Day 54: I-Am-sterdam

Saturday - July 10, 2010:

I love the beds at Hotel Casa 400. Love them. I did not want to get out of bed because they were so comfy. Somehow I found the will to roll out of bed and into my clothes. The thought that got me moving? Pancakes. We had planned to start off our Saturday with a big Dutch breakfast! Our bike tour guide gave us a restaurant to go to and drew it on a map for us, so that was our destination.

Friday night we had all agreed to meet in the lobby at 9:30 to go, but when traveling with 11 gils, you never leave on time. We finally rounded everyone up at 9:50 and walked to Amstel Station (the closest bus station). Well, let me tell you how difficult it is to get around Amsterdam -- very. I can not figure out their public transportation to save my life. So we resorted to asking a bus driver at th station how to get to Jordaan district. He instructed us to take a bus, then a tram. Phew, that's a lot. But we did it and, I hate to say it, but it was a really bad public transportation experience. Hot and cramped and crowded. I think I got whiplash from the driver. So getting near the pancake house took us longer than expected and we got off the tram at 10:30ish.

{Look at the bike parking lot -- overflowing!}

Now we had the challenge of finding the pancake place. So we went to where Petra drew it on the map. Not there. We wandered around to see if it was close by. Not there either. So we finally give up and go to this other pancake place we'd passed earlier -- Sara's Pancake House.

It might not have been THE Pancake House, but it was still pretty dang good. Sara had every kind of pancake you could dream of -- seriously! I settled on banana pancakes (in ode to Jack Johnson) and the were delish! (They were really more like crepes, so they weren't as filling which was good).

{Lindsey with her early-birthday Irish Coffee!}

{"Making banana pancakes, pretend like its the weekend now..."}

With our pancakes in us, we began our walk to our first stop -- the Waterlooplein Market. The walk took us about 15 minutes, but it is so nice to walk around Amsterdam that we didn't even notice the distance! All of the buildings are so different and so cute -- I could have taken a picture of every single one. Also, there was orange everywhere! On buildings, in cars, on boats -- everywhere. The Netherlands are so excited about the World Cup game, so that was fun to see. Another note about walking in Amsterdam -- it is so difficult being a pedestrian! Your sidewalks are tiny because the big ones go to bicycles, and if you are standing in the bicycle one, you WILL (I repeat -- you WILL) get honked at. And don't even get me started on crossing the street. It was like playing Frogger every time! Who do you yield to? There are cars, bikes and trams crossing your path, so that's three modes of transportation that you have to dodge -- talk about difficult. So by some pedestrian miracle, we made it to Waterlooplein all in tact.

The market was your typical market, but hippie style. There were booths with old military jackets and combat boots. Tons of tie dye! Old records and so much incense that the smell gave me a headache. Vintage clothing and accessories... just a big random assortment of junk. The only thing I walked away with was one of the best iced coffees I've ever had and some wooden clogs (hello tourist. It's Holland -- I had to). While at the market, the group kind of split up. Some girls went to the Van Gogh Museum and Becca, Emily, Lindsay and I stayed at the market a little bit longer and then just wandered down along the canals. Did I mention that today was the hottest day in Amsterdam so far this year? No? Ok, well it was. I'm talking "rivals Alabama hot" -- so you know that's scorching. We were refilling our water bottles every five seconds (Amsterdam has some of the best tap water in Europe). Yeah, so our walk was a really hot one, but it was still enjoyable! After a while, we met back up with the group and everyone but Emily and Becca went to the Heineken Brewery -- I just felt like I needed to do something touristy. So we ripped out our three Euro coupon and got our tickets (we'll do anything to save some Euros).

