Pursuit of the Lion
- Mar 16, 2019
- 5 min read

4 Countries, 8 days: Amsterdam Day 1

End of February means Energy Break at the international school where I teach. For Austrians this means ski holiday. For this Texas gal, it means another chance to explore the mesmerizing beauty of Europe.

This break, two of my friends from the US of A flew halfway round the world to embark on a European adventure, and they were not messing around. For them, their trip totaled 9 countries in 12 days (only 6 in my estimation as one of my friends includes places she's "touched ground" in her count). For me, it was a measly 4 by comparison since I don't count "touched ground". From Vienna, we flew to Amsterdam and then from there travel subsequent buses to Brussels, Luxembourg City, and Zurich where we flew back to my home in Vienna. The following blog posts will map our trip, and I'll share with you my experiences, impressions, and errors along the way. This particular post is dedicated to our time in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Day 1

We arrived at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol at 9:00 AM, the bleary-eyed wake up call unable to dampen anticipation for what we would discover. At the airport, we took the train to Amsterdam Central--a gorgeous red and tan brick station that had us snapping pictures and gushing with awe.

The 15-20 minute walk to our hostel, lugging suitcases across narrow cobble-stoned sidewalks, however, did not. My two friends had brought big cases because they planned to take back souvenirs, but even my smaller, four-wheeled carry-on was a nuisance on the uneven path.

Travel Tip: if possible, travel light when visiting Europe, especially if you are going to multiple places and aren't renting a car, because tugging large luggage up and down cobblestone hills is a workout you may want to avoid.

Let me state for the record that hostels are not my preferred way of travel. I don't need glam or lavish decor, but I do like privacy. The word hostel dredged images of a dirty, crowded sleeping area where my personal items of value were under threat of being snatched by perfect strangers I'd purposefully put myself in the same room with. In my mind, hostels were unsafe. The only hostel experience I had previously was in South Korea, and although they weren't as horrible as my imagination, the creaky wood bunks and lack of lockers were nothing to write home about. That being said, Stay OK was much better than anticipated (and at least marginally better than the name implies). It was clean, affordable, and safe. Our dorm was for women only and required a key to enter. The lockers next to each bunk were roomy enough to stow a large suitcase plus a carry-on. The only downside was we had to have own lock, but they did sell them for 4 euros at the front desk. The bathrooms were also separated by gender, but unfortunately, the door between them was not securely locked and was frequently cracked open. A bonus perk was that my friend who booked the hostel used booking.com and received discounts for Amsterdam activities (boat tours, museums, bike rentals...). Because we arrived mid-morning, our room was not yet available, so we had to leave our cases in the day lockers which only cost a few euros and came with a key.

By then, it was 10:40 and we soon found ourselves rather hungry from brunch and a cup of coffee. So, we set out to explore the winding canals of Amsterdam in search for food. It wasn't long before we stumbled on Cafe 't Centrum at Rembrandtplein. My favorite part of that meal? The bacon! Thick, crispy, dripping with flavor-it's honestly the first bacon I've eaten in Europe that's tasted anything like bacon should. In Austria, it's served either smoked with bread and cheese or in such thin brittle slices that lack a lot of flavor.

Not far from brunch was the Bloemen Markt. Amsterdam's famous floating flower market is a long stretch of stalls lining the canal bursting with a myriad of flowers of all colors and types, but especially the notorious tulips. Here is one of the best places to discover unique gifts for friends, family, or yourself. Anything from colorful wood clogs housing tulip bulbs to dishes picturing windmills on the idyllic Holland countryside.

From there, we wound our way toward the Rijks Museum. This world-renowned art museum features art of the Netherlands spanning the middle ages to present. It houses collections from masters such as Van Gogh, Vermeer and Rembrandt. I definitely only have a cursory understanding of art history which comes primarily from a class in university; nevertheless, I appreciate the beauty and splendor of the classics. I'm drawn to the dramatic beauty of stormy landscapes and shipwrecked scenes with it's sharp contrast of light and colors, or the breathtaking simplicity of a vibrant vase of flowers captured in such realism I start to imagine their fragrance. Take a look at my gallery below for a few of my favorites, and before you turn up your nose at me in indignation, taking pictures (without flash) is 100% permitted.

After that, we walked toward the Van Gogh museum. It is a pity we were museum-ed out by this point, but it leaves something to come back for. We spent time basking in the sun on the green lawn between the two museums along with what seemed like the rest of Amsterdam.

We grabbed food at this little sort-of food truck nearby. It was packed with people the whole time we were there, so you would think the food was really good. It wasn't. Think frozen fries and hot dog packed in jars. In true European fashion, there was not clear line, and once I ordered, I had to stand on the side waiting for them to call that my fries were ready. For some reason, mine took some time, and then when I finally got the fries, I waited by the self-serve condiment counter. This one lady took her time smothering each of her hot dogs in 5-layers of sauce while I stood patiently by waiting for an opening to the ketchup (that's all I wanted). A couple minutes later, when the lady was done, I started pumping ketchup onto my fries, but, of course, there was only about one squirt left! I know, this shouldn't have bothered me, but by this point, I was tired, hungry and had been waiting at this place for well over 10 minutes. Just as I decide to leave, another lady gets the workers' attention to refill the ketchup. They send out another person to refill it, but she lets us know it will take a good 5 minutes to refill. By this point, I'm considering giving up. It's not worth it. I just want to eat, but after a bite of the fries, I realize that they were definitely frozen not long ago. So, I wait it out. Once it is refilled, the worker decides to clean the counter before we can access the ketchup. Then, the customer who asked for the refill goes in first, even though I'd technically been there much longer. I suppose it is her due since she was the one who asked. If only the fries had been worth it.