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Unlike Brussels, we got to see a lot of Amsterdam. We got there Sunday evening and first checked into our hotel. We decided to go with a hotel this time instead of a hostel which was a brilliant call because our hotel was not only very safe it was gorgeous! We even had French doors leading out to a small balcony overlooking Vondelpark (yes, Dad. “Vondelbar” indeed ;P ). What was probably the best thing about our hotel too was that it was very central to the heart of the city so we were within walking distance to all the things we wanted to do. First thing we wanted to do was get some food (:
We were right across the street from a Hard Rock Cafe and seeing as how I have never been to one before, we decided to go there. We also decided that this was our big night out and we definitely stuck by that… We went big. We got a huge appetizer to share and each of us got fancy drinks (Being in a Hard Rock Cafe, I went with a “Purple Haze” ;P thought you’d approve of that one, Dillon ;) ). For dinner I went all out and got ribs. I’m lucky because my dad and my Uncle Pete know how to do their ribs but these were pretttyyy deliciousss. Ah boy, just an incredible dining experience. Our waitress did a really good job (she was from Australia, Jill! Told her you were studying abroad there in the spring ;) ) and the music playing of course was excellent (my pal Robert DeLong even came on! Had Sasquatch flashbacks to when I met him (: (: ). Our rockin’ dinner (ha) kinda did us all in so we decided to just go back to the hotel to digest and rest up for a big day of Amsterdamage the next day.
I have gotten to visit a lot of places and do a lot in those places but hands down, Amsterdam takes the gold. We got to do so much! We started our day with seeing the iconic “I am sterdam” letters which is a cool statement that the people of Amsterdam are very proud of their capital city.
We then got to Gogh! (okay that one was bad…) The Van Gogh museum! Amazing. Crazy to see such famous paintings in real life… these images you have seen so frequently in art books growing up to now seeing them a few feet in front of you… pretty amazing. The museum also had a lot of history and biographies about Van Gogh and his family and friends. Very educational.
We then made our way through the extensive tulip markets and Rembrandt Square to the huge flea market area. This was such a dangerous place. I just wanted to buy everything! Very unique clothes and trinkets and such. There was a big second-hand vendor and if I had unlimited room in my suitcase I would have gotten the most retro ski jacket you have ever seen. It was beautiful.
After we finally got out of the market, we stopped for some lunch. I know I say “it was the best ever” a lot but really… the little soup shop we stopped at… okay actually I won’t say best ever because Mariah holds the record for some of the best soup I’ve ever had, but anyways yes, this was good stuff. Except for I burnt my tongue on it so that wasn’t very fun... But unimportant fact, moving on.
We of course had to go to the Red Light District. For those readers who may not know, prostitution is legal in Amsterdam and this particular stretch is infamous as the main area for it. I am beyond words thankful that we went during the day. I mean, the girls are out all the time but at two o’clock on a Monday afternoon, it’s only at about PG-13 level. Which was about all I could handle anyway ;P What I found very interesting about this area, besides the whole concept of it all, was that on the edge of this Red Light District was a hidden Catholic church. This church was built in the attic of a canal house (hence the name “Our Lord in the Attic”) in the 1660’s when Catholics lost their rights to worship in public. I just found the placement of this kind of ironic… God’s still present even in an area like the Red Light District. I could go off on a whole spiel here but you’re already reading a lot so I won’t get into it. However, I do want to say this was probably, okay no- definitely, my least favorite part of Amsterdam. It wasn’t so much seeing these girls displayed the way they were but it was seeing the people who passed by look at them the way they did. It was just very sad to see such lust in people’s eyes… Mariah, you and your gender studies woulda had quite the field day here… anyways, yeah I’ll leave it at that…
I didn’t want to support anything along this stretch but it was getting a bit chilly so we decided to stop into a coffee shop (DON’T WORRY IT WAS AN ACTUAL COFFEE SHOP NOT A “COFFEE SHOP” ;P :P ). Next we were going to hunt down a canal tour but all the ones we were finding were either closing soon or kinda too pricey. Instead, I bought my first Heineken and had it in the streets of Amsterdam. Figured that was noteworthy- first Heineken consumed in the country where it was made. (:
Anyway, we decided to head to the Anne Frank house so we made sure we had time there. Also for those who don’t know, you can see the actual house where Anne Frank and her family and their friends hid during the war. You can see the actual house. You can see the actual bookcase that hid the staircase. You can walk up the actual steep stairs. You can see the actual attic. You can walk around the actual kitchen and see the actual sink and stove they would have used. You can walk through the actual bedrooms and see the actual magazine clippings that Anne used to decorate her wall. You can see the actual documents of when they were discovered. You can see Anne’s actual diary.
