Finally, I'm in travel mode. After a couple days of missing the conveniences of normal life, I started enjoying the thrill of the unknown in travelling. When tomorrow is unknown and that's okay, it's easier to focus on today and now.
Amsterdam is pretty much the perfect tourist destination : good public transport, unique (art, city planning, history, or liberal policies), everyone speaks English, lots of energy. Downsides : a lot of the crowd my age or younger seem obsessed with the Cafés (marijuana cafés) or the Red Light District; also, navigating busy city roads with lanes for bicycles, cars and trams takes a little getting used to.
What have I done this week? Visited a bunch of museums (ex. Rembrandt House, Amsterdam Historical Museum and the Van Gogh Museum), walked around the canals, watched the Holland-Brazil match with a couple hundred Dutch, tried to register my working-holiday visa with the Dutch Immigration Office (who seem to be avoiding me so I can't register my visa... grrr...), and visited family.
Surprises: Amsterdam doesn't seem nearly as expensive as I was expecting. Just stay out of the really touristy places. I've been really fortunate to have some really great second cousins who've taken me in while I've been in the city : Eme, Bregje and Jorrit. They're setting the bar very high for when they come visit me in Canada!
Highlight: Definitely watching the soccer game with a bunch of drunk and "enthusiastic" Dutch. They know how to watch sports that are an issue of national pride! Actually, some of my second cousins were a little hesitant to have me watch the game with them because someone I'm related to hasn't exactly been a good luck charm in the past. After the Brazil game (which we were a little expected to lose), I'm now not allowed to leave the country until the World Cup is over!
To come: more visiting family in less touristy (ie. more Dutch practice for me!) parts of the country. Eventually, I will be heading to France, maybe Spain, probably Switzerland, Italy followed by who knows. There's nothing quite like a nice solid travel plan!
Lots more to come!
Cheers,
Chad
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