London: I'm never underestimating a city again

“I guess I’ll go to London. I may as well since I’m doing Ireland and Scotland. I’ll just spend a few days there.”

Biggest regret I’ve ever had.

When I arrived to London, Stansted Airport, I immediately took a 1.5 hour bus ride to Finchley Road where I walked down the road to find my Hostel, which looked like an old Victorian House. It got amazing reviews so I was actually looking forward to it. But when I arrived, everyone was very quiet, there were a lot of older families there and I just wasn’t feeling the vibe. (Trust me, if you don’t feel a vibe in a hostel, you’re not going to enjoy it at all) So that night, instead of exploring the city (regret), I decided to hang back in the hostel and just go to bed.

The next day I told myself to get on that tube and just go somewhere. Anywhere. I chose Buckingham Palace. How was it? Umm, it was a palace. It was big. Looked like houses is Alpine, NJ. But it was located in such an odd location. Smack in the middle of the road. You would think it would be something like the white house but it wasn’t. There was a gate, those guards that you try and constantly make laugh, and some grass. So I continued on through the park and came across Parliament. Ask me anything about politics. Go ahead, ask. I will be you $1 that I will not know the answer. And I will tell you now, I will not know the answer. Why? Because I don’t care. I hate politics. I don’t know how they work. I don’t want to know how they work. Yay for honesty hour! But for some god forsaken reason I decided to buy a very overpriced ticket to go inside. I’m not going to lie, it was actually pretty cool to see both sides of Parliament and how they are separated and their beliefs. It was something to cross off my list. After Parliament, I walked by Westminster Abbey, didn’t go in because it was close to closing and decided to head over to a restaurant called Feathers and grab a burger that just wasn’t good. So at that point, I lost all hope in London and headed back to the hostel. A girl, nicknamed Hut, in my room started talking to me and we got pretty close and decided to go to dinner together. That’s when Q came in. He texted me about my trip and offered to take me out for a drink. At that point I was over London and just wanted to do something else so I agreed and later that night we went out.

He picked me up at the hostel and we headed to the local pub and underground wine bar where we talked about family and just our lives in general. It was exactly what I needed. Sometimes the only thing you need to make you smile is just a friend to talk to about everything. And he was exactly that. I felt super comfortable and started to enjoy myself and the London scene at night. He was so friendly that I didn’t’ want it to end, so I extended the invited of my wandering around London the next day to him and he told me to message him, which I did.

The next morning I decided to tour the Tower of London because I was told that it was a must-see when visiting London and although it was pouring and freezing that day, I have to agree. It was an incredible castle in London, full of history and beauty. Afterwards, I met back up with Q in the center of town and we just walked around, talked some more, grabbed some food, and rode on the carousel next to the Eye. He later invited me out in Campden (party central) to meet some of his friends. I knew that I wouldn’t go out drinking unless it was with people so of course I accepted the invite and met everyone later on in the night. It was probably one of the most fun times I’ve had in a long time. All of the people I met there were so heart-warming and friendly that it was as if I’d known them for ages. Finally, the night ending around 5am, I knew I was falling in love with London. I didn’t want to leave the next day.

My final day in London was quite saddening. I was planning on going to the aquarium or Westminster but the weather was rare at 75 degrees in October so I decided to take advantage of that and go to Hyde Park with my book and just read until I had to meet my Couchsurfing Host who would put me up that night before my flight the following morning. When I was at the park, Q surprised me by offering to meet me and it was the perfect ending with a true friend I’d only known for about 3 days. It’s funny how you can become so close to somebody within hours. So saying goodbye to him was quite hard but it was time for my next new adventure.

Around 6pm I met with my host, my first host ever, Nathan who was incredibly sweet. He welcome me with open arms. We went out for Indian food (one of my favorites), and then he took me on a night tour of London. The one thing I’ve learned so far while travelling, is that the city is so different at night versus daytime. The night sky is illuminated with the stars and the buildings that fill the city. The London Bridge was glowing with blue lights while Big Ben was shining bright while the time was ticking away. If it wasn’t for Couchsurfing, I don’t think I would’ve seen any of it. He gave me a tour and a history lesson. He made me laugh and made me look harder at my surroundings. I will never forget that night and the fact that he put me up for the night, for free.

London certainly was full of surprises. I met some amazing people, drank some horrible beer, ate some horrible food, but had the time of my life in a place I thought I was going to hate from the very beginning. I guess that truly shows that you can’t judge anything until you fully experience it.

Details:

Ryanair Flight: 12 Euros from Eindhoven, Holland – London Stansted Airport

Hostel: Palmer’s Lodge – Swiss Cottage. Approximately 18 pounds a night ($25)

Mode of transport: Oyster card (5 pounds + how much you put on it) – Tube/Walking

 

Amsterdam: Where a coffee shop doesn't actually sell coffee

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.

