Amsterdam

After spending a year in America, (I swear I will stop going on about it one day...) and doing a lot of travelling, going back to the realities of English university didn't exactly fill me with excitement. Therefore, my English study abroad friends and I decided to book a reunion getaway as soon as we broke up for the Christmas holidays. Our choice was the beautiful city of Amsterdam. Although it may have a reputation for being wild and sleazy, Amsterdam is actually a very pretty and peaceful place. I had already been once before with family but that didn't mean I was any less excited to go.

Day One

After a very short flight we arrived in Amsterdam and made our way to our fantastic apartment. It was located in the Canal Belt area of Centrum near an area called Rembrandtplein, basically a very central location with a great view of Amsterdam's famous canals. The apartment was huge with a beautiful living room and kitchen area upstairs and two spacious bedrooms downstairs. I could have lived there forever. After settling in we made our way to a cute little Italian restaurant. I ordered a four cheese pizza that was so delicious. Then we made our way to a cute little bar with an old style juke box and just one local sat peacefully for some beer and wine.

 Our Apartment

Quattro Formaggio Pizza from Pizzeria La Traviata

Day Two

The next day we made a quick stop for coffee then made our way to Museumplein, a square with Amsterdam's famous museums like the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum. This is also home to the IAMSTERDAM sign. After a few photos and a watch of the ice skaters we headed to Bagels and Beans for lunch. I ordered an everything bagel with pesto and sun-dried tomato cream cheese and proscuitto, parmesan and rocket. Then we went to the Vondelpark, or bike park, where we hired bikes and rode around like true Dutch people, though we avoided the real roads at all costs. We then made our way to an area called Leidseplein, then went home for a nap. At night we went to an Indian restaurant, Memories of India, which was so delicious.

Museumplein and the IAMSTERDAM sign

Bagel and Cream Cheese from Bagel and Beans

Views in the Vondelpark

Christmas Decorations in Leidseplein

Day Three

Our first stop on day three was the Anne Frank Huis. We had been told that queues were usually ridiculously long, but we only waited around half an hour to get in. Unfortunately, many people had selfie sticks, taking pictures of themselves outside, which I found quite disrespectful. The same people then spoke very loudly throughout the museum, not really taking in any of the museum. However, the experience was still very moving and seeing actual handwritten pages from Anne's real diary was really good to see. We then headed for toasties in a really cute lunch place called Toastable, where I had a Dutch meatball toastie. Afterwards we went to a cheese shop and passed the Royal Palace, and then later on we went for a quick apple tart and coffee stop at Winkels 43. Once darkness arrived we headed to the Red Light District, which was a very bizarre place. After our busy day we went back to the area our apartment was in and tried some famous dutch chips in a cone and picked up a waffle from a Christmas stall for dessert.

The Royal Palace

The Meatball Toastie from Toastable

Dutch Apple Tart from Winkels 43

Day Four

Our fourth day was our most relaxed day. After a late wake up and a long trip to Starbucks we wandered around the Bloemenmarkt, or flower market, and had a look in another cheese shop. We then went to a chain lunch spot in Amsterdam called La Place where they have a wide variety of cuisines all under one roof, which are then made in front of you with fresh ingredients. We went for soup and a sandwich with some lemonade. In the evening we went to a burger place called Burger Fabriek before going to the Amsterdam Ice Bar. We got a cocktail and two ice drinks included in our ticket which was pretty decent. It was a lot colder than I expected so we didn't spend too long in there. Afterwards, I had a raspberry beer at a craft beer bar with a large selection of beers from all over the world before going home.

Inside the Amsterdam Ice Bar

Lights over the Canals

Day Five

On our final day we did some souvenir and cheese shopping and then stopped for lunch at a cute café where I had a warm mozzarella and pesto baguette. We then went on a canal cruise all around Amsterdam where we got to see the city's sights from water level for around an hour. We then went to a bar and browsed a few shops before going to the airport to go home.

View from the Canal Cruise

The bikes that have been retrieved from canals

I'll miss you Amsterdam!