The Saturday Before Queensday

Seriously, why is the formatting on Blogger not working? I miss paragraphs. The past couple of days have been spent riding around Amsterdam on my bike. On Wednesday, I toured the city, got lost, found my way back and had dinner with Holly and Tomek. I did end up in the Red Light District while lost, something I'm sure you've been wanting to ask since I got to Amsterdam. It was quite surprising as I didn't realize the mannequin in the window was actually a human being. I jumped back at this, looked around, saw more women in windows and realized I was nowhere near where I needed to go. Yesterday I went to the Van Gogh Museum. Of course, it was amazing! Unfortunately, it is a major tourist spot so i had the combined woes of paying too much to get in, fighting through crowds and doing my best to ignore American tourists reading plaques out loud to their friends. Eventually, I got hungry and had to cut my tour shory. I did get to observe some of his best works, learn a little more about the man and see some pieces from other prevelant artists during his time. That's what I love about museums dedicated to a single artist- you really get to see the progression of the person not just in terms of their artwork but also in terms of their personal development. I had the same realization in the Picasso Museum when I was in Barcelona. You really become connected to these people, realizing you have common experience across temporal and geographical boundaries. Holly and I decided to go out yesterday night and check out the Queen's Day Carnival in the city center. We rode a ferris wheel and I was able to take some amazing shots of Amsterdam from above. It really is a beautiful city. Later on, we explored more of the city, then came home before going out with Thomek to grab a drink at a bar in a warehouse district. I'm not sure why, but there was a bonfire and a very drunk Dutchman kept yelling something to the crowd and adding objects to the fire. I came home smelling like sausage. Today the three of us went out for pannekeoken. Mine had apples, liqeur, walnuts and cinnamon. Holly got one with goat cheese, pinenuts, spinach and pumpkin seeds. Thomek got strawberries and sour cream. I'm telling you all this to make you extremely envious. We went to the house boat museum after that, then worked out way past the hoardes in Centrum to get back to the apartment. I am exhausted. Luckily, we're having a quiet evening at home. Holly is making soup out of herbs she foraged in a city park. Cannot wait to taste it. Until next time! Today's Mission: Forage some food!

Amsterdam- The Storm

My second day in Amsterdam seemed a little low-key but it was actually quite and adventure upon reflection. Holly went off to work at nine in the morning and while she was out her boyfriend, Tomek, tried to set me up with one of their spare bikes. Of course, I was too small for the darn thing. The public transportation here is superb, but a bike is really the best way around Amsterdam. So, when Holly came back from work, she put me on the bake of her cruiser and pedalled me to the bike rental shop. We arrived just before the shop closed and secured a smaller bike for me to use during my stay hereEasy enough, you may think, but the Dutch use large, steel fram cruisers. These are much different from my beauty of a road bike, Gitchee, back at home. The wide set of handle bars took some getting used to, as well as balancing the hulky body of the bike. It was like switching from a gazelle to a hippopotamus. On top of that, renting a bike with a hand brakes was 20 euros more so I opted for a bike with foot brakes. Let me make it very clear: I have never ridden a bicycle with foot brakes. This is key to the plot. Holly and I hopped on our bikes and she took me around the city center. Queen's day is Monday, and the celebration is full dorce with carnival rides. We decided to head over to the Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam, the largest public library in Europe. Holly was unaware of this last fact, to her it was just her library. Some people are so lucky. At this point I had been doing pretty well on the bike, but then the bike started sloping downhill. The traffic light had turned red and I started back-pedalling to stop the bike. But the bike wasn't stopping. As I desperately back pedalled, I rolled into on-coming bike traffic, swearing at the top of my lungs and identifying myself as the typical American tourist. After finally jumping of the bike, I look back to see a laughing Holly and I walk the bike across the street in shame. The rest of the ride, fortunately, had no downhill portions. We arrived at the Bibliotheek an parked our bikes in an underground bike garage, complete with soft elevator music playing in the background. Once in the library, we enjoyed an exhibition of illustrations from politically-charged magazin Gorilla. It's funny how American politics seem to be a part of the daily life of other countries. Yet, I could never have told you who Wilder was before coming here. The top floor of the library is a full service cafe. Holly and I enjoyed freshly made juice and talked fo about an hour, in the midst of voices from around the world. I love that European feel. No matter where you go, there's always someone visiting from somewhere else. Leaving the library, Holly and I were starving. We hopped on our bikes in search of cheap food, only to be met by a downpoor. We road home like that and I was soaking wet by the time we got back to the apartment. The rest of the night was spent making dinner, eating popcorn, and watching another chapter of Planet Earth. Today I'm taking the bike out to see the sights. Talk to you soon. Today's mission: Find an NGO you support and find out what you can do to help them.

