Europe Blog 5: Amsterdam, Brussels, Madrid (July 21-25)
by Justin Dunn | September 2, 2024
Hi, all! We left off with my arrival in Amsterdam, the city of bikes, weed,
and prostitutes. Last December, I spent an unplanned day in Amsterdam and
loved it. In
my blog about that visit, I blamed my delay in publishing it on the great
John Irving. For this Amsterdam blog, I’m going to do the same thing. This
time, I’m reading The Cider House Rules, a story full of abortions, apples, and orphans. I just finished it and
would highly recommend it. Anyway, let’s get to Amsterdam.
Because of our delayed train, we arrived at our hostel quite late on
our first night. Although we were exhausted from our two nights in Berlin, we
still wanted to go out. In every city, we talked about going to a jazz bar,
but never ended up finding one, but in Amsterdam, there was one a ten-minute
walk from our hostel. The bar was pretty small with a stage at the back. We
stayed for two full sets by the same band. It seemed like it was mostly
improvised, but I recognized some classic melodies. As the night progressed,
my lack of sleep caught up to me and I caught myself dozing off in the exact
way that I definitely never ever did in school. I never realized I was asleep,
but those last 20 minutes felt like three.
Exhausted, we stopped for a late night snack on our way home and I ended up
with chocolate all over my face. There were many people in Amsterdam with
bloodshot eyes but I was probably one of the few who could entirely blame
sleep deprivation.
The next day, we got a late breakfast at a pancake roll place. It wasn’t
exactly a classic American breakfast but it was pretty close. After brunch, we
rented bikes and took a spin before heading to the Anne Frank House. You may
recall that one of the first things I did after arriving in Madrid was buy my
Anne Frank tickets. Well, it was worth it.
At 9:30, we checked out of our hostel, stored our bags in a locker, and hopped on our bikes. Having skipped breakfast, we both got croissants at the museum cafe. Although I was exhausted, the Van Gogh museum is one of my favorite museums I’ve ever been to. Van Gogh was not only an incredible artist, but he also had a pretty interesting life and the museum curators did a good job of presenting his life and his work alongside each other. For someone who only painted for 10 years, Vincent painted an insane number of masterpieces. In the last year of his life, he was churning out around a painting a day. If you like Van Gogh and you like music, you should listen to “Vincent” by Don McLean. Great song.
The museum also had a temporary art exhibit on Matthew Wong, a
Chinese-Canadian painter. The exhibit was called “Painting as a Last
Resort” and compared a lot of Matthew and Vincent’s paintings from the
ends of their lives. It was a really heartfelt exhibit and I’m glad we
took the time to see it, despite our lack of sleep combined with our
museum fatigue.
After the museum, we returned our bikes to the bike rental place and
grabbed some Turkish food for lunch. We then made our way to the
square by the Royal Palace where we met up with Amanda and Freja. They
had asked us if we wanted to go biking with them, but this was after
we had returned our bikes, so we had to make do with only two. After a
few failed attempts, one of which resulted in considerable damage to
my shoe at the hands of the bike spokes, we managed to mount two per
bike. After about an hour, we met back up at our hostel to grab our
bags, said goodbye, and raced off to catch our train to Brussels.
It is a good thing we arrived at the station with a few minutes to spare, because our train had been canceled and all its passengers were placed on another train heading to Brussels that left two minutes earlier. In general, I found that we didn’t need to get to the station more than 20 minutes in advance. That’s usually plenty of time, but if something goes wrong, it’s nice to have a little more of a cushion.
Throughout our trip, people questioned our decision to go to
Brussels. It’s not known for being an especially beautiful city.
Bruges, an hour away, is much prettier and more touristic, but
Brussels has something that Bruges doesn’t: Adrian. Adrian lived with
my family in 2015 as an exchange student and has come back and visited
us a few times since then. He now works in law in Brussels, the
capital of the European Union. We got pizza with him and his
girlfriend and then hung out at his apartment after. It was great
seeing him.
After we visited the EU Parliament, we met up with Adrian at a cafe by
his workplace and then caught the bus to the airport. At the airport,
we bought some Belgian chocolate and I played some piano and sang a
little at one of those pianos they leave for people to play. After I
was done with my mediocre performance, I was replaced by a guy who
“didn’t know how to play the piano” who launched into some pretty cool
jazz improvisation. Our flight was delayed a little, but other than
that, it went smoothly. We landed in Madrid safe and sound.
The following day, July 24th, was Guy’s last day with me. As with most days, we started and ended it with a nice meal. At around 11, we got a classic Spanish breakfast, tostadas and a tortilla de patatas, and then made our way directly to lunch. How could we possibly be having lunch so early? Well, we were eating with Americans. In the almost 100 degree heat, Guy and I walked 40 minutes through Retiro park to reach a tapas bar where we met Oksana, Lucia, and Lena, some FM alumni who graduated the year before me. I didn’t know them very well in high school, but it was really nice talking to people from home.