{Probably my favorite house boat on the canal -- I love its colorful flowers!}

{Me, Emily, Becca and Caitlyn sitting on some big benches, waiting for the other girls}

{The flag of Amsterdam -- I thought it was pretty cool. Reminded me of pirates}

{More orange!}

{A road in Amsterdam -- you can see the tram tracks}

{I hit a lull while in the market, so I had to get an iced coffee asap. And it was probably the best iced coffee everrrrrrr!}

{We all got a singlet picture in the wooden clogs -- I love the wooden clogs. Don't I look like Daffy Duck?}

{They even have boats that are wooden clogs!!}

The Heineken was different than the Jamesson distillery because this one was a self-guided tour. We scanned our ticket and began the experience! I can't say I really learned a lot about how it was made, but we did have a lot of fun! It was very interactive. There was a 4-D ride where we got to "Be the Brew" and some cardboard cutouts for photo-ops. We even got to make a Heineken music video and email it to ourselves (that will not be released onto the blog, I'm sorry to say). And lastly, there was a taste test at the end of the tour where we learned about drinking the beer. I'd say it was well worth the Euros and the hour and a half we spent in there (it was air conditioned, which is rare in Amsterdam, so we stayed as long as enjoyably possible).

{Me, Katherine and Caitlyn about to experience the Heineken Brewery - dum dum dummm!}

{We can't resist this photo opportunity}

{Or this one...}

{An old Heineken ad}

{Henry Pierre Heineken -- the man with the mustache, who started it all}

{Heineken labels throughout its history}

{The 4 ingredients -- water, barley, hops and a secret something that I forgot the name of}

{Trying wort -- disgustinggg. Tasted like watered-down oatmeal... I think we'll wait for the finished product!}

{Curl and Shellie helping the brewer}

{Brew You Ride!}

{The 4-D ride in the Heineken Experience. I promise it's a lot cooler than it looks}

{Our first taste test of the tour}

{Shellie, me, Caitlyn, Katherine and Noelle with our cute, miniature, pint glasses!}

{What's it looking like Curl?}

{In the green room -- we were just thankful to sit down}

{The ceiling was made out of the green bottles}

{We could've watched a short, informative movie in these cool chairs}

{An old advertisement}

After Heineken, it's like 5:45, so some girls head back to the hotel to rest and shower, and Becca, Emily, Meg and I power through our exhaustion and walk to the Anne Frank House. It's Saturday at 6:20 p.m. and the hottest day of the year, so we weren't expecting a big line to see the annex -- wrong! It was definitely around the corner and when we asked someone in the middle of the long line how long they'd been waiting and they said 45 minutes -- that wasn't too encouraging. But we head down to the end of the line and make ourselves comfortable. After much debate, we decide to wait it out. I don't know if I'll even be back to Amsterdam and I really want to see the annex, so I'm glad for this strategic tourist decision. Luckily, the line moves quicker than expected and we only end up waiting an hour! I figure Anne Frank lived here for two years, it's the least I can do to wait an hour in line. While waiting in line Emily and Becca go get something to eat. They ended up going to a falafel stand and Emily has a very scary experience -- she fell down the hatch that lead to the underground supply room! I am still not positive on all the details of the happening, but she has a nasty scrape all down her arm and leg today as her Amsterdam battle wound! So she was just grateful to make it back in line all in one piece. I told you it was a tough life being a pedestrian! So they make it back and we make it into the house/museum.

They give us a guide book as we enter, telling us the story and I still can't believe it when I read it. Two years living in this cramped house. Limited food, entertainment and noise... I don't see how they did it. But the museum was so cool -- I am SO glad we waited in line to do this.

There were quotes from her diary all on the wall and I have pictures of some of my favorites (they are shown below...) When we got to the back part of the house, this is when we entered the annex. There were three rooms and all so tiny! Especially Anne and Fritz's room. What I found so fascinating was the magazine/newspaper clippings and pictures that were still on the walls of Anne's room. There were postcards of the Dutch Royal Family and pictures of old filmstars. This is when it really hit me, Anne Frank was just your ordinary girl like me. It's crazy to think about. And this was only 45 years ago.

