Hello A-dam!!!

It has been an exciting and exhausting two days! It began on Saturday morning when my mom and I were dropped off at Brussels airport. I said bye bye to her (this will be the last time I see her for over a year) and I was surprised that she didn't cry. After that, I made my way to the train station and off to Amsterdam (the cool people call it A-dam). This train ride was far better than the one coming from Germany! I took a little nap and got to really enjoy some of the Belgian and Dutch scenery.

The city is packed pedestrians! When I first got here, it looked like pictures of New York with masses of people walking the streets, only prettier buildings. Thank God my hostel was only about 5 minutes walking from the station because even though I packed much lighter, my backpack was still pretty heavy. The staff at the hostel was super friendly and helpful, he even gave me a map of A-dam and circled/drew in points of interest for me.

It turns out that the room I'm in wasnt where the reception was but rather on the 5th floor of the next building, which by the way, had no elevator! And the stairs were narrow and spiraling :(.

My room was pretty simple, just a large space with 10 beds and 10 lockers, with a restroom and mini-kitchen. I really loved the open doors that had a view of the street.

After dropping my stuff off, I walked to the market and of course got lost a few times on my way there (lucky for me this is a pretty small city). I didnt have any thing planned so I just kinda strolled along taking pictures of anything that seemed interesting.

When I got back to my hostel, some of the other girls were there so I offered a cheerful "Hello!" and only got a couple of mumbled greetings in return. I'm not sure what exactly is hostel etiquette but I hope to pick it up. What I have figured out is that since there is only one restroom for 10 women, it is used as efficiently as possible; you only take your shower and use the toilet. Anything else, including getting dressed and doing hair is done in the main room. I wasn't prepared to see as much skin as I did...but like I said, I'm learning!

Speaking of being unprepared, the weather in A-dam was crazy! It was blazing hot and humid during the day but poured raining at night! My pants and jacket got soaked!

Also being that I don't follow any sports at all, I was not prepared for World Cup mania that has taken over the city. Everywhere I look there are orange, hats, boas, jerseys and vuvuzelas. I don't have any intention on watching the game so tonight will probably be kind of boring for me lol.

I haven't done anything particularly exciting yet, I have just been walking around the city and taking pictures the past two days. The next couple of days should be more exciting!