I Left My Heart in London

(fyi, this post is out of order. Holland is coming tomorrow)

This post has a lot of meaning to me. Which is why I’m designating an entire post to it.

I think that who you meet in life and who you decide to surround yourself with describes you as a person and what you want out of life. I have experienced so much in life: ups and downs, depression and happiness, the loss of good friends, and the gain of so many. I have taught myself that your happiness is dependent on what you do, who you meet, and how you take up time. There is nobody to blame but yourself. If you want to sit and do nothing all day and stare at the wall, then by all means, do it. If you want to go out and party with strangers, hey, I’m not going to be the one to stop you. Happiness has a multitude of definitions and it’s different for every single one of us. And for me, for this specific article, it’s London.

Like I mentioned earlier, my arrival to London was not something I was looking forward to. I had such low expectations, I didn’t really want to be there. I hated my first night in my hostel. No one was friendly, I paid a lot of money for it, and it was very anti-social. But, I’m backpacking; I’m not allowed to be unhappy and I made myself a promise that I had to make the best out of any situation. And I did. I went out and became a tourist, saw things that I wanted to see and walked around until my feet were about to fall off. But I knew it wouldn’t become better until I met someone to hang out with, whether from my hostel or not.

I’m aware this blog is for all to see and I’m just going to say it because face it, we all use it, but I’m on Tinder. I don’t use it much, I just scroll through it and never actually meet anyone. While in bed one night, I decided to go on it because maybe there was somebody that would just be willing to show me around. I matched with plenty but a lot of them didn’t seem like they really wanted to show me around as much as buy me a drink and call it a night. The next day, while gallivanting around the city center, I received a message from, let’s call him Q. He suggested we go out for a beer at a local pub and he was quite friendly so I agreed as long as he got me at my hostel (safety precautions, duh). If there was a night I really needed, it was that one. Just to have interaction with a local and conversation that was entertaining to say the least. The best part about meeting a local is the chance to go to hole-in-the-wall pubs and wine bars, meet their friends, and learn something about the city with somebody else other than a pamphlet.

The following day, after I finished a tour (which I will explain in my London post), I received a message from Q asking where I was and if I wanted to meet. Within 12 hours, I felt like I had already made a best friend in London. It was as if I could talk to him about anything, invite him anywhere, and no matter what, he was there. It was exactly what I needed to make my time there better. I feel like Q knew me better than a lot of my friends back home. He took me around London, he understood that when I squealed walking into a chocolate shop, it’s completely normal. (It is, by the way…to squeal. It’s chocolate.) But what caught me off guard was when I said that I really wanted to go on the carousel and he replied with, “Oh thank god, I really wanted to do it also. I’m so happy you said that.” I’m a kid at heart. Always will be. And for somebody that has known me for 24 hours at the point to understand my little kid personality, was incredibly heart-warming. As the sun was setting, I wanted to head back because I needed to wash up and he invited me out with friends of his for drinks and dancing.

Since I learned to never turn down an offer for drinks, I gladly accepted and met them all out a few hours later. The minute I walked into the first bar, it was as if I’d known them for ages. They were so friendly and welcoming: buying me drinks, dancing with me, taking photos, and putting up with my shenanigans. And to think, if I hadn’t met Q, I most likely would’ve been home on a Saturday night having no clue what to do. I will tell you now, that night, will be one that goes down in history. I don’t think I’ve smiled that much in a long time.

The third day was my final day and Q had already said goodbye because I had to meet with my Couchsurfing host that day. But when I found out I wasn’t meeting my host until late, I let Q know that I would be in the park because it was just too nice out regardless of the fact that I still had so much left to see. Surprisingly, he offered to come with me and bring a blanket. The entire day, we sat under a tree in Hyde Park and talked for hours. He walked me to my train and carried me the entire way. If there was a more perfect ending to my trip to London, I couldn’t even guess what it could’ve been.

It is disheartening knowing that I am away from these wonderful people. I know, that I will meet many more. But these guys from the bar, Q, the experiences I had, stole my heart for those three days, and still do. If I could offer one piece of advice, it’s to welcome people into your life and they may surprise you. Don’t judge based on looks, age, or character. Make that decision in the end, after you’ve spent time with them. I fell in love with London because of these people and I am thankful every single day.

