Amsterdam

So after a quick 3 day turn around from London, my flatmate and I were off to Amsterdam. I didn't really know what to expect from Amsterdam. The only rumors of the city I'd heard were off the Red Light District, hookers, and coffeshops. We met up with Eddie, a fellow DU, and his friends at the airport. From there we walked the city in search of our hostel. It was my first hostel experience and I wasn't expecting much. We got a very good price for the night which made me even more suspicious. Despite my worries the hostel was much better than expected. Our little group set out into the night to find some good ol' Amsterdam fun. We met up with another of Eddie's friend and bar hopped most the night. We had our first walk through the Red Light District which was pretty strange. The next day we had to move to another hostel for the remainder of the trip. Another pleasant surprise as this hostel had the BEST shower I've had in Europe. We went to the Anne Frank and Van Gogh museums, both of which were very interesting and generally a good time. I'm not a huge museum fan unless the exhibit is quite interactive or something different, but every museum we went to in Amsterdam left me satisfied. The free tour of the city was also something everyone should do. Our guide was Australian Amy and she was great. We left halfway through the 3 hour tour to grab some french fries. The vendors sell huge cones of fresh fried french fries and soak them in mayo and ketchup. Mayo sounded gross but I became mildly obsessed with them. We went on these very touristy but worth it bar crawls in both Leidseplein and the Red Light District. They were fairly inexpensive and you got into 5 or 6 bars/clubs without cover. They also succeed in showing you a good time as everyone was pretty drunk and lost by the time it ended. I never walked so much as I did in Amsterdam. On Saturday we went to the Sex Museum which was incredible. Maybe I'm just immature but the entire time I was laughing uncontrollably and taking pictures. There were some things you just couldn't make up. I stopped taking pictures when I realized no one else was taking pictures. Felt like a weirdo after that but I got some gems. Upon return to our lovely hostel, the Marnix, we found we had new roommates. They were these two guys from Mexico City. The one guy's suitcase had been lost by the airline for a week so he had been in his same clothes for a while. They brought two bottles of the best tequila I've ever tasted so we decided they were cool. That night was blurry (tequila, come on!) to say the least but another great time. The next day we went to the Heinekin Experience. This was the best museum/tour I've ever been on. It was very interactive and marketed Heinekin incredibly. We left and went directly to buy a Heinekin mini keg for the night. Unfortunately we couldn't read the Dutch instructions that said the keg needed to be chilled for 8 hours. We drank foam that night which was very disappointing. Our last day we hung out in our go-to coffeeshop and then walked through this great park. Everything was in bloom and it was 50 and sunny. In the end Amsterdam surpassed my expectations as a gorgeous city with much, much more to offer than hookers and weed. It was a great trip filled with french fries, falafels, museums, and good times. Happy St. Patrick's Day to all and to all a good night.

London

So it has been a month and a half since I updated. I apologize to the loyal fans of this exceptional blog site. I have done a ton in the days since I last posted so I will split it up into multiple posts. The third weekend in February I visited my good friend, Mark McDaid in London. Not having an international phone turned out to be a significant problem on this trip. From the airport to Mark's house I was instructed to take 2 trains and a bus, but he was going to meet me halfway at Clapham Junction, the busiest rail station in Britain. Since I didn't have a phone we set a time and hoped for the best. Unfortunately my plane was delayed about an hour and it took another hour to get through Gatwick's ridiculous customs. By the time I got to Clapham I couldn't find Mark so I took the next train. About an hour later I stumbled up to his address at 2 a.m. Too bad Mark was still at Clapham. It was a pretty exhausting adventure for the both of us but the next day was beautiful out and I was blown away by London. I expected a good time but just walking through the city and seeing the famous landmarks impressed me more than any city I've been to. Friday night got a little wild. Me, Mark, and 3 of his girlfriends pregamed in his house and 4 bottles later were on a train to On Anon. As soon as we got there the bouncer said Mark looked too drunk. We were all drunk but no one was in a bad state so we went to another couple clubs and danced all night. Coming home we got lost on a bus and wound up at Wimbledon at 6 am. A long taxi ride and we were finally home. The next day Mark didn't get out of bed until dinner time but we still rallied and had a fun night at local bars in Twickenham. On Sunday we went to Camden Market. The market was yet another awesome part of London. The only bad part was my choice of lunch for the day. We all decided on these amazing looking fajitas. The guy working the stand decided parmesan cheese was cool on a fajita. Uh no. They were terrible. Considering I didn't finish mine, I love fajitas, and I never ever don't finish a meal should put some perspective on how unappetizing they really were. That said, a bad fajita couldn't ruin this amazing weekend. My host couldn't have shown me a better time and the city was beautiful. The Tuesday after I returned from London was moving day. I decided to move into a shared flat with some people I had met. My other place was closer to school and living on my own I never had to be fully clothed but the building itself was dead and a little depressing. So far the decision has been a success. On Thursday I turned around and flew to Amsterdam with one of my new flatmates, but more about that trip later. 2 songs I've been lovin on are Your Touch by the Black Keys and Walking On A Dream by Empire of the Sun. Hope everyone reading this is doing well. Miss you all and enjoy St. Patty's day.