Amsterdam!

I didn’t know what to expect when I arrived in Amsterdam, everyone I talked to either say they loved it or it was a disappointment so I figured I had to find out for myself. My first reaction was it was an extremely confusing city to get around in. Between all the cars, trams, bikes and crowds of people I found myself very overwhelmed. I am not sure if I can say that I was more comfortable getting around even by the end of the third day. There were things in Amsterdam that I knew I was going to see like the canals, coffee shops and the Red Light District, but I wasn’t expecting to see so many bikes! Because bikes are Amsterdam’s primary choice of transportation they owned the streets almost as equally as cars and trams since they had their own lanes and obeyed the same street laws. My first experience with a bike was about 30 minutes after getting off the train. My roommate an

d I got lost looking for our hostel and finally decided to ask directions. Looking around, the first person we thought to ask was a man on a bike taxi. When he told us our hostel was a 25-minute walked we hoped on. For 5 Euros each to anywhere you wanted to go it was a pretty good deal. I was nice we discovered this in the beginning because I came in handy two more times just that night!

The following day I encountered another issue with bikes. The bike lanes look a lot like the sidewalks and for someone new to Amsterdam it was very easy to forget which was which. The people riding the bikes weren’t exactly helpful either. If I was waking in the bike lane and someone came up behind me instead of slowing down they just ring a bell until you realize it and jump out of the way. I am convinced that a biker would have no problem running someone over.

The popularity of public transportation really defines a sense on territory and a little bit of nationalism. In America cars are the main form of transportation and pedestrians understand the territory created between them. However, in Amsterdam the bikes and trams define the territory and pedestrians come second. The public transportation can also represent nationality because it is so unique to Amsterdam culture.

Overall, the trip was amazing. Since it was my first weekend away I feel like it holds a lot of significance. Getting on the trains a

nd trying to figure out the stations for the first time and actually seeing such a unique city was extremely exciting. There was so much to see and do in Amsterdam. The architecture is beautiful and the museums are very interesting especially the Heineken Experience. Everyone seemed to have different opinions about where to stay. Having stayed in the Leidseplein area I would say it is the best. There was a great square in the middle with great food and live music all the time. There was pretty good shopping for during the day (including a very convenient H&M) and the bars and clubs were fun and stayed open later then ones in the Red Light District. I would definitely recommend doing a pub-crawl the first or second night so you see the fun bars.

Like I said before, I didn’t know what to expect. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be really amazing or a disappointment. I am happy to come back and tell others about the amazingly fun trip I had in Amsterdam.