The Homeland!

5 Abril 2009

I can’t believe it’s already April – this semester is going by way too fast! Last weekend I went to The Netherlands to visit Jackie. She’s studying in Utrecht, which is right outside of Amsterdam. We went to Amsterdam for the first day and everything is very different than Spain, from the canals and buildings, to the streets and the people. First of all, there are more bikes than cars and bikes have the right of way! They are everywhere! Also, the way the land is – very flat and most of it below sea level – so the canals and buildings are set up very differently! I really liked it though, I love how all the buildings look lined up along the water. We walked around for a little while and then we went into the Anne Frank house. It’s the place where her and her family and 3 other people (8 total) lived for over 2 years when they were in hiding from the Nazi’s. It was really eerie to see the actual rooms where she lived in and to think about her never being able to leave those rooms except when she was taken away by the Germans. And seeing her actual journal with her handwriting…wow, it really hits you that like it’s not just a story, it really happened and people really suffered. Jackie and I both bought a copy of her journal – Jackie is going to attempt to read it in Dutch, which is really cool since that’s the language it was written in. Then we headed back to Utrecht – it was very interesting getting from the train station to the university on Jackie’s bike – I was sitting on the back of it but my huge backpack made it really off balance! We finally figured it out but it was definitely an adventure, I can’t believe we actually did it! I really wish we had a picture haha. Utrecht is such a cute little town! The canals look very different than those in Amsterdam but I relaly liked them – there are restaurants and shops and everything like…down under the streets that open on to the canals, it’s really neat. That night I met some of Jackie’s friends, who I really like, and then she showed me the campus bar. After, we headed into the town (I borrowed someone’s bike – much easier!) and we went to a few bars – it’s so nice that no one smokes inside, I could actually breathe!

Friday we slept in because we were both very tired and then we got up and walked around Utrecht. The streets are sooo cute, with so many little cafes and shops, I really liked it. And it was a gorgeous day! I was expecting it to be very cold and it was sunny and warm, everyone was outside enjoying the weather. We did some shopping for the combined birthday party we had planned for Saturday night – it was definitely interesting getting a shopping cart full of beer all the way back to her dorm! That night we went out with some of her friends to this cool African restaurant on the canal. I got a salad with ostrich! It was very good. I also had a delicious desert of ice cream with exotic fruit. The restaurant was a little on the expensive side but it was very well decorated and themed and I thought it was worth it.

Saturday we went to Keukenhof, a beautiful and huge complex of outdoor and indoor gardens – obviously featuring a lot of tulips! The flowers were gorgeous, although it wasn’t the nicest day and it’s still a little early in the season for some of the flowers to be blooming. They had a whole indoor section though with some of the prettiest tulips and flowers that I have ever seen. The colors were so brilliant, it was incredible – I wish the pictures could do them justice! It was definitely worth the bus and train rides and walking around in the cold. There was also a really cool windmill and some sort of traditional Dutch choir singing songs! I really enjoyed it and I love Jackie’s friends – they are so nice and wicked fun to hang out with! That night was our combined birthday party with an 80’s/90’s theme. Jackie and I both rocked the 80’s look with bright colored tights and shirts and, of course, side pony tails! A lot of people dressed up and the party was a lot of fun, although I was very tired from our long day!

Sunday we went for a bike ride outside of the city, in some really pretty woods and fields. It was very peaceful and I enjoy bike riding, I wish it was more widespread in the US, I think I’m going to miss it when I come home! Then we went into Utrecht and climbed the Dom Tower, the tallest tower in The Netherlands! It used to be connected to the church next to it but a big hurricane wiped out the middle part of the church so now they’re two separate buildings. It was quite a climb to the top but it had a really pretty view, the canals looked really cool from above. That night I (barely) left from Amsterdam to go to Valencia for a few days on my own – which will be my next blog entry! I really enjoyed my few days in Utrecht with Jackie – it was fun seeing something so different from what I’ve gotten used to and I lucked it with good weather, except for the day at the gardens! It was so nice to spend time with Jackie, too – lately I’ve missed everyone from home a lot, even though I do love it here in Sevilla. This week is Semana Santa (holy week) which is wolrd famous here and there are tons of people in the city, there will definitely be an entry about that soon, too! Enjoy the pictures ( I have so many pictures of flowers, I didn’t even put them all up!) and thanks for reading! <3

Amsterdam and Utrecht

Keukenhof