Saturday in Amsterdam
It is overwhelming to think of everything we did yesterday. It was such a great day.
Joyce and I slept in a bit and walked to the Hilversum train station. We had to switch trains to get on the one to Amsterdam. It was very full, so we just took it upon ourselves to sit in first class because it was empty. It was a leisurely 20 minutes into Amsterdam. It's so crazy that it only takes that long to get to such a huge city!
Michael Anthony, another US visitor who is an Assistant VP at Oakton Community College, was also on the second part of the train ride into Amsterdam. We didn't see him on the train, but met up with him right afterwards.
Our first stop was the Anne Frank house. If I ever make it to Amsterdam again, I will know to start the morning early to get in line for that museum. I don't think I've ever seen a line that long. One person said it was a 1.5 hour wait, but I have no idea how it could've moved that quickly. So... we decided against it. It would've been interesting, but I am not a good line-waiter for that long.
We stopped for a drink and small lunch at O'Reilly's, an Irish pub. I had a Bailey's coffee and some homefries with seasoned mayo for dipping. It was pretty legit. The atmosphere at the bar/restaurant was so cool. It was quite dark, little nooks and crannies to sit in, old pictures on the walls, and old books on bookshelves. They even had a fireplace. In the US, it would feel like "fake authenticity," but this was real. We asked our waiter where he was from (Ireland) and he said that everyone who worked there was from the UK.
We made our way to the famed red light district. I think it was different than I expected since it was the middle of the day. I definitely saw maybe 15 women standing in windows in lingerie. They are just right there on ground-level or on the second floor looking at you as you pass by with vacant expressions. All seemed to have boob jobs, spray tans, and very heavy make-up. It's just so different to remember that it's legal; these women do this for a real job.
We walked along the canals near the red light district, just taking in the area filled with sex, sex shops, porn theaters, and "coffeeshops," which is where people go to smoke weed. Pretty consistently you'd get a wiff of marijuana. It is quite a different culture, but I never felt uncomfortable. We would just laugh at it.
Next we found the Amsterdam Dungeon, which is sort of like a haunted house. You move through with a group of about 25 people to different scenes with actors. It explained some of the history of Amsterdam, but I was too focused on being aware of what was going on around me to pay attention to what they were saying. There was a torture device room, a "below deck on a ship" room, a surgery room, a courtroom, a "burning a witch at the stake" room, a pathway with mirrors (so crazy!)... and probably others that I can't remember. It was a participatory tour, so people got chosen to do something with the actor in the scene. I was chosen in the surgery room. Luckily I just stood up with the actor and held a pan while she put fake organs into it! She lightly shoved me into a curtained area and when that happened a puking sound went off--so funny!
In the last room, they told us a story about a family--again, I don't remember specifics because I was too busy being worried what was going to pop out at me--and there was a lot of strobe light effects happening and people appearing and disappearing. And then all of a sudden you feel something touch your butt! They had something in the seats and it was so funny! We were holding onto each other and just laughing hilariously. It was so fun!
After that we went on a canal boat tour. We met an American couple from Houston, but who were currently living for six months in Kazachstan because the guy works for Chevron. They were visiting Amsterdam for the weekend. The canal tour was very cool and just relaxing. We learned a lot about the area and saw a lot of beautiful Amsterdam!
We found a spot to eat dinner (a steakhouse-type place) and hung out in one of the city's squares. I needed to find a tourist shop so that I could get an Amsterdam magnet. We found one nearby and I was so pumped to find that they had the ornaments that I was also looking for! Joyce had brought me about 6 ceramic, hand painted ornaments as a hostess gift and I was wondering if I would be able to find more to fill my Christmas tree with them. She told me that she had bought them online, but low and behold, this random souvenir shop had them! They weren't cheap (I got 5 and they cost 22 Euro total), but I'm just so excited about them. Those ornaments and a magnet from each place I visit are the only things I wanted to take back with me!
Metro ride back to the train station, a switch of trains, a walk home... and our day was done. It was a full day and one to remember! We laughed hysterically, made clever jokes (well, Michael and Joyce more than me haha), and just had an awesome time!
