Amsterdam

At the last minute before I was to hop a train from Ghent to Amsterdam, Heather came to her senses and decided to go along at least for a day or so. After all, it was 4th of July weekend. So instead of buying a train ticket, I bought her a tank of gas, and we drove over. It's about three hours in a car or a train.

We parked the car out of town and took a free ferry into the town center. Like any good Amsterdamer, my first task and hand was to obtain a bicycle. I knew bikes were commonly used there, but I had no idea to what degree. Bikes are king. There is almost as much pavement devoted to them as to cars and trains. And they are always bustling with riders. Bike lanes are not necessarily just white lines painted on the road, but a separately engineered roadway altogether in many cases. Special street lights, street signs. In fact, Heather pointed out to me that, since Holland is a pretty flat place, you can get around the entire country by bicycle and still enjoy the same road accommodations you do in the city.

After awhile, I noticed that, for such a large metropolitan city, it was pretty quiet. There are cars driving around, but not very many. I remembered how loud Pai, Thailand was and it was a tiny little town. It was just jammed with loud motor bikes. Here people mainly bike, walk, or ride a street car.

The central part of Amsterdam is organized like a half wagon wheel, with a series of spokes (roads) and pretty canals that arc around the town as cross streets. It struck me again, as it did in Barcelona, but more so here, that EVERY building in the half wheel was charming, historic, and beautifully kept. The buildings are narrow and a few stories tall. Taller than they would have been had they not been taxed based on their footprint. This also makes for tight spaces inside, and narrow, steep staircases. Since space is so tight, most buildings have a pulley attached to the roof to hoist up residents' belongings when they move in and out.

I didn't find out why, but many of the buildings tilt. Since they are all jammed together, their tilts in relation to one another are obvious to the eye. I thought maybe they tilted forward so that when you hoist stuff up, it doesnt smash through your downstairs neighbor's window, but they tilt sideways too, or don't tilt. I don't get it really, but the effect makes them look like kooky Tim Robbins cartoon houses. It's very cute.

I also noticed quickly that much of the town, as charming and beautiful as it is, looks the same everywhere! I kept getting lost because one street and canal looks more or less like all the others. Good landmarks are few and far between, and for me, the Dutch street names were hard to remember.

I got lost more than once. But no worry. Just keep riding around until you run into something you recognize. You can't get far in a wagon wheel.

Unfortunately, as soon as I arrived on Friday afternoon, I felt a virus taking hold of me quickly. I tried my best to fight it off, but I couldn't do it. I knew I was going to be spending a lot of time in bed, and not having any big nights for a couple of days.

Sick on my only weekend in Amsterdam.

Damn.