amsterdam, day one

and now, it all begins.

monday in amsterdam started lovely - there is sun, there is breakfast! the bicycle hotel gives us a fabulous spread - though it admittedly took some getting used to. there was muesli (yay!) and granola and different sorts of breads and biscuits and a coffee machine with all the coffee we seattle-ites can drink. the yogurt and milk were kind of confusing at first - "this milk is rather thick... oh. yum!" though the yogurt is surprisingly tart. which is why you need... all of the wonderful jams and jellies and spreads on the table! peanut butter and nutella and honey and apple butter galore for your toasting delight. but to make it the best dutch breakfast ever?? hagleslag!

there was also meats and cheeses, but nothing compares to these awesome little chocolate sprinkles. mmmmm.

after breakfast - and a skype call to alex! yay! - we went off to class in the park down the street. there was lots of talk of research and proposals and thinking of how to construct a research proposal, operational definitions, and peeing on flies in the schiphol airport. (guys, you amaze me. why must you pee on a fly??) the park was lovely, though - frisbee players and purple flowers and trees already turning color?? fall is truly nearly upon us here in dutchland as well...





after class, we were off on our own to explore a'dam! while many of my classmates ran off to museums (of which there are bzillions), i decided that i needed some time to wander and get a sense of the city. plus, it was gorgeous - no way could i stand to be inside all afternoon! on my way downtown, i wandered through the albert cuyp market, just a couple blocks from our hotel. it has, literally, everything you might ever think you need. and more. from clothes to food to yogurt smoothies to vaccuum pieces to converters and cell phone covers... they've got it. oh, and dutch pancakes too! i wandered for a while down there...

and managed to survive unscathed and with most of my money :) my journey continued, and i soon started crossing canals...


now, the thing to know about amsterdam is that there are a lot of canals. and much like seattle, the roads in amsterdam tend to follow parallel to these canals. yes. seattlites, you know what is coming. roads that you THINK will end up in one place will end up taking you far, far in another direction. it's loads of fun, once you get the hang of it. or before :) but get ready for lots of pictures of canals... i've got bunches of 'em :)

amsterdam, i've found, is one of those cities that... well, you find yourself thinking over and over again, "wow, i must have just stumbled into the old part of the city. i wonder where the new part is?" and then you walk a few blocks, and see more of the old buildings, and think the same thing again.


and again.



and again.

ok, this one was just crazy because this was seriously the tilt of the building. yeah.

and eventually you just give up and find yourself thankful to be in such a ridiculously awesome place. because it is - even as i kept walking closer to the more touristy sides of town, and crowds got bigger and louder, and bikes got angrier, i can't help but keep thinking that this is a ridiculously lovely city. all of the random side streets - that are bound to get you unlost from the confusing parallel-to-looping-canals streets - are so ridiculously charming, i can't stand it. all i want to do is sit in the cafes and read and drink local beer and bask. which is what most of amsterdam was doing on such a lovely sunny afternoon.

but i had other plans! i found the tulip market! clearly, erica-the-tulip-lover could not stand all of the awesomeness she saw here. there is just too much awesomeness... most of which i cannot bring home because it does not have a teensy weensy sticker that the us government requires for the tulips to go through customs. and my favoritest tulips do not have this sticker. i now have a hunt to find these awesome tulips that will come home with me. just wait!

tulips! bulk tulips!

please note all of the "easy to grow!" signs. and then look carefully at the "easy to grow" cans in the bottom right hand corner. oh, amsterdam.

what kinds of tulips are these, you ask?!
crazy dutch tulips, that's what.

after the tulips, i managed to get myself lost and found and lost and found a few more times, and then over to the restaurant where we were to have our first big hey-we're-in-dutchland-now-we-should-celebrate dinner with the class. dutch dinners, by the way, are about 4 hours long. especially when you have thirty people. but the food! oh the food. how can i explain the awesomeness? pumpkin risotto with grilled asparagus and goat cheese. that's how i explain the awesomeness. (and apple-nectarine crumble with coconut ice cream for dessert.)

i'm going to leave you with this one.
happy amsterdam!