Group presentations in our Marketing Society and the Public Interest class were held the afternoon before we left for Amsterdam. Our group had spent so much time focusing on the pros and cons of having an open market for kidneys that I hardly had time to pack for our weekend to Amsterdam in the hour an a half I had left myself between ending school and hopping on an overnight.Amanda,Katie, Alexis, Sarah, Cheryl, Brittany, and I made a few quick switches before we could settle into the 13 hour train ride direct to Amsterdam. Unfortunately, the conductor woke us up at about 9am with news that the train had suffered engine failure and we had broken down just outside the city. After 30 minutes of waiting, we were told to get of the train and hop on a metro that wasn't too far away. It was a hassle but we eventually ended up where we needed to be, bought three-day passes for the trams and checked into the StayOkay Hostel in Vondel Park. A large city right next to Amsterdam's largest park. Our room was located in a portion of the hostel that had previously been a high school.
Katie and I explored the area near our hostel and grabbed the best bagel sandwich I have ever had (yes, it beats Bodo's) at Bagels and Beans, and met up with Brittany at the Anne Frank House. We only waited in line for 30 minutes, which is apparently pretty speedy. Reading through the history of her family and seeing where her family lived in secrecy for over 2 years under the Nazi terror was humbling. The house and secret annex lack furniture and the blinds were drawn, so there was an eerie sadness throughout the place. I remembered reading the book when I was younger and seeing the actual diary of Anne Frank, listening to video accounts of Miep and her father, and walking through the same rooms she lived in were amazing.The three of us continued through the streets of Amsterdam, enjoying some of the nicest weather we have encountered so far in Europe. The sun was shining on all of the Dutch buildings and the flowers that were just starting to come out made everything so cheery. We strolled through the Red Light District, just to see what it was. We were surprised when we saw some of the women up for sale, not exactly prime goods, but I guess there is something for everyone. It was awkward when we saw a few guys go in or come out of the stalls, but other than that it seemed like any other street in any other city.
We got 50cent ice cream at McDonald's, said goodbye to Brittany who was going back to Italy to meet up with her family, and we went back to the Hostel to go with he rest of the group for dinner. We ate Italian food at a restaurant that had its own cat (apparently restaurant cats are common in Amsterdam). We walked around the area by our hostel for a while before going to bed early, we didn't get much sleep on the night train the previous evening.
Saturday morning we awoke to the smell of the extensive (and free!) breakfast wafting from the floor below us. We chowed down, packed a sandwich for lunch, and met up with a free walking tour. The guide taught us everything we needed to know about Amsterdam and we covered a lot of distance. We learned about the Dutch history of dams and dykes, squatting laws, the domination of the Dutch East Indies Trading Company, the hidden catholic churches, the history of the red light district and the church that is located on the same street, the history of public urination in Amsterdam, the most famous coffee shops, the Nazi resistance and so much more. We walked around the town on our own for a while before we grabbed dinner at Wagamama's, our favorite Euro-Asian chain restaurant.
Sunday morning we went to the Van Gogh museum where there was a special exhibit detailing the inspiration to Van Gogh's Starry Night, and his fascination with dusk, evening, and night lighting. We rented audio guides to get the most out of our visit and they provided a voice to so many of the paintings that I did not realize had so much history and depth to. We popped into a few gift shops on our way to the train station, where we were lucky enough to get a train that took us non-stop from Amsterdam to Lugano. There was some hassle because the car we had a reservation for was no longer in the line-up and the conductor had to find us a new cabin, but everything worked out smoothly and we started the long journey home, arriving back at the Montarina at 6AM, in time to shower and read our assignments before class started at 1:-)