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.