Amsterdam Day 2

The second day of our stay, my friend and I decided to rent bikes to see the city. I think it was the best idea we had the whole trip. It honestly only took 20 minutes to bike from one end to the other and we could stop, lock our bikes and walk where ever we wanted. However, the bikes only came in one size. At this point I have come to terms with my height literally being a handicap, because having to jump up to sit on a bike is just not normal.

The first place we went was the Anne Frank house. It was really amazing, we saw where the family lived and the area they hid behind the bookshelf. It was so amazing to see real history in front of us We saw the room that she slept in and how she decorated the walls with pictures of celebrities she liked like Ginger Rogers. We also saw her real diary on display. I wish I could have taken pictures but it was not prohibited. However, throughout  the rooms they were playing videos about her life and I found this one that her father had made and I thought it was really profound and I want to share it with you.

We also saw about 50 copies of her Diary written in different languages. Its pretty amazing how this one girl has impacted so many people in so many different cultures through her thoughts and experiences.

Then for the rest of the day we biked around and took lots of pictures of the scenery. Its funny how bikes are really the mode of transportation in Amsterdam. Instead of parking garages, we saw bike garages. There were hundreds, they were all over the street and most didn't have bike locks. I guess people are pretty trusting there. Also I thought it was interesting that all the bikes seemed to be rusted (like all of them). Whereas if bikes were a big thing in the US, I think we would find a way to coerce Mercedes Bendz or BMW to start making bikes for us. Maybe they don't care as much about status and luxury as much as we do. I did not even see a lot of high fashion luxury brands like Chanel, Dior, or Gucci, which is typical in a city in the US.

 Amsterdam was honestly really beautiful because there were canals that went through the entire city. I think I can imagine why people are so happy here, they bike everywhere and they get to have Amsterdam as their scenery.

It was actually really cute, when people wanted to pass us they would ring their little bike bell. I wish cars were made with bike bells, maybe rush hour traffic on Fridays would be a little more pleasant for everyone if we had bike bells instead of car horns.

Even the police were on bikes. My friend and I were laughing because in all honesty what is a policeman going to do on a bike if someone robs a store or something. Does he have higher gear speed to go catch them? and then how do you arrest someone? or what happens if someone is biking and texting? In the US if you drive and text you get your license taken away, but they can't take away a license so would they take away your bike? I would hate to be that kid showing up to school with no bike. That's got shame written all over it.

Well all in all it was a really enjoyable trip, and I am so glad I got the opportunity to go.