomate from Brazil, Sophie. She let us stay with her as Eilis did not feel up to bussing quit yet, and I didnt want to leave Amsterdam! So we wandered around with Sophie and went to a brewery that was by an old windmill! Thats Holland to me! They had four or five different brews so naturally we all got a different one and switched! We found our favorites and ordered another round. A couple of guys sat down next to us and we started talking about all thing Holland and then all things States. It was very hilarioius because one guy, Diederick (pictured below as political buddies), kept bring up politics! One he's dutch why does he know/care so much about our political views, and two I HATE talking politics, it always gets heated! At one point he is just over the table about something or another and I am just laughing about how passionate he is about American politics! Needless to say it was interesting. Then they insisted on cooking us dinner! So off to the grocery store we all went! In sophie's kitchen they whipped up a delicious dinner of rice and peppers cooked in something and salad! It was a fun evening and we loved Sophie letting us stay with her in a comfy bed not in a hostel, even if the stairs are frightening!




Saturday we had a late overnight bus yet again to Berlin! We of course still had things to do in Amsterdam though! So we wandered around Leidsipline, had delicious pancakes (mine had icecream), and of course the Van Gogh museum! I really enjoyed it! I have always loved his Sunflowers painting ever since my Grandma had it and passed her love of sunflowers on to me and my sister. So it was really cool to see the original as well as some of his beautiful works! We also walked around the beautiful Vondelpark and just enjoyed the unique crazy of Amsterdam.