After lunch, Guy, Oksana, and I went to the Palacio Real, the royal
palace of Spain. On the way there, we passed the Royal Opera, a
building that showcased the three main types of Roman columns. It was
very exciting.
|
| Jazz Bar |
|
| Yummy Crepe |
|
| Pancake Shop |
Our visit started off with a 30-minute information session and then we
walked through the Hidden Annex following an audio guide. It has been a
few years since I read The Diary of Anne Frank and visiting her
place of hiding made me want to reread it. At the request of Otto Frank,
Anne’s father, the annex has not been refurnished and instead lies as
empty as the Nazis left it, with a few informational plaques on the wall.
It was a very powerful experience.
After Anne Frank, we spent the evening biking around Amsterdam’s streets and parks, stopping for ice cream at a place that our Dutch friend Djim from Berlin had recommended, and later for an udon dinner. The ice cream place literally served ice cream. It was basically cold whipped cream and that was the only thing they served. While very simple, they knew what they were doing and did it right.
Biking around was my favorite thing in Amsterdam. There are so many bike
paths and where there aren’t, bikes have priority on all the roads. It‘s a
small city, so we were able to bike around most of it in a relaxed hour or
two. We also made a stop at De Pindakaaswinkel, a store that sold peanut
butter of a bunch of different flavors. They had mini, airplane safe jars,
so I got a few to bring back to Valencia for my parents. Remember, peanut
butter is a liquid, so make sure you don’t try to bring more than three
ounces of it in your carry-on bag!
We biked back to our hostel and took a little rest. Back in our room, we talked with the 40-year old man who seemed to have spent all day there. You meet a lot of really cool people at hostels, but there are definitely some oddballs.
Around 10pm, we made our way over to the Red Light District, just a short walk from our hostel. Amsterdam’s historic Red Light District employs hundreds of unionized sex workers. Prostitution has been a part of Amsterdam’s history since the city was born. It is the oldest district in Amsterdam, built around 1385. Prostitution has been legal on and off since the 14th century, most recently becoming legal in 2000, with a permit. Like any other profession, prostitution is regulated by the government, with workers paying taxes and following normal labor laws. Amsterdam approaches prostitution unlike most other places in the world. If it’s going to happen, it is better that it is regulated and forced prostitution is prevented as much as possible.
After Anne Frank, we spent the evening biking around Amsterdam’s streets and parks, stopping for ice cream at a place that our Dutch friend Djim from Berlin had recommended, and later for an udon dinner. The ice cream place literally served ice cream. It was basically cold whipped cream and that was the only thing they served. While very simple, they knew what they were doing and did it right.
|
| Ice Cream |
We biked back to our hostel and took a little rest. Back in our room, we talked with the 40-year old man who seemed to have spent all day there. You meet a lot of really cool people at hostels, but there are definitely some oddballs.
Around 10pm, we made our way over to the Red Light District, just a short walk from our hostel. Amsterdam’s historic Red Light District employs hundreds of unionized sex workers. Prostitution has been a part of Amsterdam’s history since the city was born. It is the oldest district in Amsterdam, built around 1385. Prostitution has been legal on and off since the 14th century, most recently becoming legal in 2000, with a permit. Like any other profession, prostitution is regulated by the government, with workers paying taxes and following normal labor laws. Amsterdam approaches prostitution unlike most other places in the world. If it’s going to happen, it is better that it is regulated and forced prostitution is prevented as much as possible.
|
| Entering the Red Light District |
Visiting the Red Light District was very uncomfortable. The women
working are standing in their windows, but are not there for window
shopping. There are a bunch of tourists in the district, but it feels
like there shouldn’t be. It doesn’t help the workers to have the
tourists there, and it probably makes anyone who’s going to visit a
worker a lot more uncomfortable. Guy and I spent a few minutes in the
district before we decided to head out and find a place where we could
actually have fun.
We ended up back at the bar underneath our hostel. Because it was
Sunday, most of the bars seemed to be pretty empty, but this one was
bustling. After wandering around trying to find a way to insert
ourselves into a conversation, we found a group playing a card game
and asked if we could play with them. I’ve always thought that games
bring people together, but to be honest, I had never considered how
that would look in a bar setting. We met this group of people from
Toronto and North Carolina because they were playing a card game, and
later that night when they all got up to get another round of drinks,
Guy and I stayed at the table and started playing Blackjack. That’s
when we were approached by two Swedish girls, Amanda and Freja, who
asked if they could play. If you’re going on an adventure, a deck of
cards is a must.
|
| Red Light District |
|
| On the Canal |
We spent the rest of the night with them, wandering around the empty
streets of Amsterdam. It’s fun seeing cities during the day and the
night. They can have very different vibes. The unfortunate thing about
being out late at night is that the morning still starts at the same
time. We got back to our hostel around 4am with just a few hours until
our reservation for the Van Gogh museum.
