Amsterdam

Amsterdam was our most recent stop, and one of the most beautiful cities in Europe (in my opinion). Our hostel was near the Red Light District and adjacent to the main central square of Amsterdam. We walked everywhere, which got a little confusing because a) there are lots of dams b) everything goes in a circle c) the streets change names every block and d) all of the street names sound the same. Luckily, it was so beautiful that we didn't mind getting lost. Here's a view of the square near our hostel.

I was VERY excited to be in Amsterdam because I knew it was home to my favorite falafel chain, Maoz (if you live in Berkeley, go!). We ate there twice in our 3 days. The falafel comes plain, or with your choice of hummus, eggplant, and/or feta. My first day I got one with everything! Then you load it up with stuff from the salad bar.

Since we were having a fat day, we also decided to try a popular Dutch street food, which is basically just french fries with different sauces. The traditional sauce is sweet Dutch mayonnaise, so we tried it. Usually the idea of fries covered in mayo isn't something I would relish (little sauce humor for you there), but it was surprisingly tasty. Definitely not something I feel the need to eat again, though.

The next day we did a lot of strolling and enjoyed scenic Amsterdam before getting traditional Dutch pancakes. The pancakes are sort of a cross between crepes and American pancakes. You can get sweet versions (Nadia's had raisins and came with jam) or savory (mine had bacon, spinach, pine nuts, mushrooms, and tomatoes).

On our way to Vondelpark we stopped for ice cream. Here's some random street art.

Vondelpark is a huge, leafy expanse of park that's supposed to simulate the natural environment so its visitors feel like they're in the woods. Or something. In any case it's VERY beautiful and we loved wandering through it.

That night we made our way to the Hague to go to Irene's birthday dinner. It was really fun because I got to hang out with Irene AND meet some cool Dutch people. Irene made an amazing meal with stuffed peppers, mac and cheese, polenta with mushrooms, and corn & avocado salad. It fulfilled my long-dreamed-of desire to eat Irene's mac and cheese since she's such a connoisseur. After dinner her friends gave us a walking tour of the Hague. It was really quaint and beautiful, and it was so interesting to see that the Netherlands' center of political power was a tiny area that normal pedestrians can just walk right through.

The next day Nadia and I went to see the Anne Frank house, and that evening Irene, Sanaz, and Natalie came to kick it with us in Amsterdam. We went to an Argentinean steakhouse, where I had sirloin with a baked potato and Irene had unlimited spare ribs. She didn't finish these two huge racks even though she tried. After dinner we made sure Irene got a little dessert to celebrate. happy bday Irene!

It was really fun to see Natalie and Sanaz too! We'll be in Venice at the same time in October, so we're planning a reunion. I'll be there with my mom and I hope we can all hang out. Hi Mom!

On our last day in Amsterdam, Nadia and I finally got up early enough to eat breakfast. I had a chocolate covered waffle while Nadia made the much more reasonable choice of a croissant. The waffle was AMAZING. they heated it up so the chocolate was nice and melty.

We also went cheese tasting, which I can confidently say has been our best decision yet. CHEEEEESE! I highly recommend going to Reypenaer for a cheese tasting if you're ever in Amsterdam.

Cheese made us happy.

We both got cheese tasting certificates even though I drew some pretty inappropriate things on my tasting note page.

Remember how I said I didn't want any more fries in Amsterdam? I lied. i got them again, except this time with garlic sauce. Delish!

So that was Amsterdam! We're in Prague now, which might be my new favorite city. Stay tuned!

xo,
R