Originally Posted March 1, 2011
A City in the Details
Though the faces of one traveler had changed, two young men’s desire for experience remained true. The pair were to embark on a journey of epic proportions. A journey that would take them to a city that requires no introduction other than the name itself, Amsterdam. Though obstacles arose from the onset of their expedition, nothing would prevent these lads from reaching their destination. Travel by three means delivered them to the city of heavy reputation. Little did they expect the beauty that was to behold them. Canal after canal, building after bridge, culture imminent in every step. Views that are repetitive in sight, yet unwilting in beauty. Sheer wonder is felt when crossing a canal lined with decorations of buildings and bicycles in this unique environment. A city who’s identity exists on two wheels. Truth in experience requires handle bars and pedals. A culture so committed to alternative transport that two wheels earns its own lane and street lights. A melting pot of cultures to create an atmosphere of social experience. Kindness in locals seen through an unrivaled willingness to give aid to foreign travelers. A city where socially tabooed practices are accepted with open arms and justly labeled ‘culture’. An urban landscape that could quite simply be defined in a single photo. Yet this photo’s contents, when seen in reality, is multiplied and covers every inch of the city in pure beauty and detail. Details down to the square inch. Never does one tire of this photo as every glance is waiting to be framed. The racing hearts of excitement in two men set the tempo for a weekend they would never forget. Memories waiting to be experienced. The city was waiting for them. It was time to write their story…
Ted and I arrived in Amsterdam without too many issues. We were running late for our bus to the airport in London, so after an Amazing Race style challenge we got to our flight on time. This was both of our first experiences with the infamous Ryan Air. For those who don’t know, Ryan Air is a discount airline in Europe. They have by far the lowest rates (flights from as low as 6 pounds), but a low quality reputation to go along with it. However we had a great experience. No serious waiting times, comfortable enough seats, felt safe and all that jazz. We noticed the little differences from a big wig airline, such as plastic in the airplane where there is usually leather, no magazines in seats, no movies, no free drinks/meals, and no free checked baggage. All these, and much more, keep the ticket costs down. So we just had our backpacks as carry-on’s and we were laughin’. We got into the city and were immediately greeted by streets littered in bicycles. I’ve never been happier. Ted claims I cried a bit, but I will deny it to my death….Maybe one tear.
We eventually made our way to the first hostel we stayed in, Shelter Jordaan. It did not take us long to figure out that it was actually Shelter Jesus. Super christian hostel with bibles strewn about. Right away we were told strict instructions of NO drinking, NO smoking, NO mariwona (Not sure how to spell this last one. Ted was trying to explain what it is, I’d never heard of it. Apparently Amsterdam is known for it?) Very strict rules, so not exactly what we had imagined for a trip to Amsterdam. We walked into our dorm-style room at 9pm to pitch black, soon to realize that out of the 8 beds, 6 guys were already asleep! Party time! Needless to say we were a little shocked. Even for a Shelter Jesus, come on gents. We quickly dropped our bags in the lockers and hit the town. We did our own walking tour of the city and after a pub dinner had a mini pub-crawl of our own. This consisted of finding a pub that looked interesting and going in to have a pint. Other then a subtle establishment inaccurately named ‘Beers & Babes’, where a sweet talking non-babe was able to swindle us for some rather expensive pints, we had a great first night.
Day two had us find our new hostel, Hostel Centraal. Fantastic residence for anyone going to Amsterdam. A little walk away from everything, but an absolutely wonderful man running it. Very nice and accommodating, extremely helpful, and just a cool dude. Beds were clean, lockers for bags, free breakfast, everything we needed. Highlight of this day was the Van Gogh Museum, absolutely fantastic. Other than that we just did more touring of the city, took photos, etc. Had dinner at a Brazilian restaurant that drew us in by having the Brazilian flag painted over the entire front of the restaurant. And the sign for 12 euro unlimited short ribs helped too (Yes mom, I said unlimited ribs. So good.) Another mini pub-crawl night where we went to a pub at the bottom of a hostel in downtown. Played a spot of billiards, had fun. Ended our night at a pub called ‘The Bulldog’ where we met some Swedish people and a rather intoxicated American fellow from Orlando who had some silly views on the talent level of a shmuck by the name of Hedo Turkoglu. Though false in his opinions, his wallet was true in buying us a couple pints, so all was well. That, along with a number of sneaky shots by the name of ‘Double Trouble’ got us well intoxicated ourselves. All in all, great night.
Day three had us check out the Albert Cuyp Market, which is the biggest street market in Amsterdam. It was very big, but not very exciting on a Monday. Inspired by playing in our previous nights, and wanting to take it easy while still recovering from the night before, we went to a billiards pub and had some pints. However the highlight of this day was renting bicycles. We rented a bike each for 7.50 euros for 24 hours, unbelievable. For all of you out there wondering, yes, it was extremely hard to turn down the tandem bike. With the bikes we decided to take a little trip outside of the city. We did a 10+km ride along the Amstel canal, which took us to a city called Ouderkirk. Though it was cold and a tad windy, we fought through and had the best time of our entire week together. The views of the countryside were stunning, especially on the ride home at sunset. We saw windmills! The town we ended up in was very quaint and traditional. Had a pint at a local restaurant and just looking out at the extremely European town, we were in awe. We had a cheers to my Grandma and Grandpa who gave me a Christmas present of Euros that went to the pints, so thank you to them. Such a great memory and so glad we made the effort.
Our final day was nothing special other than seeing the Anne Frank Museum. Very powerful and worth the wait in line. After that we did a little more touring of the city and then made our way back to the airport, and back to London with no problems.
Ted and I spent 4 more days in London together before he left, but seeing how long this post already is, I will save it for the next one. I’ve posted a bunch of photos from the trip onto Facebook, and Ted has done the same, so please take a look. Until then thanks for reading and keep a look out for the next one.
All the best to everyone.
No Regrets.
Pete