amsterdamned

alarm went off at 545, we got ready for the day and made our way towards the coach station. I thought we were doing well on time, but I checked the clock and our bus was leaving in less than 10 minutes and we were just getting off the metro. frantic, I started running and Tess followed suit. we didn't want to miss our bus to Amsterdam because options would've been slim and pricey to get there. I was struggling to run and Tess was close behind saying, "I AM TOO OUT OF SHAPE FOR THIS" which made me laugh harder and slow down even more. we made it, barely, particularly sweaty and flushed as we settled onto the bus. how many times will I be running on this weekend trip I'm not sure but I'd like to cut the crap because the anxiety attached to making transportation is just too much. exhausting and unnecessary but so it is a normality when traveling in foreign places.

upon arrival in Amsterdam, the winds were howling and it was quite chilly. we popped into Starbucks to get some toasty Joe to warm us up. we set out to find roasters & bakers, a breakfast place my best friend LeeAnn recommended. it took us quite some time to get there, but it was definitely worth the walk. Tess had huevos rancheros and a Bloody Mary, and I had a breakfast burrito with a passion fruit cocktail. the food was divine - would highly recommend to anyone traveling to amsty. I also loved the drink, and I decided it's because it had cranberry juice (vodka cran is my MO) and Europe isn't keen on cranberry juice so it was so very tasty. 

because we were pretty cold, we popped into h&m and birth found cute scarves to cut the wind from going down the inside of our coats. the rain would come and go, luckily not sticking around for long. we popped into the famous Heineken building, and then went to see the Anne Frank house. Tess had already seen it, deemed that it was indeed cool but not entirely worth the wait so we saw the outside and pushed on. I was most excited to see the I Amsterdam letters, but as luck would have it there was a street performance right infront of them and that made pictures REALLY difficult. we attempted anyway, and I hoisted myself up on the a, Tess snapper a few, and then the tricky part - getting down. I have pretty short legs so I could t exactly touch the bottom part of the letter from the top. Tess captured the struggle and I was laughing so hard I could barely hold on. I ended up just jumping down and Tess could hardly reel it in. 

we walked back up toward central station and we stopped at the ice bar. with admission, you get one drink in the normal bar and two in the actual ice bar. Tess snagged a mojito and I had the amsterdamned (cool name right?) which was again a cranberry mix so I was thrilled that cranberry was 2/2 on the day. we suited up and went into the ice bar which was SO neat. they served us Heineken in glass cups, which I have to say was really great because your beer would never get warm. definite thumbs up to that. after we froze our buns off in there, we set out for the red light district before we had to catch a train back to our bus station. it was still early in the evening, so it wasn't full fledged but I definitely got a glimpse and wow was it fascinating. it's a complete different outlook and lifestyle, one that I don't fully understand but definitely interested anyway. 

we ran - again - for our train, flushed for the second time that day, and hopped onto our bus back to Brussels. had an amazing day with my big sis, so lucky she's here in Europe with me. home sweet hostel..

cheers, jkro