Amsterdam

[January 21-23]
Unfortunately I have been having some computer issues and have been without a computer for over a week now. Sorry for the delay but here is an update of two weekends ago when we went to Amsterdam!!
Our bus was scheduled to leave at noon on Friday so being unsure of exactly how to get to the bus station, we left at 10am..and got there by 10:20am. Needless to say we overestimated how much time we needed and spent the first two hours of our first weekend excursion sitting at the back of Burger King waiting for our bus to arrive. However once we were on the bus it was smooth sailing! There were eight of us that all traveled together from Friday to Sunday and then another group of Clemson students that were in Amsterdam from Thursday to Saturday so our trips overlapped on Friday night.
The bus that took us was similar to a charter bus with semi comfortable seats and a bathroom, so no complaints. The bus only took two hours and 45 minutes so we were in Amsterdam before three o'clock! Even though we were tired from getting up early and the ride, we all had quite the pep in our step when getting off the bus =)
The first thing that we noticed was that there were so many bikes!! We had heard that there are more bikes than people in Amsterdam, however it is hard to imagine until you really see it in person. It is also interesting because all of the bikes are very simple and old fashion style. (We later learned this was because they are just for cruising in the city and they don't want them to get stolen)

Just a casual bicycle parking lot

We were pleasantly surprised when we first arrived in Amsterdam and realized that almost everyone spoke English very well. This was especially useful when we first got off the bus and were confused in how to get to our hostel.  However after talking to one sweet old lady we boarded the metro and were on our way to Central Station.

Central Station

Central Station is the main hub in Amsterdam and it is also beautiful. Our hostel had a perfect location which was walking distance from this station and many other attractions in Amsterdam.
Our first hostel was much better than any of us could have imagined. In addition to the great location, it was a very secure setting with key cards to enter the building and individual lockers to lock up your belongings while you were away from the hostel.  I felt safe at all times there, and we even made friends with some of the other travelers in our room. Our room consisted of 10 sets of bunk beds, but thankfully we only had one snorer! 
Friday night we met up with some of the other Clemson students there and had a fun night all together.

Tricia, Laura and I in the hostel

My roommates and I did a lot of research before going to Amsterdam and we found a free walking tour online that showed all of the main historical and hot spots of the city. So, Saturday afternoon all eight of us bundled up for the cold weather and put our walking shoes on to see the city. There was a large group of other people that joined us for the tour, and we had the best tour guide! He was a graduate student that walked us all around the new and old parts of Amsterdam for close to four hours with a short 30 minute break in the middle. Yes...four hours. It was quite chilly outside though so half of the group bailed at the break, but Tricia, James and I stuck it out and I am so happy that we did. I took a ton of photos during the tour but here are a couple below:

Our walking tour group

Main square in Amsterdam

One of the main churches

 Canal that ran through the city

All of the houses are very narrow and tall and are slanted!

Our tour guide told us so many interesting things about the architecture, history, and culture of Amsterdam that really brought the city to life for us.

Sunday was our last day in Amsterdam so after checking out of our hostel we went on a search to find a local place to eat breakfast. We are traveling college students so I have to admit that some of our meals were spent at fast food restaurants and/or just picking up a cheap sandwich at a small store, so we really wanted to end our trip eating a true meal from Amsterdam! After walking around for what seemed like forever we finally gave up and just walked into this little hole in the wall place because we were so hungry and it had a breakfast menu on its door. However hole in the wall or not, it was DELICIOUS. Ah so yummy. Everyone got something different and it was such a small place that our group of eight took up the whole upstairs and we could see the cook individually cooking all of our meals. I got a plain pancake but when it came out it was a huge, thin pancake that took up the entire plate.

Pancake breakfast

Once our bellies were full and satisfied we headed to the Anne Frank Museum which was our last destination before leaving Amsterdam.  We had to wait in line for about 30 minutes and pay 8.50 euros, but it was definitely worth it. It was a humbling experience to say the least but we were able to actually walk through the house that Anne Frank lived in for the two years while she was in hiding. It was a very impressive museum that had video segments and quotes from her diary in each of the rooms that we walked through. Although I have read the Diary of Anne Frank it hit home a lot harder seeing it all in person, something I will never forget.
We caught the bus back to Brussels Sunday afternoon and were in our hotel by dinner time.  It was a perfect first travel experience and we already have so many great memories to reminisce on! We bonded so much more with our small group of eight, and it was so interesting to see a different part of Europe. In addition it made us SO much more excited for our other weekend excursions.