Amsterdam - My first true solo adventure

view of Amsterdam canal

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So I got to Amsterdam fine. I even found my hostel easily. It's right in the red-light district above a bar, and the doors to the rooms have no locks. You do have to get buzzed up to get in, but it's still kinda sketchy. I'm in a 22 bed coed dorm... lots of snoring. It's fine though. So the first day I took myself wandering. First things first, I went to the tourist office and got a map and an I Amsterdam Card - its a deal, free public transport, free museum entrance, etc. I took myself out for dinner, had salmon (no herring Bill... ew.) After dinner I wandered around the red-light district and looked at some of the girls. They seem very nice - although I now know where the larger girls and the nongirls are, so I might have to go check that out. I went to a coffeeshop and hung out there for a while. When I finally decided to leave, I managed to get lost in the red light district... haha. go me. I did manage to find my way home and pass out.

houseboats

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The next day I got up and had the most amazing breakfast. I ordered eggs and bacon, and there were 3 fried eggs with the bacon cooked in it over toast. SO good. I went on a boat tour of the canals, which could have been fun. Generalization of the day: I hate asian tour groups. I know that's stereotypical and mean, but that was the theme of my day. After the canal tour I went straight out to the Van Gogh Museum. It was not very impressive. First of all, there were way too many people there, and secondly, they don't have his most famous works there, which was sad for me. I do, however, like the way he uses paint - some of the canvasses look almost 3D; makes me want to touch them... for which I would be arressted. Then I went to the Rijksmuseum (that's it dad), which would have been better if it wasn't under construction. It had some cool stuff though - inlaid wooden cabinets and some nice Rembrandts. I left there and went to the Amsterdam Historische Museum. It portrayed the history of the city from founding to present. I took myself out for a fancy dinner - steak, corn on the cob, and english cider.

Heineken!

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Ok so. After dinner I took myself to a coffeeshop where some woman managed to freak out. That was kinda funny. So Friday the 13th. I got up and had breakfast (great again) and then headed for the "Heineken Experience"at the brewery. It was a giant multimedia fiasco, but it was fun. I even drank a beer and a half (GASP!) so everyone should be proud! The actual tour took over an hour, but it was really cool. I went back to the center of town for lunch, and had a club sandwich on steroids - bacon, egg, cheese, chicken, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and russian dressing. Very interesting. The plan was for me to make it to the Dutch Resistance Museum but the beer drinking made me tired. I stopped into a church that I can't remember the name of and had a coffee at a sidewalk cafe. I decided it was time to suck it up and go talk to a prostitute. Figured I had to. And so I did. I wanted to ask what the regular rates were, and more importantly, if she could have any job in the world what would it be. I asked one... never occurred to me that they would be immigrants. I feel dumb now that I think about it. Regardless, she didn't speak english. Also after being a girl talking to a prostitute, the guys on the street become very interested in you. So I decided not to try again. I have gathered that they are very expensive though (oral for 50 euro... sorry for those who didn't want to know, but a bunch did) I then went back to the hostel and took a nap. Napping was totally necessary. I got up around dinner time and went (surprise surprise) to get dinner. I had salmon (it's really good here) and.... a heineken. I kind of like it. Shhh I didn't say that. (All of you who have been trying to get me to drink beer for... hm 6 years now... I did it all by myself!) I went to a coffeeshop for a while, and then went back to the bar below my hotel and...... had another heineken (did I mention these are small beers?) That was the perfect recipe for passing out and not hearing the other 18 or so people staying in the room with me!

view from a cafe with excellent hot chocolate

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Today I got up and missioned over to the Anne Frank House. I was going to get breakfast there because there is a restaurant called the Pancake Factory, but apparently they are lunch and dinner pancakes - no breakfast. So I found somewhere before I wilted completely from lack of caffeine intake. When I got back to the Anne Frank House there was a huge line. Luckily it moved fast. For those of you who haven't read the Diary of Anne Frank, do. I read it as a kid and it was powerful for me then, but going through the house put it into reality for me. Her room is still intact (without furniture - the germans took that) but all of the pictures she put on the walls are still there. It was amazing. The part I was curious about is who actually betrayed the Frank's hiding spot. No one has ever figured it out, but whoever it is must have felt guilty for the rest of their life, especially after her diary was published. I went straight from there to the Dutch Resistance Museum, which had an exhibit on Dutch resistance during the second world war. It was very interesting, but my attention span wasn't what it should have been. It had a section on the resistance in the Dutch East Indies, which never even occurred to me, but now makes sense. When my brain stopped working, I went to get soup for lunch (in the biggest soup bowl EVER... unless you eat out of the pot). I headed back to the center of town and stopped at a church I tried to go to yesterday - De Oude Kerk. I think Kerk means church. Anyway, it was nice, but nothing like some of the others I have seen. The funny part was outside... there was a public urinal. It had four spots a guy can step into and its like he's standing in a corner so he is blocked from the signs, and he gets to pee in a cup. I thought it was a riot. I took a picture (stealthily of course). I went back to my hostel and got in the shower. When I got in, there was one sleeping guy in the room. When I came out, there was the sleeping guy, 6 french guys and one italian guy. Weird. I took myself out for Italian for dinner; figured I should have the most normal thing I can think of as the doxy haze sets in (malaria pills = feel like crap). OH! side note. malaria pills made me think of it. For all my ghana buddies - did we know that Heineken owns Star beer? The star stands for purity - barley, hops, yeast, water, and the brewer (?) heehee. Ok so tomorrow, I have an 11:40 flight to london, then a 12:45 flight to Dubai (London is an hour behind here), which gets in around 1am, and then Dubai to Kochi, India at 3:30 am. Argh. I get in at 8:30am on the 16th... 10:30pm the 15th at home, and 3:30am this time. So that should be fun. Or not. Anyway, I'm excited to get into a non-western culture. Somehow it bothers me less when someone calls out "Lady! Hello! Talk to me!"in other cultures... Big cities it annoys me more. So hopefully I will have the next update around the 19th or so (Happy bday nina!) Miss you all!!!