Amsterdam

Well we made it to Amsterdam around 9:30 p.m. We walked to our hostel from the station which proved to be a bit of a task. Kalyn was convinced it was going to be really easy to find but after we made a big circle I realized that wasn't the case. By 11:00 we finally found our way to the hostel, checked-in and went to our room. As soon as the I opened the door I could tell it wasn't the the most upscale place. It smelled awful, someone's dirty laundry had been dirty waayyy too long. The room was equipped with 4 bunkbeds and was quite small so there wasn't much space. One guy had already gone to bed so we tried to be quiet as we settled in. I was so tired from all the walking that I just wanted to go to sleep. Thus the first night in Amsterdam wasn't too exciting.

Sunday:
Checked out of the hostel and roamed around the city. Went to the Van Gogh Museum which was really cool. Headed to Leidseplein Street to meet Bow, our coushsurfer host for the night. Enjoyed a bite to eat together then took the tram to get to his place while he biked there. (Everyone in Asterdam bikes everywhere. It's genius really.) After being confused by which stop to get off at, we finally made it to Bow's. Then we watched Hang Over and went to bed.
Monday: Attempted to go to the beach alas, Bow's van wouldn't start. So Kalyn and I headed to city central where our second host, Sander lives. We had planned to go to the FOAM Photography Museum but it took so long to get to Sander's that we ended up missing the opportunity. So we hung out with Sander for a bit, grabbed a quick dinner then headed to a DJ Party that Bow invited us to. If you confirmed yourself for the party on Facebook then you got in free, so we all enjoyed a free dance party!
Tuesday: Last full day in Amsterdam.


Kalyn and I walked to the Anne Frank Huis and the line wrapped around the corner. We were both freezing and hungry so we decided to get some soup in hopes the line would die down some. Unfortunately, after our dinner it was still around the corner so we had to wait for over an hour before getting in but it was an incredible experience. I read her journal this last summer while working in Alaska and completely fell in love with her. So it was very surreal to be where she lived, see the bedroom she decorated with magazine clippings and actually see the journal she kept and her handwriting. It's such a blessing that she kept that journal. There was a video clip of Otto, her father, saying that he learned so much about Anne when he read her journal because she didn't show her deeper feelings. It was a great experience to be in the walls of the annex and read about everything and see Anne's quotes on the walls. She will live on forever.
I bought a poster of her with the quote, " One day this terrible war will be over. The time will come when we'll be people again and not just Jews!...We can never be just Dutch, or just English, or whatever, we will always be Jews as well. But then, we'll want to be." Anne Frank, April 9, 1944


Tuesday evening it began snowing quite a bit, so Kalyn and I enjoyed a walk down the quiet streets watching the snow. It was so beautiful. I thought Amsterdam was quite magical, with the canals, Christmas lights, snow, it seemed like something out of a fairytale.