First update on location! Greetings from Amsterdam! It's that awkward time when it's too late to see the sights but too early for dinner, so here I am in the hostel, waiting out the rain.
I have never seen a city that is quite so much of a juxtaposition of two worlds as Amsterdam is. Every gift shop wrestles with putting quaint little porcelain blue-and-white dutch figurines clad in wooden shoes next to penis-shaped salt-and-pepper shakers. Tulip stands sell tulip buds next to very illegal (in the U.S.) plants. There's a sex store next to a traditional Dutch bakery where I bought Oliebollen.
It's even more confusing considering I tend to equate Dutch with frugality and conservatism. I grew up in a Dutch community; 3/4 of my grandparents are Dutch. The [American] Dutch I know value penny-saving and religion. Very different than the open-minded attitude of Amsterdam towards drugs and sexuality.
My one-day tour of Amsterdam was much of a mash-up of these two worlds. Got here last night, made it safely to my hostel where I quickly met some Australians and French. We all proceeded to a "coffee shop" which does not sell coffee but instead boasts the most disconcerting menu I've seen. A menu composed entirely of illegal substances; the Amsterdam approach is that it's easier to regulate if it's out in the open. You almost cannot escape the smell of weed in the city: our french friends complained that no one smokes cigarettes here; it's always something different.
We then proceeded to take a stroll through the red light district, famous for the ultraviolet rooms that line the canals and house scantily-clad prostitutes of all shapes and sizes that leer seductively as you walk past.
In a non-surprising turn of events, I had mixed feelings. On one hand, considering the profession of prostitution is not going away, I commend Amsterdam for taking really good care of those most at risk. Yet, I couldn't help but think of how much it felt like window-shopping for women. This was particularly evident when we walked past women sitting on backless chairs that were designed to prominently display their butts and not their faces. Objectification, commodification; clearly my feminist brain cannot turn itself off.
Anyways, after finishing the night by enjoying a Heineken in a pub (enjoying, really! I liked Heineken), I woke up this morning and trotted off to the Flower Market. The Flower Market is this quaint row of stands that sell tulips of all types, along with other Dutch goods like kissing figurines and gouda cheese. All I could think of was my grandmother's dining room with all of her blue and white Dutch porcelain. So I bought a bunch of things to zip off to my grandparents.
Then it was off to the Van Gogh museum, which is ONE OF if not THE BEST art museum I've ever seen in terms of well-designed layout. It walks you through Van Gogh's life and artistic evolution, all the way to his death and lasting influence. It was fabulous. Walked in some cheese stores and got the free tasters, and had a fried dough ball (Oliebollen) which was very good if not completely unhealthy. Stopped by Anne Frank's house, saw the Dutch palace, strolled the canals, went to the flea market, and bought some Dutch waffle cookie things. And then I went shopping because my hostel was smack-dab in the middle of the shopping district and I couldn't resist. Ended up with black boots which my dad is going to scold me for when he sees them tomorrow (conversation will go: Dad: Those aren't Practical! Me: When in Europe...[point at the other 500 women walking through airport in boots]).
I am probably most proud of not getting lost on this trip. Amsterdam is this city of concentric circles of canals, so the roads kind of fan outwards from the same starting point. All the canals look the same, roads don't connect to each other, and there's lots of lonnnng street names that all have almost the same letters in them. But I didn't get lost! Proving everyone wrong, I tell ya. Who says I need a Garmin (man, i miss my Gary).
My family flies in to Amsterdam tomorrow! I'm getting up at the crack of dawn to catch the train over to the airport, and then we're traveling for the next 10 days. I am quite excited to see them. I am bringing them mince pies as tastiest example of English food I've had so far (except for maybe fish and chips, but you can't fly with those).
Off to dinner. Happy holidays! Lisa
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