Amsterdam

On the train back from Amsterdam, through Brussels to Metz. Amsterdam was quite an interesting place--neat architecture, lots of canals, the whole Red Light District experience... Let's just say that wasn't my favorite part. But I enjoyed the trip and would recommend going there.

We had a layover in Brussels on the way to Amsterdam so we walked around and found a bustling square with a huge farmers' and clothes market and food stands. I got a bratwurst with sweet grilled onions and mustard, and it was delicious. Then I bought a cute purple dress (that randomly happened to be made in Paris.. or at least that's what the tag says) for 5 euros to wear to the concert on Sunday. We found a waffle place, and I got a chocolate-covered authentic Belgian waffle. Nothing back home can top that masterpiece of food.

When we got to Amsterdam, we checked into our hostel, a nice place with breakfast included and TV. Then we went out to eat. There are, bizarrely, lots of Argentinian restaurants in Amsterdam. After dinner we walked through the Red Light District and saw lots of prostitutes and sleazy shops. It was kind of corny actually--I don't know why but it felt like a weird, creepy carnival. Afterwards, a couple of us went to a bar with live jazz music, a small but comfortably crowded place--it made me crave for swing dancing back in Atlanta.

I had a lot of fun at the awesome concert festival, Zwarte Cross, that we went to all day yesterday. We saw Airbourne, an Australian band that sounded kind of like AC/DC exploding inside your brain (their speaker volume was high enough to induce chest pain); the Mahones, a Canadian Irish rock band; the Skatalites (yay!!); and Papa Roach, who looked like he's morphing into a fatty Adam Lambert.

The festival was in a big field and was full of people and littered with a carpet of trash (from all the concessions). There were a surprising number of little kids there, but hey, I guess it was a family kind of event... with tons of beer. This ended up being the best weekend for hearing good music. I really enjoyed it all.

This morning some of us got up early and went around town again, ending up at one of the parks with an "I amsterdam" sign. We took our tourist pictures and then headed to the train station.

Our last big trip is Prague!! Yay for making the USD go a long way!

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