Roxanne

Amsterdam was unreal.

This city is unlike any other city I've ever been to (in a good, crazy way). It was like an extreme of Las Vegas minus the gambling. Everywhere you go, people are smoking pot or eating space cakes. And the Red Light District... such a culture shock!

Jeri and I met up with a group of the France study abroad group Saturday morning at the Amsterdam airport. Our flight was supposed to get in earlier than theirs, and our plan was to meet them at the gate, but when we got out, there was no indication of where their gate was. We used our detective skills to try and figure out where they would exit the terminal from, pacing back and forth from baggage claim to exit doors. Next thing I hear on the loudspeaker is "Angela Neggo and Jeri Hall please report to the information desk." Turns out, their flight arrived early, and they were smarty pants about finding us.

We took a taxi into the city and immediately found some breakfast. I couldn't have asked for a better group to explore Amsterdam with; no matter what we did, it was always fun and funny.

The way Amsterdam is laid out is really simple. There's a center, and then the canals surround it kind of like a ripple effect. It's a completely walkable city; I'd guess that the farthest you'd have to walk would be about two miles. After we had breakfast and coffee, we walked to the Van Gogh Museum. Unfortunately, no photos were allowed of the interior, but the exhibit was incredible. I'm not a big fan of Van Gogh, but seeing all his work definitely brought on a new sense of appreciation.

By the time we finished in the museum, we were all starving for lunch, so on our way to the Heineken brewery, we stopped by a little sandwich shop. I have no idea what the name of this place was or where it was, but the guy made some amazing paninis.

We were all pretty excited for the Heineken Brewery, but when we got there, we quickly realized that it wasn't worth 15 Euros. The tour only included two beers and no "free" glass! We decided to save our money and do a canal cruise later on instead.

We explored more of the city and ended up at a street market. Of course, the first thing that caught our attention was a waffle stand. Even though we just ate lunch, all of us ordered a waffle covered in some sort of sweet (mine was just dark chocolate syrup... and it was perfection).

Next up: canal cruise! For 13 Euros, we were driven around the canals for about 75 minutes or so. It was also perfect timing because it was almost sunset. It's a great quick way to see the architecture and the streets of Amsterdam.

After that, we decided to find the hostel (StayOkay) so everyone could drop off their backpacks. My plan for Amsterdam was to pull an all-nighter and roam the streets at night because the hostels I found required a 2 night minimum stay or they cost close to $50/night. Unfortunately, no one else agreed with my plan, so I got dragged into staying at a hostel with the rest of them. I'm sure it was the better choice, but I still think it would have been epic to say that I pulled an all-nighter in Amsterdam and wreaked havoc.

We headed back into the center for dinner. Our stomachs led us to the first affordable restaurant we found (no idea what it was called). Most of us ended up ordering half a chicken with salad and fries for only 9.50 Euros. Decently priced. It didn't even compare to the taste of Greece, but it was good enough for me in my starving state.

By the time we finished dinner, it was about 11pm, so we figured it was about time to see the Red Light District. The area was clearly marked with red lights wherever possible. I can't even describe how strange it is to walk down these streets. You're surrounded by 80% males (hey, it's like being at Wentworth!) who are oggling these, erm.... "pretty women" that are in behind glass doors, tapping their nails on the glass, trying to get... clients.... to come in. Then there are clubs and theaters trying to sell you tickets to see live... performances. Very different from anything I've ever encountered.

We called it a night after that and headed back to the hostel by taxi. In the morning, we had free breakfast at the hostel before checking out. We wanted to see the Anne Frank house, but when we got there, the line was insanely long, so we decided to skip it and walk around instead.

Eventually the France group had to leave and catch their flight, so Jeri and I hung around the city for an extra hour or two. We mostly shopped around souvenir shops and circled around different streets. We took the subway back to the airport, and I'm pretty sure it was faster and cheaper than taking a taxi.

Needless to say, Amsterdam was different. I would love to return someday to see more of the city. Hopefully my uncle moves there.