Sporadic Saturday

Fall has officially arrived in Amsterdam and as the leaves being to fall in Vondel Park I can already tell I’m going to miss the New England foliage I grew up knowing. A few things I’ve taken for granted: THE SUN (it rains sporadically and sunny days are becoming rare) peanut butter (I’ve already finished a Sam’s club sized jar I brought with me), and leaving for Loyola classes 10 minuets before they start (we need around an hours time for the commute). As much as I’ll complain about these things I’m starting to adapt and I’m learning to take advantage of every sunny day that comes around.

Victoria and Jaclyn cheesing

Saturday we did just that as a few friends and I with no exact plan in mind took the tram into the city and began wandering through the shopping streets in Dam Square. After having lunch and coffee from a place that reminded me exactly of Cosi, I ended up stumbling upon the cutest pair of gray booties and bought them without a second thought (putting them on right away of course). We then ended up hanging out by a canal for a little watching the boats pass by.

That’s when I made my first mistake of the day; to enjoy the weather better I took my booties off. A struggle then arose when I tried to put them back on. I felt like I was in Cinderella because one foot would simply NOT go back in! I must have looked ridiculous as I struggled because a couple from across the street sat on their stoop laughing at me. Through laughter they asked me if I needed a plastic sock. Confused as to what they were talking about I continued to struggle laughing harder as it became more difficult with every try. That’s when the women came running over waving a small plastic bag insisting I put my foot inside. With literally nowhere to run, I complied as she assisted me and amazingly my foot slid right inside! At the long awaited success my friends and the kind stoop strangers applauded followed by roars of laughter. Of course Victoria captured this mortifying play by play.

The struggle and plastic bag offering...

The women literally put my foot in the bag!

It worked!

After walking off the laughter we ended up stumbling by the Anne Frank House. To our surprise the line was short so we took advantage of the situation and within 5 minuets we were inside the narrow canal house. It always amazes me how big the inside of these houses actually are and to our surprise Anne Frank’s House was no exception. After about an hour of walking through the hidden rooms and trying to experience even an ounce of what she must have felt we came out of the house in a solemn mood. The video clips and inscriptions on the walls were chilling, but gave me a much better understanding of her story.

Yep we peddled this thing!

To lighten the mood we decided to hop on a canal bike and enjoy Amsterdam from the water (something I’ve always wanted to do in the Baltimore harbor). This was the next mistake of the day. Besides looking like COMPLETE tourists, we had the difficult task of avoiding real boats, ducks, and houseboats (the steering was impossible, but Victoria was a champ and got us back alive). After being stuck in a canal four way intersection jam and almost being toasted by a huge sightseeing boat, we docked. One warning we found out the hard way: the sign that reads, ‘cycling quickly won’t help you go faster’ proved to be true.

To end the day on positive vibes we walked home through Vondel Park enjoying the green trees, flowers, and ponds. Jaclyn and Victoria even climbed a few trees while Mara and I laid in the fields and stared up at the clouds as the sun started to set. It was truly a surreal ending to our sporadic day.

Vondel Park

On Friday I leave for Switzerland (my first weekend trip!) and I can’t wait to see what sorts of adventures lie ahead.