OK so actually in Holland most people speak English, so I'll stop with the Germlish. A group of us CBYXers here in Bremen took a train Friday afternoon to Amsterdam. Four hour ride, not much to say about it. I'd like to think I could tell when we crossed over the border into the Netherlands, but I couldn't. Oh well.
Amsterdam is markedly different than the German towns I've visited so far. The architecture is distinctly Dutch - narrow, tall buildings that all touch one another. Staircases that are almost vertical. And canals everywhere, and bridges, and boats. It's definitely a lovely city for walking and exploring, and that's what we did.
On Saturday we wandered through the city, chilled by some canals, and ended up at an awesome traditional Dutch brewery, compliments of a recommendation made to me by a friend who recently studied abroad in Amsterdam (thanks Walker!). The brewery was also next to the only windmill in the city of Amsterdam, so we got to check that off the list as well.
Of all the European capitals I've visited, Amsterdam may take the cake for being the most cosmopolitan, and also the most crowded. There were tons of international restaurants, not a traditional Dutch place in sight. For lunch we had Australian and for dinner Argentinian. As night fell, the streets became more and more crowded and people made a beeline for the harbor.
Fortuitously, we picked the weekend to visit of Sail Amsterdam, a ship event held in Amsterdam every 5 years. In the moonlight we walked among hundreds of ships from all around the world. No pictures, but pretty darn cool. We took a ferry to the other side of the Harbor, and I relished the opportunity to stand in the night wind and see some stars. We then walked by many ships, all lit up and most blasting music. It's still curious to me to hear popular American music so far away, but I'm not complaining. Girls Just Want to Have Fun, anyone?
Sunday brought a visit to the Anne Frank haus, the main attraction for me. As a girl I read The Diary of Anne Frank many times, and have wanted to see the house in which she and her family hid during WWII since. It absolutely did not disappoint. Visitors are able to walk through the house in its entirety, seeing the bottom levels where a business operated and the upper level where the Frank family lived. Possibly the most moving experience was jumping through the moving bookcase that separated what had to be kept hidden from what did not. Otto Frank did a wonderful job in preserving his daughter's legacy, and thus the many stories her's represents.
After the haus, the group wanted to check out the Iamsterdam sign...apparently it's popular. Here's me:
Also of note in Amsterdam: intense biking. The city is FULL of bikes and massive bike parking structures. The city is the model for the rest of the world for bike planning, and that was very apparent.
Although many people in our group were almost taken out by bikes during the weekend, my bumbling self included. I didn't have the best luck biking at USC, so I opted to not bike it up in Amsterdam.
Good weekend, very impressive city. Up next weekend is Belgium, both Brussels and Bruges. My big plans include nomming on all the street food in sight. Hello Belgian fries, waffles, and chocolate!
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