Dam Square Amsterdam

We made it safely to Amsterdam last night. The flight from Oslo was on time and we even managed to figure out how to get train tickets and get on the right train :)

Our hotel is right across from Centraal Station---a perfect location. But, what a crazy place this is!! First, you have to make sure you don't get run over by the buses or …

First on the list for today was to visit the diamond factory!! This was good plan for both of us....Amy got to look at some diamonds, and Mike got to check out the red light district again, since the fastest route to the diamond factory was to cut through the red light district.

Mike got a little more than he bargained for this time in the …

Amsterdam was one of the most interesting places any of us have experienced since being abroad. It was a quaint town with adorable houses and canals inbetween every street..but then a coffeeshop and red light district on every corner, it was unusual. Also, it seemed so americanized- everyone spoke English, even the movies played in it, and they had …

Boy am I happy to be gone from Amsterdam! It was so much fun, but an exhausting stretch of the trip so far to say the least. It all stArted on the night train from Copenhagen to Amsterdam. I was still traveling w my travel friend Gregg and he was is a different part of the train than I was. The train ride was a good 14 hour ride so I decided to get …

Very cool center of the city. Also, where Napoleon marched into town, where the Nazi's set up camp and where the liberation celebration was held …

Amsterdam is a much smaller city than I expected, kinda like San Francisco. Weather's chilly but bearable, except when they are ultra strong winds. My fingers and toes are numb from the cold wind while my nose is runny and red. First day here, museums are a must. Went to sex, torture museums and the Heineken experience. Loved the freebie! …

The wait wait wait of the plane ride (and for this trip, two plane rides after the lay over in Madrid) turns immediately to the rush rush rush to get out of the airport. But of course, as seems to be the pattern this trip, we are held up by one student, a young man who has the misfortune of having misplaced luggage. Eventually we get out of the …

Bike rides, duners, red light district, Vondelpark, stroopwafel, Rembrandts house, great smells if you know what I mean, no sleep, falling asleep while talking, dodging cars and humans on our bikes, loud Bob Marley songs being sung in the tent next to ours, sleeping pills, deep sleep. Seriously we rode our bikes all over the effing city. Chickens …

This was the trip that every one told me I had to make. It was the only trip I knew that I had to make, and not just for the obvious reasons. So before I go on let me explain one thing, I smoke weed. And I enjoy it. But I don't smoke it every second of every day of every month of every year. And on top of that, I only smoke weed and I don't do any …

Our wake up call came way too early! In our haste to shower and dress, we missed breakfast and the deadline to put our bags out for the bus. We lugged ourselves and our bags to the waiting coach and hefted them below then blearily loaded ourselves into our seats. Our chipper, well rested co-passengers asked us if we went into town and what it was …

... , affluence and iced-over canals.  A big contrast from Africa but fun to observe.  I ended up in Dam Square, in the heart of Amsterdam.  There was a small rink with ice skaters having a ball.  Next to it was a small stand baking ...

... in Amsterdam.   de Bierkoning - 25 years De Bierkoning (The Beer King) is an amazing beer store very close to Dam Square in Amsterdam.  It is small, but packed to the rafters with a selection of beers from all over the world, including aged ...

... city experience was a great day. We walked the streets, crossed canals, sniffed out a few "coffee shops", and hung out in Dam Square. The red light district is a weird place, and somehow walking it in broad daylight makes it even weirder. But the truth ...

... horse throughout the country, accompanied by his helpers, the Zwarte Pieten (the Black Petes). There is a parade from Central Station to Dam Square and then on to the Leidseplein. Along the route, the Zwarte Pieten hand out small ginger cookies, called ...

... party at their house (including the most amazing brie with a fig, date and raisin sauce!). At about 11:30 we all walked over to Dam Square to enjoy the mayhem of "bring your own fireworks". It was a really nice New Year's; we were home tucked in bed by ...

... jumped out - whole and alive, with no ill effects of the pickling and peppering. A miracle! There's actually a plaque in Dam Square commemorating this! Other excitement in Dam Square this weekend: There was a walk-by shooting on Saturday ...

... he had a friend who was blinded in one eye from fireworks at the Leidseplein last year, so we decided to skip that. -- At Dam Square there was a big stage set up with a DJ playing disco music and lots of people drinking and dancing. Although most bars ...

... the guide at the info center in front of the station.  There were a lot of people, and when we walked over to the dam square, there were a total of 80+ people!  Luckily there were 3 guides who took different routes, so we weren't a giant mob ...

... pieces of feather boa were floating in the canals. Several all-day revelers were still partying strong in the town squares. In Dam Square, there was a huge carnival set up with Ferris wheels, cotton candy, and the usual carnival stuff. We ended our ...

... for lunch, a walking tour of the city naturally unfolded.  We walked from the Central Station to Dam Square, then to the Begijnhof and through the Amsterdam Historical Museum before arriving at the best French fry stand in the city.  Fries were ...