"Baby went to Amsterdam..."

When you tell your friends that you’re visiting Amsterdam, you’re inevitably greeted with a knowing look and a snicker. The mere mention of the city conjures up images of indelicate activities and rampant hedonism, and of packs of fun-seeking tourists wandering amidst a perpetually stoned population. Tentative remarks about Amsterdam’s rich cultural history and beautiful landmarks tend to fall on deaf ears.

Happily, the real Amsterdam (not the idealized oasis of debauchery constructed by North American frat boys) is a breath of fresh, stereotype-free air. Proud of its trading history, its monumental Golden Age of art and culture, and its modern-day social tolerance, the city welcomes you with open arms. It’s the friendliest city I’ve been to yet.

After arriving late Thursday night, Johanna, Jean and I were excited to see our fantastic hostel. Although a bit far from the centre, it was right next to Museumplein and had an amazing, huge breakfast. As a backpacker, it was a rare event to have such a massive choice of food-- so much that we didn’t have to buy lunch! In addition to that, we were upgraded from an 8 person room to a 4 person one. It was pretty much bliss.

The next day we set out on the reliably wicked Free Tour and were not disappointed (also, can I point out that the only one I haven’t been on is the Paris one? Bryan, I’m looking at you!). We got to see the city’s highlights and heard some interesting stories, along with the Coles Notes version of the Netherlands’ drug and prostitution laws. Naturally, it interested most of the tour group.


We were also taken on our first foray into the Red Light District. I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting (drunken riots and menacing streetwalkers come to mind) but it was definitely tamer than I imagined. The area’s full of cheap, good restaurants, is chock-full of gaping tourists, and is basically just another part of the city. Seeing the girls in the windows, even on a Friday morning, was tougher to take though; however, if you get past the surreality of it and the ladies’ dead, dead eyes, I guess you accept it. After all, it’s good for trade, right? Right.


Friday afternoon we explored the Van Gogh Museum, a pretty and clever permanent exhibition of the artist’s works. I like Van Gogh. Probably not on a very deep level, it must be said, but I think his paintings are absolutely beautiful. Plus, he seemed to think he wasn’t born a genius-- it’s his drive to become a genius that’s incredibly admirable.

We ended up staying in the museum until after 9 because, amazingly, there was an exhibition of the works of John Everett Millais, one of the most famous artists of the 19th century. Does anyone (I’m looking at you, English grads) recognize Ophelia?


It was luckily on display, along with dozens of his other equally gorgeous works. His painting is so realistic, the figures seem to look you in the eye and jump off the canvas. There was also an interpretative dance performance that night that we got to see-- a bit confusing, but well done and cause for much debate on the way home.

Saturday was a full day as well, as we took a train to the pretty little town of Haarlem on Amsterdam’s outskirts. We took a tour through the Corrie Ten Boom Museum, a house where the owner hid Dutch Jews during the war. Although Corrie, her sister, and her father were tipped off to the Nazis and carted away to concentration camps, the hidden Jews weren't found, and Corrie survived and spent the rest of her life speaking about racial tolerance. The hiding spot, incidentally, made the Anne Frank House seem like Buckingham Palace; it was literally a foot and a half deep and maybe 10 feet long. Six people hid in there for three days until rescued.



From Haarlem we went on to Zandvoort aan Zee, a little seaside town with a sandy beach on the North Sea. We sat and had coffee and watched the wide assortment of dogs and their walkers enjoy the perfect weather. We didn’t see a cloud the entire weekend, actually.

Saturday afternoon was a tad sobering as we got back and visited the Anne Frank House. I’m currently re-reading her diary, and it’s shocking and witty and so, so tragic; the house just reminded me of the absolute waste of life. Such a talented girl with such a horrible story to tell. As you can see below, she's a beloved worldwide icon and revered in her adopted city.


Sunday we allotted for shopping. After gamely trying to follow a Lonely Planet suggested walking tour, we figured out that most of the shops were closed anyway, so we went back to Dam Square and parted ways with Johanna, who left to explore on her own. It was her birthday on Saturday, so she treated herself to some awesome shopping :).

Jean and I visited the Rijksmuseum, which is apparently the Louvre of the Netherlands. However, they’re undergoing renovations, so only 100 masterpieces are on display. Only 100. We felt that was ample, though. After at least 15 rooms full of priceless art, including some Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Bols, we got to see Rembrandt’s famous masterpiece The Night Watch. Well...it’s definitely big. I particularly enjoyed the characters’ faces, some surprised, some joyous, all convincing.

Whew. There’s a bit more… on Sunday night, we were set to meet Matt and Erin for dinner, but they ended up being delayed so the three of us had some yummy Greek food in honour of Johanna’s birthday. We were straight off to bed though, as we had to get up at 5:30 to make our flight back to Leeds!

So last night we made it out to The Library and then HiFi for Johanna’s big birthday night, and it was great fun. Johanna admirably made it through the whole evening despite being sleep-deprived and obligingly accepting congratulatory birthday drinks the whole time, but you do what you have to, right? ;) Happy birthday, Jo!!

Oh, and here’s the latest Gazette arrrrrticle (pg. 8), concerning the infamous NME show of last week.

Blerg, that’s a long post. If you’ve made it to the end, thanks so much for doing so! I didn't know until recently just how many people read my blog regularly. I want to sincerely thank everyone who’s been reading the blog-- it means so much to me that you’re interested and take the time to read about my experiences!

I’ll talk to you all soon!

Gennelle

p.s. Hi, John and Susanne! Hope everything’s going well in good ol’ London, ON :).