At 9:30, we checked out of our hostel, stored our bags in a locker, and hopped on our bikes. Having skipped breakfast, we both got croissants at the museum cafe. Although I was exhausted, the Van Gogh museum is one of my favorite museums I’ve ever been to. Van Gogh was not only an incredible artist, but he also had a pretty interesting life and the museum curators did a good job of presenting his life and his work alongside each other. For someone who only painted for 10 years, Vincent painted an insane number of masterpieces. In the last year of his life, he was churning out around a painting a day. If you like Van Gogh and you like music, you should listen to “Vincent” by Don McLean. Great song.
|
| Almond Blossom, painted for the birth of Vincent’s nephew |
|
| Tree Roots, painted the morning of Vincent’s death |
|
| See You on the Other Side - Matthew Wong |
|
| The Journey Home - Matthew Wong |
It is a good thing we arrived at the station with a few minutes to spare, because our train had been canceled and all its passengers were placed on another train heading to Brussels that left two minutes earlier. In general, I found that we didn’t need to get to the station more than 20 minutes in advance. That’s usually plenty of time, but if something goes wrong, it’s nice to have a little more of a cushion.
|
| Goodbye, Amsterdam! |
|
| Guy, Justin, Adrian & Leire |
Brussels does have a few things to do for tourists. We ate some
Belgian waffles, but forgot to try Belgian fries. We visited La Grand
Place, a pretty plaza with a bunch of guild halls, and the
Manneken-Pis, a statue of a little boy who drank A LOT of
water. We also visited the Cinquantenaire Park and the European
Parliament Building. Brussels also has the famous Atomium, but it is a
ways outside of the city and we didn’t have the time to see it.
|
| Waffle |
|
| Grand Place |
|
| Little Pissing Man |
|
| Europe! |
|
| Cinquantenaire Park |
The following day, July 24th, was Guy’s last day with me. As with most days, we started and ended it with a nice meal. At around 11, we got a classic Spanish breakfast, tostadas and a tortilla de patatas, and then made our way directly to lunch. How could we possibly be having lunch so early? Well, we were eating with Americans. In the almost 100 degree heat, Guy and I walked 40 minutes through Retiro park to reach a tapas bar where we met Oksana, Lucia, and Lena, some FM alumni who graduated the year before me. I didn’t know them very well in high school, but it was really nice talking to people from home.
|
| Chilling in Plaza Mayor |
|
| Check out Those Columns! |
Anyway, back to the palace. The royal family doesn’t live there
anymore and it’s open to visitors. Aside from the AC being broken
inside, it was a very pleasant visit. Highlight of the visit was the
painting of the royal family which was commissioned in 1993 and
completed in 2014, the same year the king in the portrait abdicated
his power. Because of its long awaited completion, they still have it
on display as the official portrait of the royal family.
|
| King of Spain. King of Clay. |
|
| Inside the Palace |
After the palace, we left Oksana, Lucia, and Lena at the flamenco
show they were seeing that night, and then we headed to the Reina
Sofia Museum. The museum is free between 7 and 9pm, so we lucked out.
I wasn’t allowed to bring my bag in and didn’t have a coin to pay for
the locker, so I had to ask a stranger for 50 cents. I have found that
while this is almost always a solution, it’s probably better to just
carry a few coins around with me. Because we didn’t have very much
time in the museum, we decided to start our visit in the cubism
exhibit that houses Picasso’s Guernica. This enormous art piece
was painted by Picasso in 1937 following the German bombing of the
Spanish city, Guernica, during the Spanish Civil War. The enormous
black-and-white oil painting captured the suffering of the war. We
spent at least a half hour in front of the painting; there was so much
to look at.
|
| Guernica |
 |
| Art Museum?! |
We ended the night with a little scare. When we got back to my host
parents’ apartment, we found that our key did not work for the
downstairs door. My host parents had left us with the old key and were
now in Valencia. After a few phone calls, the doorman let us into the
building where we found my host brother’s key in his room. We then
ended the night at the restaurant right down the street, before
finishing our packing back at the apartment.
The next morning, we took an Uber to the airport. We said goodbye and Guy got on his flight back home. He is now off on his next adventure at Williams College. Go purple cows!
After he left, I spent a few hours at a cafe in the airport cleaning
up my email and writing postcards. I had gotten a bunch of free
postcards at the Brussels airport which were oddly beach vacation
themed. Brussels is not a coastal city. Anyway, they were free, so I
got them.
The hours following Guy’s departure felt very strange. I didn’t
realize how much we had talked throughout our trip, but after he left
and I had no one to talk to, I didn’t open my mouth for hours.
Traveling solo is very different from traveling with a friend.
I got a sandwich at a restaurant/bar near the train station and then caught the train to Valencia where I would spend the next month with my parents. You will hear about that in my next blog. Bye for now!
- Justin Dunn
The next morning, we took an Uber to the airport. We said goodbye and Guy got on his flight back home. He is now off on his next adventure at Williams College. Go purple cows!
|
| Bye, Guy! |
|
| Shell yeah! |
I got a sandwich at a restaurant/bar near the train station and then caught the train to Valencia where I would spend the next month with my parents. You will hear about that in my next blog. Bye for now!
- Justin Dunn