On Amsterdam.

Amsterdam. As charming and breath-taking in the winter as it is in the summer. Growing up, my parents would read us many stories about Dutch kids, and in so many of the stories they went iceskating in Amsterdam. Well, on this trip I got to do just that, and it was everything I always dreamed it would be.

But, I will get back to that. We got onto the train for Amsterdam after a morning of hard work and a stressful lunch of everyone trying to figure out how to print out their tickets. We each grabbed two seats for ourselves so that we could recline comfortably for the three hour train ride. I don't even know how to describe how homey it felt, to settle in to a train knowing I was headed to another country. I love to just put my headphones in and write, read or watch the beautiful scenery go by. 

For the second half of the train ride, a couple of my buddies came from the next car over and hung out with me. 

Elliot and Locksley, headed to Scotland with their parents after Belgium!

When we arrived at Amsterdam Centraal Station, my four fellow interns and I headed to the hostel that I had booked for us, which had, let's just say, mixed reviews (one of the elements that I did not share with them while planning for the trip.) I looked for a place for us to buy the tram tickets, but after seeing the angst in their faces as I searched for the right machine, I decided that we should just go for it. So, we hopped on the tram and made it to our hostel without a glitch!

Can I just say, I think someone snuck a horseshoe, or four leaf clover... or something in my bag before this trip. With the unavoidable minor glitch here and there, everything pretty much went fabulously. 

After checking into our super chill and wonderfully located hostel, we headed to a Mexican restaurant down the street. Here, our waiter kept talking to me about his baby. (He seemed to think we had this in common since the cover photo on my phone is of me and my nephew.)

We then headed to the Van Gogh museum which was less than 10 minutes away - walking! The main reason that I wanted to stay at the hostel we went to was because it got 95% for location. And they were not kidding! I was excited to go to the Van Gogh museum because I knew who he was and had seen many of his paintings in various museums throughout the years, and because I had also read up on the museum... apparently that's just what I do now. I was not prepared for how awe-inspiring a museum on just one guy would be though.

The main reason that we did the Van Gogh museum the first night was because Rick Steves sad that there would be no line. Also, one of the other guys, Aaron, who was also headed to Amsterdam for the weekend said, "Why do during the day [when it is beautiful out] what you can do at night?" But another awesome thing about going on a Friday night was the live music that we were able to enjoy as we perused through the museum. It was techno music, which is so not my thing... but something about techno music mixed with Van Gogh totally works!

After the museum, we took a relaxing stroll along the canal. Even though this was my third time to the city, I will never get used to the way the lights reflect off the canals at night. We also peered into windows, noticing the orchids and tulips in every window and bookshelves that engulf entire rooms. So serene. 

We got up bright and early the next morning, and after a stop at the Nutella shop, that gave Amy more joy than I could possibly describe to you, we hopped on a train and headed towards Centraal station. We dropped off our bags at the station so that we could experience Amsterdam hands-free. A canal tour was the next thing on the list, which was equally enjoyed by all. After the tour, we headed to Dam square which is one of my favorite things about Amsterdam. I love just sitting on the stairs of the monument and people-watching. I could do this for hours... and I have. No one else seemed to share my sentiment. Which is just as well. There really is nothing to do there, I just love the atmosphere of it. It was actually National Tulip day, so there was a band and approximately a trillion tulips in the square!

A stroll through the flower market and cheese shops was imperative. We sampled cheeses and decided on a smoked goat's cheese for dinner, at my urging of course. By far my favorite kind of cheese! After this, we headed to the Rijksmuseum, which Mallory and Jennifer went to, and iceskating right outside of it, which Bonnie, Amy and I did! It was so surreal.

Amy and I iceskating with the Rijksmuseum in the background.

I did my best to capture the beauty of iceskating in Amsterdam.

We all met up again and went into a nearby museum cafe to eat our bread and cheese. Right after we had gotten all of our food out and just received our hot beverages from the cafe... we were kicked out. Bread and cheese for dinner is a much easier dinner in the summer when the side of a canal is just as warm as any cafe. Not quite the same story in the winter. At Mallory's suggestion, we then headed to a McDonalds and were able to devour our wonderful meal without interruption there. 

I know it looks sketch, but it was such an amazing meal.

I had also just bought a to-go coffee cup which I was able to pour my drink into from the restaurant that we were kicked out of. So, I consider that a win for me for sure.

The Anne Frank House was our final stop. I am so thankful that I had read The Diary of Anne Frank before I went because it helped me to fully appreciate seeing her original diaries and the rooms in which she spent her final years. So moving.

We then hopped on a tram, paying for it this time, back to Centraal Station and, after me hitting up an info booth for help, got on the right train. We had a connection to catch in Rotterdam. I assumed that we would have a few minutes to figure out which train once we got to Rotterdam Centraal. We hit the train platform and I made straight for the stairs, wanting to find a screen that told us where to head. Thankfully, Mallory had her wits about her and pointed to the train right next to ours that was about to leave that had our destination listed. We all ran for it, and thankfully, somehow made it right before it sped away from the station. Apparently the way I had booked our tickets, we had approximately 30 seconds to switch trains... and we made it! Thank you, Mallory.

This is about the time when the horseshoe and/or four leaf clover must have fallen out of my pocket. We got off at Brussels Centraal Station, and seeing that we would get home sooner if we switched trains at the airport, we headed for that one. The conductor on this train ended up charging us about $10 EACH (for a five minute ride... even though we already had tickets) because we were going through a "private tunnel." 

We got to the airport train station and I did not know where anything was. I checked the schedule and, realizing that our next train was about to leave, started running and yelling that everyone should follow me... thankfully the conductors saw (and I'm sure heard) us running up the track and we all made it on... just barely. These very kind conductors then told us that their "colleague made a mistake," and we shouldn't have been charged at all on the last train. They jotted his name down and, I'm hoping he is now in a heap of trouble.

Suffice it to say, eventually, we made it home.

I also forgot to mention that in the past 24 hours I have spilled raspberries all over the grocery store floor, shattered a glass mustard bottle on a McDonalds floor and kicked over and shattered a glass of beer... that was on carpet. Luck - officially gone.

On this trip especially, I discovered a new-found love for maps. It's like a game. "Can I make it to the next street?!" Sometimes I win... Sometimes I don't. But hey, that's how every game goes!

For anyone worrying about the raids and such going on in Belgium, know that we are OK! It is something that we are praying about as it is so close to us, but you should know that we are out of harm's way! Here is an article on everything that has been going on.