I love Amsterdam

I barely arrived in the city center but I have made up my mind. I want to live here. Bustling with excited tourists. Amsterdam is arguably the capital for rowdy stag doers in hideous outfits.

Waking up early to catch the early train to Milan Malpensa Airport. By the time we board the plane at 9am we were way beyond tipsy. Why not! Destination Am.Ster.Dam. Finding our way from the airport to the hotel was quite easy. The tram driver even offered us a free ride. We were staying close to the Heineken Experience. So you can imagine the joy of having Heineken for breakfast. We hired a bike for our entire stay. I should add that it wasn't easy riding around in the city center because of the crowd. Sure, there are bicycle lanes but the locals ride really fast. Scaring you with their impatient ringing of their bells. I can almost make out the words ' Move bitch Move.
The biggest let down for me was the food. Especially the salad. I'm so used to having my salad with dressing. Over there its oil, vinegar and salt. Probably the healthier choice some would say. I still prefer a bit of those extra calories especially when I'm vacationing. 

In fron of the renovated Ann Frank House

Unfortunately we didn't get to see the Anne Frank House, the queue was just too long. I was told later that 2 hours of lining is not worth it. Went to the wax museum instead, Madame Tussuad's. Disappointed!!! Especially with the black icons. Beyonce, Rihanna, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Nelson Mandela. Badly done, the skin tone was ghost white.
Another let down was the Heineken Experience, too much focus on the marketing. I was expecting to see some parts of the factory line, the beer making process. They compensate us real good with 3 glasses of beer, once again for us it was for breakfast.

'When in Amsterdam' sure enough I went "in search " for the famous "cafes". They are everywhere. The first night we stumbled into one, pulled out our cash and wanted to buy a few grams. The sales person had a good laugh at us. We were in a shop that sells those special mushrooms. We looked like total idiots. But like they say 'theres a silver lining in every cloud', she directed us to the best cafe in all of Amsterdam. I say 'THE BEST' because we tried more than a few. LOL.

Hannibal Lecter wax model at Madam Tussaud

I have heard tales of Amsterdam's infamous red light district but I was shocked when saw the girls for the first time. Standing in the of the windows. I cringe. I couldn't even look at them. There's nothing more humiliating than that. I just had to add that some of the girls should retire. I often ask myself if I will ever accept this oldest trade. The answer is no. I went to the Museum, read books, personal stories of prostitutes. And I still can't convince myself that some women either liked it or had no choice. But that's just me, I faced some pretty tough times in my life as a student. I think prostituting oneself is the easy way out. There's nothing that I said is law so move on if I sound so stone age.
 Anyway, the second time I went back I was able to look at them, even smiled at a few. Frowned as drunk men who tried to peek through the curtains.

Amsterdam is an amazing tourist destination. A place where people like me would visit time and time again. Where I live a good number of locals would never visit it. They raised their eyebrows when I said I visited Amsterdam. I guess its because Amsterdam is notoriously known for all the parties and its cafés


. Which is a shame because it hosts some of the finest museums, architects and inventions.

One of the many canals