I arrived in Amsterdam yesterday and this is where all the tourists are! I knew the Germans love their bicycles but OMG the Dutch blow them away. I realized this on train from Berlin as when we crossed into the Netherlands the racks and racks of bikes at each train station!
Amsterdam is lovely and picturesque. My hotel is very close to train station and heart of city center. I used IHG points for this one as most expensive on trip but worth it! Im platinum member so they upgraded me on everything including to top floor and free drinks at bar lol. I feel so pampered lol but it was goid timing after the dorm last nites in Berlin ha!
After a short walk around I took a canal cruise around/thru city which was lovely and relaxing. The history and architecture are splendid.
The city is packed with young people...drawn in part because of the marijuana available all over and the famous,Red Light District. I must say the legend that pot makes you hungry must be the reason this city is FULL of restaurants and places with snacks and pastries lolol. Im enjoying the pastries at least! The city is also extremely diverse with tourists from all over but also people of the former Dutch colonies who have roots here.
I must say we all noticed in Poland there is very much homogeneity everywhere. Germany and particularly Berlin are however diverse and Amsterdam even more so.
Today I slept in because I did not set my alarm and my body let me know I needed some rest. But I dud have a noon appointment with the folks at the CIEE Center here which was part of the reason for my trip. They have a nice facility across from the University of Amsterdam. I also checked out a variety of the living accommodations. I am reaearching how TCCD could work with CIEE fir international education including faculty custom short trips. So I did work today!
I then checked out the Dutch Resistance Museum and loved it. The Dutch presented it in terms of the decisions faced by them during WWII when they surrendered and were occupied. They look at those who just tried to live as usual, those who collaborated and the resistors. They also chronicled the fate if Dutch Jews. There were many many artifacts and personal histories. Great place and contrast to Polish and German.
I then took the tram to the Heineken Exoerience lol! Very touristy but fun...mostly young crowd but all enjoyed the beer. I then did a little shopping including some Delft pottery and ate at a great local Italian place (Im not a big fan of Dutch food which has a lot of fish lol but I did have yesterday and lunch).
Tomorrow I head to a great Maritime Museum and some churches. I also will ride trsms,around to areas havent seen. Weather should be nice unlike today which was rainy.
Finally I must note that I awoke today to the story of the tragic police shootings in Dallas. I mourn gor those families and for the nation. Interesting I was talking to an Australian family as,we waited at a tram stop and they had seen the story and were sad. But they also noted that our gun laws are tragic and help this kind of violence which they felt was very sad and could not understand American focus on guns and especially Texas....I agreed it is sad and unlikely to change much. They were surprised that I kbew the history of gun laws in Australia which were changed dramatically there by a conservative leader after a horrible mass shoiting about 25 years ago which reduced gun deaths to almost nil. I had researched this at one point for way to use as comparison in my US Govt class...I think I will do this concept in fall
