A City on Water
Amsterdam was one of my favorite cities traveled to on our Euro trip. This was such a unique city that was separated by canals that many locals used to travel. Each canal was lined with boats almost like you would see street parking in a busy city. Some of the boats were for cruising the canals but many were houseboats that people called home. we took a boat tour that showed us a cool perspective of Amsterdam. We saw so many different boats and homes who’s back doors opened up to the water. It was amazing to see how people have adapted the city around the canals.
If people weren’t traveling by boat, they were traveling by bike. The city was more bike friendly than car friendly so the locals took to two wheels. We decided to explore the city by foot so we can check out all of the cool shops and restaurants. There was no shortage of coffee shops and restaurants around out hostel, so we were able to check out many of them in our 3 day trip.
Decriminalized Perspective
Amsterdam is a unique city that has decriminalized drug use and prostitution. Many would think that without regulations to prohibit these acts, that that would spiral into big problem. I din not get that vibe in Amsterdam at all. In fact, the people of Amsterdam seemed very happy, and the city was extremely clean. You could find a coffee shop on just about every intersection in the city. People would come and go without freely as a normal part of their day.
The Red Light District is a section of Amsterdam designated for the prostitution industry. The Street had different Sex Shops, Sex Shows and Parlors with Red lights in the windows, signifying they were open for business. It was kind of intimidating walking down the Red Light District and especially at night time when the streets were packed. The women working were adamant about no pictured being taken, and make a scene if they caught someone with a camera. It was interesting to see something soo taboo in our part of the world be so accepted here.
