We took an overnight flight to Amsterdam from Philadelphia. We arrived at Amsterdam in the morning. My husband can go on very little sleep and well, I simply cannot. We got our whereabouts in the city, found our hotel and checked in. We stayed at the Marriot hotel in Amsterdam. I took a little nap while my husband went out and found some food. He didn’t go very far because we were given access to the VIP lounge on the top floor. It was great because the food was so expensive in Europe. The lounge had breakfast for us in the mornings, fruit, cookies and granola bars throughout the day and was always stocked with waters, juices, sodas and even beer and usually one wine at no charge to us.
This was my first trip to Europe and I was completely fascinated. The one thing I remember most once I stepped outside was the bicycles. They were everywhere and literally there was rows and rows of 10s of bikes parked outside the train station. The number of bikes and motor bikes on the streets was purely amazing. I loved to watch them jump on and off their bikes.
We spend one day at the Anne Frank house. We arrived early in the morning so we could beat the long lines. I usually like for my vacations to be filled with happy memories and good times. I made the exception for this bit of history. It was heartbreaking to read the diary of a young girl who suffered so much and to see the little area where they were forced to live. I was surprised to see the low ceilings, narrow staircases and the condition of this house. It is very true portrayal of how Anne must have lived. The house is not fixed up, the stairs creak, it is not modern, it is clearly preserved as closely as possible to the same condition as it was when Anne inhabited the house. Obviously, this is a must see if you are in Amsterdam, I don’t know how anyone could spend even just one day in Amsterdam and skip over this historical attraction.
We spent many hours of our days and our nights just walking the streets of Amsterdam taking it all in. I think one of our favorite things was the beer bicycle. You would hear the music playing; loud guys yelling or singing, and just as you were looking up you would see it barreling towards you. It was this huge wagon/bike type thing with a keg in the center which served about 10 guys who were sitting on the outer edges drinking beer as they pedaled along. It was hilarious and I think my husband was secretly wishing he could have a redo on his bachelor party and come to Amsterdam with his boys to take a ride on the beer bike.
We took a day trip to Haarlem which is a more rural city about 45 minute outside of Amsterdam. This city is known for its tulips. Unfortunately, we missed the tulips as they had already been harvested for the year. However, we still had a great day in this little town. We were able to walk to an old wooden windmill and along the quiet streets taking in the more relaxed life of the Netherlands. We were fortunate enough to see a wedding party coming out of an old church. The streets were blocked off and the whole wedding party, guests, bride and groom came out of the church and just milled about on the streets walking and talking. We also lingered around the open air market and bought some fresh baked bread and some cheeses. All in all it was a great day and I loved their pace of life in this town.
Yes, we enjoyed our time in Amsterdam; I am glad I went and was able to see this city. However, it is definitely not someplace I will be returning to now that I have a child. If my son ever tells me he is going to visit Amsterdam I will cringe because I have witnessed the 24 hour-non stop party that exists in Amsterdam.