Joyce and I slept in a bit and walked to the Hilversum train station. We had to switch trains to get on the one to Amsterdam. It was very full, so we just took it upon ourselves to sit in first class because it was empty. It was a leisurely 20 minutes into Amsterdam. It's so crazy that it only takes that long to get to such a huge city!
Michael Anthony, another US visitor who is an Assistant VP at Oakton Community College, was also on the second part of the train ride into Amsterdam. We didn't see him on the train, but met up with him right afterwards.
Our first stop was the Anne Frank house. If I ever make it to Amsterdam again, I will know to start the morning early to get in line for that museum. I don't think I've ever seen a line that long. One person said it was a 1.5 hour wait, but I have no idea how it could've moved that quickly. So... we decided against it. It would've been interesting, but I am not a good line-waiter for that long.
We stopped for a drink and small lunch at O'Reilly's, an Irish pub. I had a Bailey's coffee and some homefries with seasoned mayo for dipping. It was pretty legit. The atmosphere at the bar/restaurant was so cool. It was quite dark, little nooks and crannies to sit in, old pictures on the walls, and old books on bookshelves. They even had a fireplace. In the US, it would feel like "fake authenticity," but this was real. We asked our waiter where he was from (Ireland) and he said that everyone who worked there was from the UK.
We made our way to the famed red light district. I think it was different than I expected since it was the middle of the day. I definitely saw maybe 15 women standing in windows in lingerie. They are just right there on ground-level or on the second floor looking at you as you pass by with vacant expressions. All seemed to have boob jobs, spray tans, and very heavy make-up. It's just so different to remember that it's legal; these women do this for a real job.
We walked along the canals near the red light district, just taking in the area filled with sex, sex shops, porn theaters, and "coffeeshops," which is where people go to smoke weed. Pretty consistently you'd get a wiff of marijuana. It is quite a different culture, but I never felt uncomfortable. We would just laugh at it.
Next we found the Amsterdam Dungeon, which is sort of like a haunted house. You move through with a group of about 25 people to different scenes with actors. It explained some of the history of Amsterdam, but I was too focused on being aware of what was going on around me to pay attention to what they were saying. There was a torture device room, a "below deck on a ship" room, a surgery room, a courtroom, a "burning a witch at the stake" room, a pathway with mirrors (so crazy!)... and probably others that I can't remember. It was a participatory tour, so people got chosen to do something with the actor in the scene. I was chosen in the surgery room. Luckily I just stood up with the actor and held a pan while she put fake organs into it! She lightly shoved me into a curtained area and when that happened a puking sound went off--so funny!
In the last room, they told us a story about a family--again, I don't remember specifics because I was too busy being worried what was going to pop out at me--and there was a lot of strobe light effects happening and people appearing and disappearing. And then all of a sudden you feel something touch your butt! They had something in the seats and it was so funny! We were holding onto each other and just laughing hilariously. It was so fun!
After that we went on a canal boat tour. We met an American couple from Houston, but who were currently living for six months in Kazachstan because the guy works for Chevron. They were visiting Amsterdam for the weekend. The canal tour was very cool and just relaxing. We learned a lot about the area and saw a lot of beautiful Amsterdam!
We found a spot to eat dinner (a steakhouse-type place) and hung out in one of the city's squares. I needed to find a tourist shop so that I could get an Amsterdam magnet. We found one nearby and I was so pumped to find that they had the ornaments that I was also looking for! Joyce had brought me about 6 ceramic, hand painted ornaments as a hostess gift and I was wondering if I would be able to find more to fill my Christmas tree with them. She told me that she had bought them online, but low and behold, this random souvenir shop had them! They weren't cheap (I got 5 and they cost 22 Euro total), but I'm just so excited about them. Those ornaments and a magnet from each place I visit are the only things I wanted to take back with me!
Metro ride back to the train station, a switch of trains, a walk home... and our day was done. It was a full day and one to remember! We laughed hysterically, made clever jokes (well, Michael and Joyce more than me haha), and just had an awesome time!