Read the judgments I make on the British as I spend a semester studying politics in London.
De Wallen: Amsterdam’s red light district. We were expecting a lively, flashy, bustling area filled with tourists and glitzy signs, especially on a Friday night. Instead, the streets were nearly empty, aside from the skeezy glow of the red lights, and everything about the area felt incredible creepy.
HOMOMONUMENT.
Me and Devon and a beautiful, mouth-watering farmers market.
Things I love: Sarah Feigelson.
Things I love about Amsterdam: “coffee shops.”
Rijksmuseum. We got to see the overwhelming Night Watch. Also, hit up the Van Gogh Museum. Devon and I had a blast there, and I got to see The Bedroom in the real, after a Van Gogh Exhibition poster of it has been hanging in our study since before I was born.
BEAUTIFUL AMSTERDAM. By far, my favorite place I’ve visited on this trip. It was so pretty, with old stone houses and cobblestone streets and canals and flowers and bridges. It was just lovely, and felt so quaint and untouched by the huge commercial stores, like H&M, that seem to dominate every European city. It felt uniquely it’s own, with its own thing going on. Devon described it as “the next up-and-coming trendy area, that’s always like that,” which is so accurate. Everyone in Amsterdam seemed so hip and relaxed, riding their bikes and drinking Amstel on patios overlooking the canals. I already am dying to go back!
Things I learned about Dublin: Guinness owns the city. I went to the Guinness Storehouse, complete with museum, interactive tour of how the beer is made, touristy gift shop, and a free pint!
Kilmainham prison, where some of the most famous Irish revolutionaries of the 1916 Easter Uprising were held and executed.
They love the gays (and Oscar Wilde) in Dublin!
