This may sound lame. Okay, it is going to sound lame, but I love museums. And when I say that, I
actually mean it. So this part of my trip, consists primarily of museums. That
means that this may be the post that you pretend to read and just close down
the tab and send me a message that says it was amazing even though it was probably
more boring than reading a brochure about air.
But let’s see how long you’ll stick around, shall we?
Because I have been to Holland before and because I am also
ending my trip there before I head back to the states, I decided that this
would be the country where I would attempt to get rid of all jetlag. I never
set an alarm, I was in no rush, and I did whatever I had time to do. I just
didn’t think all three days I would wake up at 11am. So, yeah, my days were
pretty much fucked once I woke up (excuse my language)
For my first day, I had purposely slept until 11….yeah,
let’s go with that. I wanted to try and rid of any jetlag that I had and
clearly I had a lot since it lasted 3 days. But I had made my schedule for that
day anyways: Find a good place for breakfast since I hadn’t eaten well in days
and go back to the Anne Frank Huis. After a quick 20 minutes train ride to
Amsterdam, I immediately found the breakfast place I had in mind, Greenwoods,
very easy to find. Right on the canal. (Ha, get it? It’s a joke. There are a
billion canals, you’ll never find it) And just for the record, that was one of
the best breakfasts I’ve had in a long time so I would highly recommend it if
you ever have the chance to go to Amsterdam. After, I made my way to the Anne
Frank Huis. Because it wasn’t a weekend, I didn’t have to wait for more than 20
minutes to get in. Upon entering, I told myself to read everything and watch
every movie that the tour had to offer because the previous time I was there, I
was with a tour and I will tell you, I didn’t listen at all. But I will tell
you this, every single time that I go to Amsterdam, I will be going back to
that museum. It is incredibly emotional, heartfelt, and deep, it leaves you so
thankful for everything you have in life. Seeing where she lived for all those
years, the words she wrote, the risks they had to take to keep their family
alive; it hits your like a bullet. At the end of the tour, you are able to
write a thank you note to Anne. If there wasn’t a word limit, I probably
could’ve written to her all day. But just writing that note was incredibly
emotional. The entire room was silent while they were writing. I read some
others that people wrote from all over the world and to see how much she
affected everyone around the globe was extraordinary. That house may be small,
but the impact it has when you walk out, is bigger than anything you can ever
imagine.
By the time I left the museum, it was almost 5pm, when all
the museums close, so I pretty much had no other options for the day. Sjors met
me at the train station around 6 and we decided to take the ferry to the other
area of Amsterdam and go out for a really nice dinner overlooking the water. We
pretty much spent the entire meal trying to get me to understand football (happy
Sjors?) And no, I still don’t get it. By the time we arrived back to Hilversum,
it was past midnight and we headed to bed.
The next day, I honestly can’t remember what I did in the
morning, but it wasn’t all that interesting so I ended up going to the Van Gogh
Museum and walking throughout Amsterdam for the entire day. Tip: GO. TO THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM. GO. I
DON’T CARE IF YOU DON’T LIKE MUSEUMS. GO.
That
museum was absolutely beautiful. For a place to hold so many pieces of his work
in a timetable style, was brilliant. It started off with his earlier work, who
his mentors were, followed by their work, and so on. It explained why he had
darker paintings towards the beginning of his career and why The Bedroom and
the sunflowers are his most famous pieces. I am happy to say that I might just
be a Van Gogh aficionado now. And I am damn proud of that. Following the museum
and a good 2 hours stroll throughout the city, I once again met up with Sjors
and he took me to see the Red Light District. Yeah yeah, prostitutes. I know.
But I find it so funny that it’s almost done with class? That might be too
strong of a word but it’s literally window shopping. Every time you see a red
light in a window, there is a woman dressed in lingerie and if you want to go
in, you knock on the window and if they’re interested, they will talk to you
about what you want and you go it and they shut the curtain to the window. They
are EVERYWHERE. They even have an apartment building-style area where you walk
into a building and instead of doors to apartments, it’s windows with women in
it. Quite strange and a little uncomfortable, but hey! When in Amsterdam,
right? Apparently there is a blue light district with men, but no one can seem
to find it, so I’m starting to believe that’s a fib. So after going window
shopping, sadly I did not purchase anything, we headed home again.
Now this was my last night so the one thing I really wanted
to do was go to the Rijks Museum. So Wednesday, that is what I did. All day.
This museum is MASSIVE. So I would give yourself about 4 hours to go through
the whole thing. I only gave myself 3 and missed about 3 levels unfortunately. Instead
of staying in Amsterdam again that night, I decided to meet Sjors in Utrecht.
It’s just a small city in between Amsterdam and Hilversum. Known to resemble
Amsterdam but a lot cheaper and smaller. I adored this city. So much. It was
quaint, restaurants and cafes were bordering the canal, filled with locals and
tourists enjoying a good beer and some food. The city was lit up by the lights
of the church and those inside of the tunnels. For my last night, Sjors took me
to this bar that was inside of what was once a functioning church. It was
incredible. It was definitely a gem. No tourists (except me), crowded, people
laughing, smiling, and clinking their glasses together in honor of a good
night. We grabbed a few beers, some fries and bitterballs (don’t ask what’s in
them. They’re deep fried and delicious. Get them.)
For all of those that are interested in going to Holland, Amsterdam
is truly incredible but Utrecht, is without a doubt, a hidden gem.
I can’t wait to go back.
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