And Then There Was Amsterdam (I Think)

Ok I have to start by giving a piece of advice to anyone who has never been to Amsterdam but intends to visit: the very first thing you'll do upon exiting the train station is almost be killed by someone on a bike and then someone on a scooter and finally by a tram. Provided you survive this shouldn't be something you worry about but just be aware this is how the Dutch identify the tourists (beyond backpacks, Canadian flags and skate shoes).

Now that we've got that out of the way I must say that I friggin LOVED Amsterdam. On our first day I was a bit on the fence but this city is spectacular in so many ways that go beyond the classic view of a city that is laissez-faire about sex & drugs.

A big part of planning our trip was centered around being their for Queen's Day; this is a national festival to celebrate the Queen's Birthday and holy hanna was it something else but before that we spent a fair bit of time exploring the city including two extraordinary sites: Anne Frank's House and the Van Gogh Museum.

I'd never drawn many parallels between these two famous Dutch figures but the common threads seem to suggest something powerful about Dutch culture. Both left behind striking works of self-reflection that over time have become incredibly culturally significant and perhaps more importantly both were highly self-critical of themselves. I wouldn't say that either site was depressing for this reason but personally it left me pondering the things we create in our lifetime and their relevance after we're gone. More often than not we are always our harshest critics but perhaps so long as what we contribute to our world around us is important to us in due time others around us will begin to see that importance as well.