Amsterdam

Oh Amsterdam.....

A whole new world, that’s all I can say about my experience.

I may have a little skewed vision considering I was staying in the "party" area, but let me explain.

First off, there are a few things you should know about the city in the Netherlands.

1. a lot of drugs are legal.

2. prostitution is legal.

Umm okay, just a little different than the US
(and a little out of my comfort zone)

Alec, Chelsey, Emmet, Me, Rachel everyone besides Emmet shared a kingish size bed ... can you say cuddle sesh? haha

There are also a couple other aspects of the city you should know about.

1. the green light district is party area; this is the location of our hotel. This area contains most of the "coffee shops"

Coffee shops mostly sell weed, not coffee. Incase you were looking for a delish cup of joe some coffee shops do not even have coffee

2. the red light district is where you can see barely dressed (usually not that attractive) prostitutes.

I kid you not, the girls stand in windows dancing and you can approach them to ask if they want to sleep with you. Pay just two euros and you can get a peep show. Needless to say, I did not go.

Sorry, but I think my two euros are better spent. Mostly on the delish chocolate covered, custard and fruit topped waffles all over the city.

Anyway, the city is not all coffee shops and prostitutes (although after Friday night I was a tad concerned that was all it was). The architecture is great in the city. It is kind of a cross between what you see in 101 Dalmatians and what you picture Nazi Germany to look like.... a weird description I know. But there are canals throughout the city and bicycles everywhere.

We visited the Van Gough museum and the Anne Frank house.

I have been to a lot of art museums, and I can honestly say that this was my favorite. If you have heard that true masterpieces can't be captured in a photo, I think that phrase was developed for Van Gough's work. Stand up close and all you see is a blur of color but step back and you see a mesmerizing beauty.

The Anne Frank museum was a little anti-climatic but still strikingly powerful. Although the annex was larger than I imagined and unfurnished (the Nazi's cleared the apartment and Otto Frank did not want to recreate furniture), it was still a great learning experience. 

I think the messages in Anne Frank's diaries should be learned by everyone. We could all learn a little more about acceptance.

I'll chalk Amsterdam up as a fun weekend. But I never could shake the feeling of being in a foreign culture.

I was ready to get back to Florence. 

And I'm ready to visit the Swiss Alps in Interlaken this weekend!

Love, 

Kelsey