All around Amsterdam

My sister Jessica and my niece Juliette came for a visit. They arrived on Halloween and it was AMAZING! I bought Little Miss J a Flamenco dress in Barcelona and she looked fabulous. Plus I think she kind of got that it was a fancy dress and more than just a bit theatrical and she ROCKED IT! We had a very chill holiday and relaxed with some snacks and movies. By the way- The Exorcist is BARELY a horror movie- I thought it was straight up GOOD cinema.

Anyway, the following days were all about exploring the Netherlands. We started rather local and checked out Den Haag. Even though Amsterdam is the capitol, Den Haag is the official seat of government and of the UN Peace Palace, so there were stately, very official-looking buildings all over the place. I ate some raw herring, a Dutch delicacy, in the street and wandered around smelling like fish and onion. Bad. Yeah.
No worries though, my sisters aren’t ashamed of me and we continued to sightsee.

By afternoon we make our way to Delft, another Dutch town known for its blue and white china- Delftware. SO beautiful. If each hand-painted piece weren’t like 70 euro I might have bought something. But then I remember I don’t have any real counter space or even a house, at all! So I go wanting... Dinner at this surprisingly authentic Mexican place was deeLISH and we downed some Margaritas to accompany it. We headed back to Leiden exhausted and tipsy- the only way to be after a long day out. :)

The fam and I seem to be thoroughly enjoying each other’s company and I remember how it is to see things with people you love. Don’t get me wrong, I do most of my traveling alone, but it is nice to make memories with people you care about. That way, you have a sort of back up if you forget! Plus you can all converse and share opinions and all. AW!

The next day we headed into Amsterdam. We decided to see the Anne Frank House, and if we were up to it, the Heineken Experience, which opened that day. I thought that the Anne Frank museum was so well done. They give you a lot of information and tell you about everyone involved with keeping the family hidden and you get to walk around where they atually stayed and wow. I noticed how well-preserved the place was. Anne posted magazine clippings that still hang brightly on the walls, little pencil markings to show the heights of the children were bold, and the diary itself looked like it had just been written. Then you realize that it was only 64 years ago... Anne would only be 79 if she were still alive.

I don’t want to write too much about it, but it was a very heavy experience. Obviously.

We ate our little picnic BLTs and trammed it to the Heineken Experience. Let me just say, the surest way out of a sad place is through a happy lager brewery. When we walked in, the door staff lit up and yelled, “WELCOME! YAAAAYYYYY!!” No joke. It was opening day and they were just as excited as we were. Plus I treated the gals and after the opening day discount I was like, “YAAAYYYY!” too, so everyone was happy.

We got to see snazzy videos about the history of Heineken, the big copper kettles they use to brew the stuff, the stables where the Heineken horses reside, a 3-D bubbly shaky ride where “They brew YOU,” a mini bottling plant, the tasting room, a PARTY lounge with fab music and cool videos, green lounge chairs with personal TVs that play classic ads on loop, and you end up at a Heineken bar and the gift shop. What a rad time. My little niece, the latest addition to a long line of flirtsy girls, wooed four young Italian guys and they were all in LOVE with her! Too cute! We watched her go and shared a few laughs while drinking, what else, HEINEKENS! EXTRA COLD!

I rushed back to Central Station after the tour to catch my train to Brussels, Belgium. I’m excited to see somewhere new! I’ll tell you all about it soon!

-H*