It’s been a long time since I have updated my travels so it’s about time that I do so. I spent a total of 2 weeks in Amsterdam. It was magnificent. Amsterdam is one of my favorite cities in Europe. I’m not sure why but it definitely reminds me of San Francisco. Not by the way it looks but by the people. People of a city can always make your stay pleasant or awful (or I guess mediocre as well). Amsterdam has its secret for making you feel at home. For starters everyone speaks English so it is very easy to get around (metaphorically), public transportation is amazing for getting you around (literally), and the people are just very friendly. Going to Amsterdam is like going into a city where the whole entire world is in. Every nationality is there and they or their ancestors at one point or another moved their and started calling it home.

During these two weeks I stayed at my Aunt’s house. She is my mom’s aunt so her and her family that she has created there are enough people to make me feel at home. I was in Amsterdam with my friend Celeste and she also enjoyed it very much. I think it’s safe to say that it was a very good relaxant before I start my studies in Lyon.

They days were spent one day going out to the center of the city, and the next day kicking it in our room watching movies. It was so nice. As you know Amsterdam has so much going on that you never get bored. We visited a lot of historical sites, went shopping in open air markets ate lots of food and other stuff.  We took a free tour one day and it was so awesome. Our tour guide was so city smart and told us about everything. He was from Switzerland and had moved to Amsterdam two years ago. He now calls it home and with his lessons taught us that Amsterdam is not just about what people think of when they hear Amsterdam like weed, prostitutes, and alcohol.  He said even though it is a big part of it now he was going to tell us about its history.

Case in point, if you want to know the history of Amsterdam google it, because it is a long one. Pretty much the jist of it is that it is a port city, founded by two sailors who had been stranded at sea with a seasick dog and they promised each other that if they survived they would start a village wherever they landed. Amsterdam was created, and grew rapidly becoming a very rich country. Interesting fact is that when Napoleon took control of the Netherlands he appointed his brother as king and he was in control of the Netherlands as well as various other countries. The people of the Netherlands were small town peoples and did not have last names. This of course drew the French mad and they ordered everyone to make up a last name if they did not already have one. The people of the Netherlands were not happy about this nonsense and decided to play a joke on the French (because they have an interesting sense of humor). Since most French did not understand the Dutch language the towns people were going to put funny last names to make fun of the French. Reasonably if you were a baker your last name would be “Bakerman” or something along those lines however the Dutch decided to make their last name “Poopy” or “Sir Suck It”. This was there way of getting back at the French so that when the French would eventually learn Dutch they would know what the Dutch had done. However times have changed and last names are needed. So this seemingly petty joke has now turned on the Dutch with peoples last name actually now meaning “Poopy” and so on.

Our tour guide also lectured a lot about Amsterdam’s history during WWII. It is very interesting and sad as well. Most of all our tour guide talked about the spirit of the Amsterdamers as they would stand up and have riots against the Nazis because they were against their values. Amsterdam is just a city that makes you feel welcome and makes you feel at home. The Netherlands is also one of the first countries to allow gay marriage which goes to show the open mentality most Dutch people have. Amsterdam just has so much to see and so much to learn from, that if you are ever making a trip to Western Europe make it a point to stop there.

Currently I am on the TGV from Amsterdam to Lyon. The ride is very scenic yet it is a grey day. I am so excited to start my new experience in Lyon and will update soon with how things are going for me.