That being said, I wanted to write a letter to Q, which I hope he sees:

Dear Q,

My time with you was indescribable. You showed me that I can find my other half, a good friend, no matter where in the world I am. You took the time to show me around, to laugh at my jokes, to carry my backpack despite the fact that you’d known me for all of 72 hours. Thank you for showing me to let loose. To enjoy my time and those around me. Between the horrible beers and the amazing chocolate. The dancing that I hardly remember to walking in the park. My experience with you showed me what backpacking is about. To break free from self-containment and do something outside your comfort zone, and meeting you explains that perfectly. I can’t even explain how much you changed my perspective on London and people in this world. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me and London is only a plane ride away.

Thank you, for making me fall in love with London. (and out of love with beer in London)

Xoxo ooooo(extra hugs),

Emily

Cheers.

Belgian Waffles: They really are THAT good

Blogging while traveling, a lot, is hard. Really hard.

Which means really long blog posts about every single thing I did in said country, with a lot of photos.

That being said….here we go.

 

When Sjors and I awoke at 11am the next day in Gent, we had to check out of our hostel and start heading back to Holland because Sjors had work the next day. But, before we did that, he said we had a little time so we decided to explore Gent for a little bit more. And let me tell you, Gent? Absolutely unbelievable. For such a small city, you wouldn’t expect much. But there was just so much to see. Maybe not a lot to do seeing that it was Sunday, but you keep thinking there’s nothing left to see and then you turn a corner and BAM! There’s more. But what blew our minds the most were the churches. Between the stained glass, wood work, and the size in general, I couldn’t even begin to tell you how extraordinary they were.

 

Before I left on my trip, I asked a few people, if you had to recommend one place in Brussels, where should I go? And I got pretty much the same answer: Bruges and Gent. Although we didn’t make it to Bruges, we heard it was pretty much a replica of Gent, but smaller. So for all of those backpacking and trying to add countries/cities to your list. I am telling you now, Gent is on there (and so is Galway, but I’m skipping 3 countries ahead)

Around 2pm we knew we had to head out, especially with a transfer in Antwerp. So we hopped on the train and headed an hour to Antwerp. I didn’t see much of it since our next train left in about an hour. So we walked around the city really fast, got a quick tour, and then did what anybody should do when they are in Belgium. Grab a waffle. I don’t care if you’re gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, starving, full, or anti-social. Regardless of your status in Belgium, you go find a waffle. And I have to say, the ones in Antwerp Train Station were probably the best possible ones around. We asked a few locals and all of them led us there. I got one with chocolate and whipped cream on top and Sjors got whipped cream and cherries. Yes, you will feel nauseous after eating it, and yes, you will want to go into a deep coma, but you will not regret it one bit. They’re warm, sweet, delicious, and worth every Euro.

5pm and we are on the train to Hilversum, Holland (where Sjors lives), and on the train ride he explains how the railway works in regards to tickets and right now, I am going to try and break this down for any future travelers so you understand because it took me about 2 hours and I hate this system to this day.

TIP: So this card is called the ov-chipkaart (the card itself costs 7 Euro). It works in the same sense as any card or the subway in NYC. You put money on it and you swipe it when you go in. But here’s the kicker. So this card, you have to tap it when you enter the station and when you leave your final destination. Only then will you tap it again and be charged based on your distance (DO NOT TAP IT WHEN WAITING FOR A CONNECTING TRAIN) You MUST tap your card before getting on the train. People come around and check to see if you did (sometimes they don’t show up at all but don’t take that risk), and if you didn’t tap your card prior to entering, there is a 60 Euro fee that you cannot argue. (Luckily I never forgot to swipe). Here’s the semi tricky part. First of all, ALWAYS get the card because if you decide against the card and just buy a ticket every time, you get charged an extra Euro. Also, your card has to ALWAYS have a minimum of 20 Euros on it. So if you put 25 Euros on it, travel from Amsterdam to Hilversum and back, it’s 5.60 so you will be denied entry after that until you put more money on it. If you travel on discount, you only need a minimum of 10 Euros on it. How you get a discount isn’t hard if you are just friendly to anybody on the train. Any student or young adult in Holland gets a discount pass, if you go to the booth and select discount card, you get about ½ off the regular price on the ride but if the person comes around to check your card and sees it’s on discount, they may ask whose discount you’re on. That’s when you have to become friendly. Ask anybody around prior to the train ride if you can ride on their discount. If they say sure, then you’re all set. It’s that simple. But this card helps you save money but is also the biggest pain in the ass ever.

TIP: Credit and Debit cards!!! Some train stations in Holland only accept cards with the chip on the front. Anyone from the US, doesn’t have one, so always have cash on you if possible.

If none of that made sense, you can go to the ticket booth and they will explain everything!

Next up…Amsterdam!

Let the Journey Commence!

Well this is going to be difficult. Remembering 5 days’ worth of adventures and putting it all into one post.

