I AMsterdam

AMSTERDAM!! The city that never sleeps, famous for the red light district and notorious for being crammed with pot heads.
And bikes...

SO MANY BIKES!

Amsterdam was not what I imagined! I was picturing a dirty city crammed with tourists, people shouting in the streets and partying till 6 am. Kind of like Blackpool...
Turns out though that Amsterdam is actually one of the most peaceful and beautiful cities ive seen! It is DEFINATELY on my top 5 list.

The bus from Berlin arrived as scheduled; bright and early at 530 am!  Im not going to lie - there isnt much to do in Amstedam at 530 in the morning. Well there is one thing...
I ended up meeting a group of people who were all trying to get to the central station (the bus dropped us off at the other end of town) and I decided to stick with them for a bit. Turned out that one of the guys was a couchsurfer and we were going to be staying in the same flat for a few days! The 2 of us stuck together with two girls from Australlia and the US. We ended up crashing in the central train station till 930 am and then headed to a CoffeeShop, eventually got hungry and had lunch on the canals untill 1. We hit up another cafe at 130...and then I dont remember the rest. I passed out from exhaustion. It was one of the longest days everrrrr. I vaguely remember walking to our hosts appartment, meeting Guy (from Isreal) and having a shower. David and I just watched movies all night and then eventually crashed at 10pm.
The following days were much better!!
The weather was a little cold and rainy during my stay but I made do. I mostly shopped and wandered - A'dam is pretty tiny but there are a ton of streets to explore and get lost on.
The next day David and I visited the Anne Frank house. It felt a little seeing where her and her family were  living and hiding, but it was a really nice exhibit. They had information and pictures all through out the house.

Lovely canals. This is the view Anne would have had from her house.

My last day in Holland was spent touring Zaanse Schanse; a neighbouring town - only 20 mins by train. Its popular among tourists for its opperating windmills. It turned out to be fantastic weather and a pretty great day.

Ducks and cows. Just chillin...

After dinner I decided to head out on Guys bike and see the parts of Amsterdam I had missed.

Of course the swans want in on the action (at the red light!)

I didnt actually expected to find girls dancing in the windows. But I did! TONS of tourists in the red light district- mostly drunk dudes just wandering around checkin out the chicks.
GREAT stay in A'dam.
I left the city on the 21st and am currently in Brugge, Belgium. I feel sick from the chocolate I just ate. UUgghh the city is full of it.
But its a beautiful little town - there arent many touristic spots so its been kind of a relaxing stay. My host Marcel is from here and a great guy! I finally have my own private room and a REAL BED! Ive been sleeping on floor mats, bean bags and mattresses on the floor for so long, I forgot what a bed felt like. ITS GREAT!!
But it made me realise (just now!) how important a good nights sleep in a bed is.
After I visit Brussels im hoping to go back to Renne where I first started my tour - the girl who hosted me has invited me back to stay with her in France and I CANT WAIT!! I'll know the language (a lil), the people and the city! NO MAP. I can be a resident, not a tourist. Get some good sleep on her comfy pull out couch and relax.
But thats later... Today I head to Brussels for a day or 2 and see some of the comic art its known for.