Amsterdam- Day 1

Hey! Another update! Lucky you! Forgive the formatting- Blogger is going through some unexpected changes. Yes, so I'm in Amsterdam, visiting a friend from my semester in the Amazon. Holly is a lovely lady, and you should really get to know her. Here's the story from the last few nights: Carmela and I were in Berlin for about a week. She is still in Germany, doing her German thing. We stayed at a hostel for most of it, with two nights on a couch from couchsurfing. The couchsurfing experience there was sub-par, so we decided to stay near the center of the city in the aforementioned hostel. During the week ther I saw the Fernsehturm tower, Rathaus, the Berlin Dom, Zoo Berlin, the World Clock, the Congress Building and, obviously, the Berlin Wall (from several angles!). Berlin is a nice city, but my love affair with it quickly ended when I realized it was basically Minneapolis with a LOT more hipsters. Everytime I walked into a bar I felt like I was underdressed or something. Also, what's with all the Brazilian influence? Next time I'm going to Hamburg. Our last night in Berlin Carmela and I went on a pub crawl. This was a bad idea, since my flight to the Netherlands was at seven in the morning. There were six of us on the crawl and we had a Berliner as a guide. The other participants included three Brits and an Australian. We played ping-pong, went to an absinther bar and ended the night at a club. I didn't feel much like drinking and ended up spending the entire night talking to this awesome girl from London. She has a law degree, but apparently has been harassed at each job she's had for being from a working-class family. Woah, I didn't realize such blatant classism could still exist in a western country. I got back to the hostel at 2AM, packed, checked emails and then waited until 4AM for the trains to start running. It took two hours to get to Schonefeld Airport and when I did, it was packed. One things needs to be clear: I despise EasyJet. I slept on the plane a bit, but I was pretty much a zombie when I met Holly. I haven't seen her in two years and I was a bit nervous that we had nothing to talk about. On the contrary, despite not having slept for 24 hours I talked to her until I passed out aroun noon. I also got to meet her boyfriend, who, guess what, is a Master's Student in Evolution and Ecology at the University of Amsterdam! So there was much more talking after I woke up yesterday at 5PM, followed by a delicious, home-cooked dinner and then popcorn and Planet Earth before bed. I've only been here for a day and it's already been so lovely I might not leave. We're gonna get me a bike, and then I'll explore the city. No worries, Holly has a dedicated internet connection, so I'll be able to report back on my Dutch adventures with more frequency. Awwww yeaaaaah. Today's mission: Learn more about bees.

Berlin

Hopefully this post works... Lack of updates was caused by my iPhone being stolen in Barcelona. We were there for about four nights. Crazy city, they love to party. I became much sicker there and finally had to go to a doctor once we flew into Berlin. Started a regime of antibiotics and I feel much better. I don't have much time, as I am paying by the minute. Belrin is awesome, my kind of town. All my favorite music plays everywhere. The people are laid-back yet orderly, which doesn't make much sense. Everyone rides bikes, the food is amazing, and healthcare is cheap. Yes, I could live here. What I love the most is the random conversations you can have with people. Simply sitting at a cafe, we were handed a baby to play with and were taught all about Lebanese politics. Amazing, right? The people are just so cool here. And I cannot get over how diverse this city is. I'm off to Amsterdam on Tuesday morning.

