Amsterdam

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We got up early and Raf took us to the train station in Studdart, The Netherlands to get a train to Amsterdam.

The train was only 3 hours, and we got to Amsterdam by 1:30. As usual, the finding of our hotel / hostel is always the most exciting part of our trip... so why stop now. We were going to try to figure it out on our own since Heather had been to Amsterdam before... but after the Piccadilly Circus Fiasco of 06', I decided that maybe her directional skills might let down, so we followed the directions we already had. Sadly, these were also way off.

We asked directions a few times, and after an hour in the heat with our 40 pound backpacks, we found the Hilton Amsterdam. People kept saying to take the trams, but it didnt mention them anywhere on the directions. We thought they were just being typical lazy Europeans... but we were wrong. Tram 16 went straight from Central Station to like 100 yards from our hotel in like 15 minutes. I dont know; sure it would be simple to take the "easy way" to our lodging, but then what would I have to write about in the blog.

After we showered and ate our complimentary strawberries, we headed back downtown to find the internet to see if Kassandra emailed us about meeting up. It was her last day in Europe, and she wanted to see us before we all left. We found internet after some difficulties, and realized that we were actually supposed to be meeting her back near our hotel (where we had just come from). We headed back down to the Heineken Expierience where we were supposed to meet her, and found her waiting outside for us.

We decided to take the tour with her. She has an unhealthy obsession with Heineken. Maybe its all the Molson they get in Canada, but she loved it. The tour was fairly cool, but the free drinks were by far the highlight. After emailing some hilarious virtual postcards, taking pictures with random Koreans, and hearing more lies that Heather told (we met some of her friends from London while on the tour, and apparently she told them that I left HER) - we headed out when the tour closed at 6. Kass had rented a bike, but was too drunk to ride it. We were afraid she could have gotten a BWI (Biking while intoxicated), so I decided to step up and ride it back to the rental place. She first made us walk/ride like 2 miles the wrong direction before we finally found the right place.

We got some food at Hard Rock Cafe so that we could watch some of the soccer games, had a great meal, and met some people from St Louis. They gave us free bus passes for the rest of our stay, then we all headed back to our hostels/hotels to get changed for the night.

We decided to go out into the Red Light District for the night, and while there isnt much to say, it was the most unique place on Earth. We didnt DO anything, we just walked around and took it all in. If you want any funny stories, you will just have to ask in person, because writing them in words would do them no justice. Ironically we met some kids we knew from Pitt while standing in front of a prostitution place, as well as an awesome couple from California (and thats rare to say).

I will say that it was far less trashy than I expected, and wasnt scary at all. We headed out by 1 am, ran to catch the last tram, then called it a night.

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Photos

Me... in a Giant Shoe
Pictures don't get much funnier than this. Pure Artistic Genius.

IAMsterdam
Its a total rip off of Philly, but it was cool nonetheless.

Heineken Postcard
If you recieved the email of it, then consider yourself lucky. That means you Jeff.