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Published: August 15th 2017
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Ferny was staying in Paris for a couple of more days and I was heading off. I grabbed some breakfast and heading back to our favourite area where we had that duck, only this time picking up a pain au chocolate. It’s only available earlier in the day and I kept missing the window. Not today. I got one from a bakery called Boulanger Patisser and it was heavenly! Once I got to the bus depot at the airport, I found out the bus was going to be 25 minutes late. I want to find a fridge magnet for my collection earlier that morning, but no stores were open. I couldn’t find one at the airport but I did find a sandwich at a hotel gift shop. It pained me to spend 6.50 € for something worth 1.50 €. The Flixbus I caught a little sweaty. I thought I saw it was a direct route but we stopped three times. One pick up in Lille, France, a 30 minute break in Ghent (where I had to pay 0.50 € to pee), Belgium, and another pick up in traffic logged Antwerp, Belgium. In Lille during the pick up I got off to
stretch my legs. When I sat down again, a young couple used what little English they knew ask me if it was alright if I moved so they could sit beside each other. I obliged, and sat beside a girl who had also just got on. In the four hours from Lille to Ghent to Antwerp all I did was eat and nap. When leaving Antwerp a man asked the bus driver what time he thought he’d get us to Amsterdam because he had people meeting him for dinner. In a stereotypical booming Eastern European tone he told the man, “Tell them you’re going to be late.” People on the bus starting laughing, including the girl beside me. She had been reading a book in French so assumed she didn’t speak english up until then. “Est-ce vous parlez Anglais?” I asked. Laetitia said “Yes! I’m learning.” We spent the last two hour leg of the bus trip talking and helping each other with our English and French. It went by quickly. When we got to Amsterdam, we exchanged info some we could meet up the next day. I got to the Generator Hostel, Amsterdam and the location and building stuck
me. It felt like an old college campus with some history. I asked them about it at the front desk and sure enough, it used to be offices for professors at the University of Amsterdam. I met two of my roomies for the next couple of days. The Aussie had been to Amsterdam several times walked down with me to central Amsterdam as it’s only 20 mins away. We grabbed some pasta and explored the area. The red light district is something that needs to be seen to believe it. Someone can tell you about it, but one really needs to be there to take it in. There’s nothing else like, it’s like there’s no rules. We walked back to the hostel and I did more trip planning. I decide than because I wasn’t going to Sweden, I’d cut a couple a days off of Germany and go to Prague as it was so highly recommended by friends
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