Great. Which is exactly why I a breaking it up into 2 posts….maybe 3. We’ll see how I feel in an hour.

Quick synopsis of the flight:

                My flight from Denver to DC was very fast, but that is probably because I slept for pretty much all of it. The couple next to me was incredibly sweet. They were returning to Pennsylvania after a 2 weeks trip through Wyoming, South Dakota, and some other state. They said it was absolutely beautiful and wished me well on my trip, which I greatly appreciated. When the flight landed, I had a 4 hour layover in DC which was incredibly boring. In three words: Ate, Coffee, Texted. The End. The plane, however, from DC to Brussels was incredible. The seats were incredibly comfortable, you got a TV in front of you which allowed you to watch one out of about 25 movies, about 15 different movies and had the option to listen to music (really, really bad music) The meal was also amazing. I didn’t even know I was getting fed and then in front of my pops broiled fish, sesame noodle salad, fresh bread, and cheesecake! There was so much joy in my face that I didn’t have to pay extra for this meal, you don’t even understand. The only negative was the fact that I had to sit next to Mother Theresa. Meaning, she was old. And couldn’t hear anything. And also kind of had a slight resemblance to Mother Theresa herself. She would constantly tap me asking me to lean her chair back and yell at me to eat when I didn’t want to at all. It was an interesting flight to say the least.

The minute I touched down in Brussels, I couldn’t even try to stop smiling. It had begun. The backpacking trip I had waited for, for 4 years was finally beginning. That was, it started when I found Sjors. Which took a while. Once I got out of customs, I had to look for my friend, Sjors (if you didn’t realize that was a name before) My phone, of course, didn’t want to work for the exact 30 minutes I was freaking out that I couldn’t find him. Luckily he showed up and I got all 1,000 messages stating the trains were late and he would be there later on. Our hostel for the night was booked in Gent, but we decided to wander Brussels first before heading there.

I just love how the moment you leave a train station, you can tell immediately that you’re not in America.  The streets were narrow, the building close together, and the street names? I still don’t get why the names have to be THAT long! But that’s Dutch for you.

Sjors explained to me that seafood was extremely fresh because they get it right out of the ocean that connects to the dam. I really didn’t consider seafood at the time but all around me were signs for buckets of mussel and a beer special which lets you know exactly what we did first. It was clearly a tourist area but what the hell, right!? 15 Euros for a bucket of fresh mussels, a beer, and fries? Heaven. On Earth.  After we ate and I continuously took pictures of my food like a typical American tourist, he took me to Delerium, the most famous bar in Belgium. If you are in Brussels, this is a MUST. It is known to have the most beers on tap in the world. THE WORLD! I wish I could tell you what I got, but I don’t really remember. The highlight of our night was running into this guy, Fernando. He asked us a question about the beer and I knew that he was American so I asked where he was from and he told me New Jersey. That makes me happy to begin with but the kicker was he was living in Washington Township! The town right next to mine! Talk about a small world. So Fernando, Sjors, and I had a great conversation over some wonderful beer mostly about traveling until he had to head out. That was our cue to also leave and head for Gent.

Once we got back on the train, the entire ride, I tried to pronounce the name of every station we stopped at. I failed, miserably. But the man across from us seemed to get a kick out of me butchering every single thing that I said. That’s when he decided to join in and explain to me how pronunciation is different between Belgian Dutch and Holland Dutch. From that moment on, I decided to never attempt Dutch again. Sjors agreed.

When we got off the train, we headed straight for the hostel because it was getting dark and we had no map. That being said, we got lost. But it wasn’t our fault! Google maps lied. Once we arrived, I was exhausted but I knew the last thing I should do was go to bed. So we hung out with some others in the living room and played Jenga for a while. I’m a beast (I don’t know if that’s something I should admit). Then we decided to go get food (which consisted of, fries with mayo and horsemeat sausage... don't ask) and on our way back, we realized how beautiful Gent truly was. Everything was lit up with the dark sky as the backdrop. People were socializing, smiling, laughing, and it honestly felt as if I was living in a made up city. The beauty is incomparable to anything I've seen yet. Upon arriving back to Uppelink (the hostel), I decided jet lag and sleep are for fools so I made the decision to go out on the town since it was my only night to do so. So, me, Sjors, Irene, Alec, and Valerie went out to local bars. It was incredibly strange; not the bars themselves, but the walk there. We came across at least 3 different groups of people dressed in the most obscure way all because they were getting married. Turns out to be marriage weekend because everybody and their sisters were getting married. It was so much fun because they loved having me say things in Dutch and screaming and running around the square with them. I wasn’t so sad, though, when we ended up losing them.

After a few drinks, laughs, dancing, and smiles, around 4:30am we decided to call it a night….or morning….