My weekend in Amsterdam

Sarphati Park 

Anne Frank's House

Last weekend Ali and I went to Amsterdam. I have been in Germany for over a month so I was ready to see another part of Europe, as this is my first time out of North America. Our flight left at 7am on Saturday morning, so needless to say, Saturday was a very long day.  We flew out of the same airport that I flew out of when my class went to Munich a few weeks ago and it was a relief to not have to look up directions so early in the morning. We arrived in Amsterdam at around 9:30 am and made our way to  our Hostel. Since we arrived so early our room wasn't ready yet, so we had the opportunity to walk around for a while before settling in and taking a nap. After walking around for a while I got the impression that Amsterdam is a very beautiful place. Our hostel was right across the street from Sarphati Park, and luckily the weather was nice so we hung out there for a while until checking in.   After some much needed rest, we decided to take the tram toward the Centraal Station, which is the main part of Amsterdam and do some sight seeing. I have always wanted to see the Anne Frank House, even before I knew I was going to be studying abroad. Luckily, while walking around the city I saw a sign that said that it was only .8 kilometers away! After waiting in line for about 30 minutes we got inside and it was definitely worth the wait. I have learned so much about the Holocaust on the side of the Germans and living in the area where it was planned that going to a place where the effects took place was really powerful.  My favorite part of the house was her room. In her diary she talked about how bare and boring the walls where and that she wanted to make it more lively by putting up posters of famous people that she enjoyed.  Anne Frank has been idolized so much as a symbol of the Holocaust and being in her room made her feel very human and real; she was just a teenage girl exposed to the biggest horror of the 20th century.   One thing that was interesting was in a short video documentary on display it said that Anne never had such serious thoughts (that is known) before having to go into hiding, and that such a horrific experience turned her into a mature young woman with deep reflections and criticisms about the world around her even if she couldn't participate in it herself.  The exhibition itself was really well done in my opinion, although I was disappointed that the attic             

was inaccessible.   At the end of the exhibit they actually had the slip of paper with all of the Frank's names on it that was used by the Nazis to collect them. They also had videos of the liberation and the emaciated people and all of the piles of dead bodies at the camps.  It was a really powerful experience and I am very happy that I went.  

Near Anne Frank's House 

On a lighter note, the next day we went to see an English band called "Hot Chip" at the Melkweg, which is the largest music venue in Amsterdam. It was one of the most fun concerts I have attended.  It was really cool to be able to go to a music venue in a different country, as I have only been to ones in Washington. It was a sold out show and we had to wait in line for about 30 minutes just to get in, even though we already had tickets.   Earlier that day we went to the Heineken Experience, which was really fun as well.

Hot Chip at the Melkweg, Amsterdam

Heineken Experience

The weather held out for most of the weekend, but finally on Monday it started to pour down rain. We were planning on renting bikes and touring the city but the weather just didn't allow it. Instead, we walked around and spent a long morning eating a delicious breakfast at a cafe near our hostel.  We went there on both Sunday and Monday mornings and got omelettes both days. We also went to the "Pancake House" which is famous in Amsterdam on Saturday Night and ate some really good pancakes.  It was a weekend of good food. As I mentioned, Amsterdam is a very beautiful city but it is also extremely confusing. The set up of the city is almost a "U" shape, making it difficult to decipher when roads begin and end.  Also, every street looks very similar: a canal separating two nearly identical rows of buildings.  So, needless to say, we got lost a lot, which wasn't very fun in the rain.

Me in front of the Anne Frank House

I had a great time in Amsterdam with Ali but we were very happy to return to Berlin.  Even as a visitor, he told me that Berlin feels more like home than Amsterdam which made me really happy to hear as I am really coming to love this city. Many of my friends in the program are continuing to travel almost every weekend to different places in Europe.  With the exception of the class field trip to Prague I am choosing to stay in Berlin every weekend until I return to Seattle. I am really happy about this decision. Even after going to Munich and Amsterdam, the idea of traveling seems exhausting, and I haven't even come close to seeing all of Berlin.

Ali with a statue of Anne Frank near the Anne Frank House 

Until next time, Ciao from Berlin

Becca