Scene
The unfortunate circumstance of Amsterdam is that a lot of folks think that the city is a one-trick pony...well, two-trick pony: prostitution and weed. It's impossible to deny that is true. Amsterdam has legal prostitutes and legal weed. "Cafes" are many and near in between and there's definitely no shortage of coital entertainment. The upside is obvious...duh. But, the downside is that a lot of people tend to miss other beauties and offers of Amsterdam or even skip the fabulous city altogether because of the mispreconception (yes, I made that word up) of rampant blazed hooligans and strippers galore burning innocent eyes everywhere you turn. That I dare say is a travesty.
My absolute favorite place in Amsterdam was Museumplein. There I sat by the pond and dipped my feet in the calming water. It was a welcoming slowdown from all the walking of London and Paris. Also, there I found the infamous "I Amsterdam." If you don't know what it is, Google, my friend. The park was just absolutely relaxing and chill. The Dutch really know how to just unwind and sit back at the end of the day. Not the snobby sit back and do nothing French. Rather, picnics, pick up football games, bike riding, beer drinking in the pool . They have fun together, and it's this jovial bonding that makes the Dutch so so so so likeable.
However, there's a drawback to Amsterdam for me. No matter how hard I tried or what I did, I always got lost in the city. The streets aren't laid out straight, but instead flow in concentric circles. Thus, it was extremely difficult to know if I was walking in a straight line or if the street has curved in a different direction.
Wandering through the Red Light District was...interesting. The area was too...cliche and over the top. Yeah, we all know about the prostitution, but to make it that tacky takes away the charm and beauty of the area, the city, and the culture. The asking prices were fair, unlike a particular someone who demands $1.5 million ;0P
I'll honestly say that I did not enjoy the resources of Amsterdam. I wasn't blazed and no lap dances. Sad face, I know. I felt that I couldn't dignify myself to enjoy the wonderful like that. There was so much more to Amsterdam. The Dutch folks were fun and friendly, albeit a little nuts and probably drunk. The architecture and winding canals were gorgeous and surreal. It was like hopping from one island to the next.
I Amsterdamed! Going way yonder east to Berlin!
Question
What's the most charming city you've been to?
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
#13: Paris
Scene
The City of Lights. The epitome of fashion and high class sophisticated European life. After several days relaxing in suburbia of Angers, Paris kind of smacked me in the face. Bam! There were people literally everywhere, but most were doing absolutely nothing. Well, that's wrong. They sat outside a cafe, drank coffee or wine or beer, and smoked and smoked and smoked. It was truly a stark contrast from my preconception of the lofty Parisian life. I guess doing nothing is tres chic.
Despite my not liking the Parisian way of doing nothing, the happiest thing I did out and about in the city was sitting on a lawn chair in Jardin du Luxembourg in front of the Palais du Luxembourg and taking a 2 hour snooze and people watching. I felt like a lazy lump of unproductiveness, but I deserved that for myself.
Like London, Paris was huge...mainly because I arrogantly decided that my feet were better than public transportation. Within a day or 2, I realized that I was completely out of shape to put my money where my mouth was. Because of my stubborn decision to walk everywhere, I admit that I didn't see all of Paris. But, you can't really. I wish I had seen the Catacombs, but why wasn't it open on a Monday?! I guess that's the French way of being tres chic in doing nothing.
Again, like Angers, the best part of staying in Paris was catching with a friend's family that I consider pretty much family to me. I haven't seen them in over half a year. They were like my 3rd family. And, they're just plain awesome with the bestest dog ever. I'm not a dog person at all, but I would jump immediately at the opportunity to have that dog.
I also visited another cousin who lives on the outskirt suburbs of Paris. Like the other cousin, I haven't seen her in years. (I have a lot, a lot of cousins). We just spent the entire day talking about life, family, and catching up. I really enjoy kicking back and slowing things down outside of school and work. To shoot the breeze and get to know my cousin like that for a whole day was fawesome.
All in all, Paris was just too...lofty(?) for me. Just wasn't my crowd. Parisian folks were just too Parisian and too...easy going, not doing much. Too tres chic with fancy shmancy fashion and tight jeans and sports coats that fit. In my eyes, the city just seemed to uppity and full of itself. And basically every big thing in Paris was a tourist attraction. Hordes of Americans, Italians, and Japanese everyfreakingwhere. As a solo traveler, it was oftentimes frustrating to navigate through swarms after swarms of upward gazers with protruding fannypacks, dangling Nikon cameras from their necks, and ingenious ideas of taking photos at the end or beginning of crosswalks. I get a lot of that when I go through NYC, but there are plenty of locals to outnumber the tourists. Paris was just too much.
Amsterdam next! Hookers and blow!
Question
Which city don't you like so much? Why?
The City of Lights. The epitome of fashion and high class sophisticated European life. After several days relaxing in suburbia of Angers, Paris kind of smacked me in the face. Bam! There were people literally everywhere, but most were doing absolutely nothing. Well, that's wrong. They sat outside a cafe, drank coffee or wine or beer, and smoked and smoked and smoked. It was truly a stark contrast from my preconception of the lofty Parisian life. I guess doing nothing is tres chic.
Despite my not liking the Parisian way of doing nothing, the happiest thing I did out and about in the city was sitting on a lawn chair in Jardin du Luxembourg in front of the Palais du Luxembourg and taking a 2 hour snooze and people watching. I felt like a lazy lump of unproductiveness, but I deserved that for myself.
Like London, Paris was huge...mainly because I arrogantly decided that my feet were better than public transportation. Within a day or 2, I realized that I was completely out of shape to put my money where my mouth was. Because of my stubborn decision to walk everywhere, I admit that I didn't see all of Paris. But, you can't really. I wish I had seen the Catacombs, but why wasn't it open on a Monday?! I guess that's the French way of being tres chic in doing nothing.
Again, like Angers, the best part of staying in Paris was catching with a friend's family that I consider pretty much family to me. I haven't seen them in over half a year. They were like my 3rd family. And, they're just plain awesome with the bestest dog ever. I'm not a dog person at all, but I would jump immediately at the opportunity to have that dog.
I also visited another cousin who lives on the outskirt suburbs of Paris. Like the other cousin, I haven't seen her in years. (I have a lot, a lot of cousins). We just spent the entire day talking about life, family, and catching up. I really enjoy kicking back and slowing things down outside of school and work. To shoot the breeze and get to know my cousin like that for a whole day was fawesome.
All in all, Paris was just too...lofty(?) for me. Just wasn't my crowd. Parisian folks were just too Parisian and too...easy going, not doing much. Too tres chic with fancy shmancy fashion and tight jeans and sports coats that fit. In my eyes, the city just seemed to uppity and full of itself. And basically every big thing in Paris was a tourist attraction. Hordes of Americans, Italians, and Japanese everyfreakingwhere. As a solo traveler, it was oftentimes frustrating to navigate through swarms after swarms of upward gazers with protruding fannypacks, dangling Nikon cameras from their necks, and ingenious ideas of taking photos at the end or beginning of crosswalks. I get a lot of that when I go through NYC, but there are plenty of locals to outnumber the tourists. Paris was just too much.
Amsterdam next! Hookers and blow!
Question
Which city don't you like so much? Why?
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