Beautiful day in Amsterdam

Nothing can brighten your spirits like the sun can. Today was a beautiful sunny day in Amsterdam.
We only had one lecture today, and this one was actually interesting. The speaker was an Anthropologist (she smiled when I said I was an Anthro minor) who focuses her work on sexuality among Surinamese people. It was an interesting because it wasn't all about gayness. It was focused more on race and class, two things I love to learn about.
After the lecture we got out early because our afternoon lecture was canceled. I ended up walking all around central Amsterdam with a friend. It was so nice to see all the stores, restaurants, and monuments finally. I felt like I finally saw the real A'dam.
One of the most interesting parts of my walk today was seeing prostitutes in windows on Spuistraat. I was not expecting to see these half naked girls just standing there in their under wear. The first one I saw freaked me out because I didnt think there was a person there. The windows are low, so you wouldnt see them unless you looked to either side. She scared me half to death.
On my walk, I was able to check out a bunch of places to take friends (i.e. Annie, Christine, and Danielle) when they visit. I went my the sex museum, vodka museum, the Amsterdam dungeon, madame tusson's wax museum, and a lot of cute places to shop. I also realized that people shouldn't buy souvenirs around the heavily touristy areas because there are stores for much cheaper in the center.
My day got even better when I got home because I was able to go buy frozen pizza for dinner. It made me think of grocery shopping at 409 ♥
After dinner, I ended up playing this singing videogame with my host sister, which was a lot of fun. It was harder than I thought it would be, but sooo much fun.

I am really positive about Amsterdam since coming back from Croatia. I hope this lasts after the Morocco trip.

I cannot wait for:
* Annie to visit
*Danielle to visit
* To be a tourist with them
*To buy cheap things in Morocco
*To experience more Amsterdam attractions and night life.

Ducth word of the day: Geil- horny
(not to be confused with the word Geel which means yellow)

Doei Doei!

Hrvatska

Right now I am in Croatia with my program. We have been here a week, living in a hostel. I think living with everyone makes me want to kill them. I like them, but I like having my own space. Being here has made me appreciate things I take for granted in the U.S.

Here is a list of 5 things I miss from the U.S.(basically all related to food):
1. Free tap water in restaurants
I have been drinking only soda because you can't get tap water free. You also can't just get spring water either, there is only mineral water (which I hate).

2. Reasonably sized drinks
Because I can't drink water, I get soda. Everytime I drink soda i'm still thirsty because they only give you one small bottle. I miss having fountain drinks.

3. Food other than pizza and sandwiches (Croatia only)
The cheapest thing to eat in Croatia is ice cream, which is delicious. Most restaurants sell italian food, and after three or four times it gets old. I just want some more variety.

4. Driving
I wish I could drive places instead of having to ride on a tram full of people.

5. I'm still thinking about this one...

I miss home, but I do love Europe. Croatia has actually been a nice break from Amsterdam because it is more laid back. I have learned my way around the city in just a few days, something I still haven't been able to do in Amsterdam. Croatia is smaller and the men are VERY good looking. If I were to marry a European, he would have to be eastern European. I also like the language here. It sounds nice, but its hard to learn.

I am excited to be heading back to Amsterdam tomorrow. But as soon as I get settled there we're leaving again, this time for Morocco. Morocco should be great, my money will go a long way there.

Things I want to buy in Morocco:
1. Sandals
2. Scarves
3. A man hahah


I am also excited because I look Moroccan, so it's like they're my people. In Amsterdam, I get dirty looks because I look Moroccan, but in Morocco this should work in my favor.

*** I tried to add pictures but my computer was too slow.***

Birthday (celebration?)

So you would think that Amsterdam would be an awesome place to party, but it turns out its not when you try to please 14 people.

Yesterday was my birthday as well as another girl on my program. We had planned to go to a factory to celebrate. Everyone else in the group said they wanted to join which was fine. Apparently they didn't want to go but didn't tell us until the last minute.

A few of us actually ended up going to a club, but they did not play the music they had advertised. They were playing electronica, which I don't like. We ended up leaving there and some more people left because they were tired. In the end only three of us were left (the three minorities and only straight people on this trip) and we went to burger king and talked for two hours.

I did not imagine spending my 21st birthday that way.I'm sure things will get better, but this was just a sucky night.

I hope to have something fun to post soon.

The Nederlands so far

Hallo!
I have gotten really behind on this blog. I had no internet for the first week I was in the Netherlands because I was living in hostels. I found that the hostels here are actually very nice, but have crappy food. I'm not sure if it's crappy because it's Dutch or if it's just bad.

My first week was spent in Egmond, a small village in Holland. It was kind of boring, but it forced everyone in my program to bond. There are 14 people total in my program, most being from the North East. It is an interesting group of people, most of whom identify as gay/lesbian/queer. I was not expecting that almost all the people would be, but its still great.

The hardest thing I've had to adjust to is probably the biking. Bikes rule the roads in Amsterdam. You have to watch out for bikes because the Dutch do not follow any set of biking rules. Whenever I ride my bike I feel like I'm going to die. A part of that may be that I always get lost. A ten minute bike ride took me about an hour yesterday. I think once I figure out how to get places things will get much better.

I think that is it for now, I swear I will write more interesting things and more often.

Doei! (bye in Dutch)