The whole tour was one of thee most solemn things I have ever experienced. I don’t have words for it. Throughout the exhibit, they have some of Anne’s quotes displayed and in one of the last rooms there is a video of her father, Otto, talking about his reaction to finding her diary. To say it was moving is a horrible understatement. It’s one thing to learn about something in books and see movies and hear stories about it, but it is something completely different to SEE it.
At the end, they show a short film of the thoughts different people had about the museum. One of them said the thing to remember is the fact that there were countless other Anne Franks who don’t have museums. You hear the chilling, stomach-wrenching story of the Franks and their friends and realize that they were certainly not the only ones affected by what was going on. It is only one case. But nevertheless, a powerful case.
I was keeping it together okay till I passed a part about Anne talking about how she always wanted to be a famous writer. As another person in the video said, “Anne Frank didn’t die. She was killed.” So even though she was killed, her words were not. Her story was published. Her message was shared. She became the famous writer she aspired to be after all.
What I took from the museum was the fact that you really can’t underestimate the power your words have on the world <3
Even though none of us felt like eating anything after what we just saw, we decided we needed a pick-me-up so we went to the “Nutella Ice Bakery” and got some Nutella ice cream. After that we made our way back to the hotel to drop off our souvenirs from the day and figure out what we wanted to do for dinner. Much to my happiness, we decided on Indian food (I’ve been obsessed with it ever since Scotland). Another not very noteworthy thing, on the way we passed a man who was quite possibly the most beautiful human being I have ever seen (next to Aaron Paul that is. But guess I haven’t seen him in person…yet.). I decided this guy ought to know so I told him (thankfully he understood English). Definitely made his day so that was fun ;)
We were really livin the good life this trip and had another amazingly delicious dinner. We also had some good conversation. Nicole told us a little of her tory so was nice getting to know her a bit better. Afterwards, we went out for some drinks to celebrate such an incredible time in Amsterdam/grieve the fact we had to leave the next day.
Since I got to Belgium through the chaplaincy trip, the girls and I had a different return agendas. They were talking the train early in the morning back to Brussels and then from Brussels back to London and from there to Canterbury. I, for some reason, decided I wanted to just do all forms of transportation possible so I flew back to London and then got a bus back to Canterbury making it so I had used a train, plane, coach, ferry, bus, car, and walking! Yay for transportation! It was nice because then I had a bit more time in Amsterdam. So the next morning, I walked around Vondelpark which, by now, you know how I feel about beautiful parks… <3 I then took a ridiculously overly priced taxi to the airport.
I have enjoyed sharing seemingly insignificant facts so I will share another one. At the airport, there was a group of American-accented boys (/men?) that came and sat across from me at the gate. They were talking about a gig and getting a van and venues and such and I am 99.42% positive they were in a band. I am still very mad at myself because I didn’t ask them. So sorry good ol’ readers, that woulda made for an awesome blog! Shoulda,coulda,woulda I guess…
With the exception of being so close to potential rock stars, I really don’t have any regrets from this weekend. Succcch an incredible trip and the whole thing just kind of came and went so quickly it seems like a dream! But then again, this whole study abroad experience seems like a dream…
Ah well, thank you for reading!
Keep Calm and Dream On.
Cheers!
Elyse