Granada

Hey!
We have been in Granada for the last three days and internet has been spotty. The train from Algeciras went through some of the most beautiful landscape I have ever scene. There were miles and miles of rolling holla covered in every shade of green imaginable. Animals grazed lazily with giant wind farms in the background. Getting closer to Granada, a snow capped mountain appeared out of nowhere. How lovely Andaluzia is!
Once Carmela and I got to the train station we had two hours to pick up our tickets and make it to the Alhambra for our scheduled visit. Thankfully, we made it with 15 minutes to spare.
The Alhambra? Words and pictures could never do it justice. It was abosultely amazing. Room after room, garden after garden, archway after archway of breathtaking calligraphy, architecture and landscaping. I feel so blessed to have finally seen it.
Unfortunately, I started feeling sick as soon as we got to Granada and ever since I've been nursing a cold. Our friends here have been very gracious and I have been able to eat and rest ro my heart's content.
Tonight we leave for Barcelona. It's an eleven hour ride, so that should be boat loads of fun.
Until next time.

Today's mission: Make a meal for your friends and eat it with them.

Cadiz, Puerto de Santa Maria and Gibraltar/La Linea

It's been an exciting couple of days. After our adventures in Cadiz Carmela and I met up with Manu in El Puerto de Santa María, which is just across the bay. He took us to Rota, a naval base where he flies helicopters with the Spanish Navy. Heck yes, we got to sit in the helicopters! Rota is actually an American base, so we were surrounded by a bunch of army brats. It's weird how you can live in another country and still spend all your time on American soil.
After Carmela's delicious pasta, Manu took us out dancing. So much fun! It was strange how the Spaniards didn't dance as much as we did. Manu says that Spaniah people don't really dance, but I think that's a croc.
We stayed an extra day in El Puerto because we missed the bus to Gibraltar. We finally made it to La Linea (Spanish city adjacent to Gibraltar) yesterday and met up with John, who had been taking full advantage of the long Easter weekend. After some tapas and tinto de verano, we hunkered for the night.
Today, John took us for a full English breakfast in Gibraltar. Yum! We walkwr halfway up the rock and saw the Macaques. After that, I made dinner and Carmela and I got ice cream in el centro. Pretty good Easter, if I do say so myself.
Of to Granada tomorrow!

Cadiz

Carmela and I took an overnight bus from Madrid to Cadiz. I didn't sleep a wink the entire seven hour trip and ended up walking the streets like a zombie until the hostels opened in the afternoon. We showered and slept (hot water!) then hit the town for some paella.
Cadiz is a gorgeous oceanside town in Andaluzia. The streets are narrow and the people are friendly. When we walked into the hostel we're staying in to ask about prices, we were greeted by a sweet older women and her parents. My spanish still needs some work, but these people made me feel so comfortable that my confidence has gone up tenfold.
It's holy week and each town has their statue of the Virgin Mary that they carry through the streets. We got to see this amazing procession, pointy hats and all. Pictures will have to wait until I'm back in the states, but I'm posting the view from my hostel's roof, a photo i took with my iPhone.

Day 2

Hey folks!
Today we did a walking tour of central Madrid. We started off in Puerta del Sol then went to the Palàcio Real, Catedral Almudena and Gran Via. Afterwards, Carmela and I had lunch at a kebab place on Calle Montera and watched the prostitutes. Then we wandered around and Carmela bought four kilos of smoked meet to send home to the states. Now we're about to go out for tapas with a couple from the hostel. Tonight we leave for Cadiz. Oh my god! Andaluzia!

Llegue a Madrid

I reached Madrid at 1AM CST, 7:30AM Madrid time. My flight from O´Hare to Dulles was two hours late, so it was a miracle that I caught my connecting flight to Spain. I was even running to the gate when I heard "passenger Anameeka Beedee please report to C10, this is the final boarding call."
Everything worked out, but the seven hour flight was killer. I haven´t slept well in a good two-three days but my body wouldn`t let me conk out on the plane. I watched The Muppet Movie and The Iron Lady to try to make the flight go faster. Eventually, we landed, and I was officially in Europe for the first time in my life.
I met up with Carmela at baggage claim and she took me to our hostel for some breakfast. We´ve been walking around Madrid since then, looking at beautiful churches, wrapping our heads around some of the fashion trends and catching up with each other.
At some point I got so exhausted that Carmela paid for my metro ticket so I could sleep back at the hostel. Now I´m here, but our room won´t be ready for an hour.
Closing remarks: Madrid´s okay, but it´s just another big city like New York. I´m excited for some of the other places in Spain we´ll be going.

Today´s Mission: Get enough sleep.