{Can you see the moving truck in the distance? Yeah the ladder was kind of like a moving escalator and was moving furniture from the top window down to the bed of the truck. It was so cool! I guess this is another option for moving besides the pulley system}

{Waiting in line at the Anne Frank House}

{The Anne Frank House -- it was the only building with these protective shutters on the outside of it}

{Party on the canal!}

{Sweet, sweet Anne Frank}

{This is my new favorite quote}

{Listening to an intro video before we went into the annex part of the house}

{The yellow star}

{The downstairs, office part of the house -- not part of the annex}

{Quotes like this one from her diary were all over the walls. It really helped us get a visual while touring}

{The bookcase that hid the secret entrance into the annex}

{Reading the quote on the wall...}

{Its so hard to believe she wrote these words. They were true and real... It blew my mind}

{A map of Normandy on which Otto Frank keeps track of the Allied Invasion}

{Anne Frank's room she shared with Fritz -- two people lived in this small space for two years. There was a desk in here where Anne usually sat, writing in her diary}

{The pictures on the wall were original to the house -- the exact ones Anne put on her walls to make it look more cheerful. That was the coolest thing I saw}

{Becca reading a quote in the common room}

{The board game Peter got for his birthday when they were in hiding}

{This is Peter's small room, and those are the steps leading to the attic}

{A picture of what Peter's room looked like}

{This is what Otto Frank believed. It is part of what inspired him to publish his daughter's diary. He believed everyone needed to know}

{Another favorite quote I have learned for Anne Frank. Her wisdom went beyond her years}

So we take our time in the museum -- especially while looking at the diaries (we weren't allowed to take pictures of the diary or else I would have. I know, I usually rebel and sneak a pic, but I didn't want to play any part in the deterioration of Anne's diary... so I respected the rules for once). We didn't get done until 8:30. We don't really know what to do at this point during the night, so we go sit o n the side of the canal and rest until we make a decision. Yay -- this is all I've wanted to do -- sit and watch the boats go by. I love LOVE all of the boats here. They are all so cool -- old wooden boats (my favorite). And since it was Saturday night before the World Cup Final, people were out to have a good time! So every boat that came by was loaded down with people. And most of them had a little grill on them also. Something I also want to bring back to Guntersville lake -- I'm sure the water police won't think that's a fire hazard. It was hysterical to watch them all drive by!

{And outside Anne Frank's House, in the canal, they are still partying on the boats!}

{Cool little boat}

{And another boat... I could've taken a million pictures}

The other girls had showered and were walking back this way to eat dinner, but we agreed that it'd be too difficult to try and meet up with them, so the four of us did our own thing. I swear to you, we walked 10 miles during the day -- making our bodies practically numb, so we walked nearby, trying to find a small cafe to eat in. Well, that was a more challenging task than we thought because a five minute walk turned into a twenty minute walk. We didn't find anything until right before the rain started pouring (lucky!). We settled on this little pub/bar place and I was very pleased with our spontaneous choice. We sat down, ordered and nearly kissed the waitress when she brought us water because we were so thankful. I guess these guys behind us heard us talking because they asked us if we were from the South. We said yes, assuming it was our accent that gave it away (as always) and they said that and all the "ya'lls" made us dead-ringers for Southerners. Gotta love it! Well, one of the guys ended up talking to us for a long time and he told us all of the places in Europe that he has traveled. Most of the places we had been to, but he had been to Prague (our next, and final, destination). He told us all about Prague and how beautiful it is -- making us very excited about this travel decision!

Our food came and we had to physically keep our eyes open and our head up because we were so exhausted, we could have easily passed out in our plates (hence the lack of pictures -- you can tell I don't take as many when I'm tired).

When we were done at 10:45ish, it started pouring again -- putting a damper on our motivation to met up with the other girls. So we just hail a taxi and go straight back to Hotel Casa 400. Since our hotel is brand new and their landscaping is still under construction -- our cab can't pull down in front of the door, so we have to run down the sidewalk in the torrential downpour. We were soaked!! I felt so bad for dirtying up the hotel's lobby, but I blame it on Mother Nature.

When Emily and I are back in our room, I immediately jump in the shower and then into my pajamas. Then only American channel we can find on TV is MTV, and the Real World is on -- so we watch it. I had forgotten about this show -- it brought back so many memories. There were days and nights during my early years of high school when I'd be glued to the TV watching Real World and Road Rules. Back then I could've sworn to you I'd be on the show. Now it is just laughable! So after this little trip down memory lane, we promptly fall into a deep deep, fabulous sleep.

Saturday in Amsterdam wore us out, but it was well worth it. I'd say we spent our 48 hours (or less) in Amsterdam very wisely -- I feel like I got to see most of the city and all the main attractions I wanted to. The Netherlands = success!