Culture · life · travel

7 Things I Learnt in Amsterdram

I finally did it. I finally did the ‘Dutch Dash’ from Hull to Amsterdam. Or rather, Hull to Rotterdam, then to Amsterdam.

Aaron and I went on our first ever mini-cruise, with P&O Ferries from Hull to Amsterdam. And it was fantastic, but not for the reasons that you’d think.

Here are 7 things I learnt when I visited Amsterdam, plus some photos that I took with my new 50mm lens.

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1. I can live out of a rucksack.

Who knew that the girl who once curled her hair on a daily basis, wore multiple pairs of eyelashes and hated any form of exercise, could walk around with her belongings on her back for 2-3 days? It was quite freeing to only have 2 outfits to choose from. I still took my straighteners, though – can’t be doing with my fringe in my eyes.

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2. I am far too British.

It’s true. I spent half of my time apologising to other pedestrians and people on bikes. They were probably just as much as in my way as I was in theirs, yet I am always the one to apologise. I was also a bit disgruntled when 2 pints of Heineken cost over €12 and at the fact that we couldn’t get into a pub after 9pm. C’mon Holland, what’s the crack with that?

3. But I like it that way.

And, to be honest, I quite like being British. I quite like having a pint in the evening and not smelling weed in a coffee shop at 10am in the morning. And, I quite like that when I walk around the streets of Hull, I’m not scared of making awkward eye contact with a semi-naked lady in a window. But, y’ano, each to their own.

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4. I definitely hate the smell of weed.

The smell of weed usually reminds me of being a teenager at festivals and gigs. It’s a nostalgic smell and one I was quite fond of, but never truly liked. However, I can safely say that now I have had my fair share of puffs of weed blown in my face, I find it revolting. I even thought I’d try a bit of cake or brownie, but nope, the state some people were in really confirmed the reasons I’ve never tried it.

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5. I’m pretty boring.

It’s true, I am a boring bitch. I went to bed early on the ferry, I had a nap in the afternoon when we got there, and I only had 3 Heinekens for the entirety of the trip. Although, the latter was mainly down to the fact they’d stopped serving at 9pm!

6. And I’m completely okay with that.

I’m absolutely fine with being boring. If staying safe in Amsterdam means vigilantly crossing the road when the green man appears and not getting too drunk, then so be it! If it means getting an early night so that you can visit Anne Frank’s house early in the morning, then I’m okay with that.

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7. I need to document my life more.

On that note, visiting the Anne Frank House really made me realise that I should start documenting my life more. I feel like my blog has become a bit depersonalised as of late and I really want to start adding bits of me back into it. I also want to start making scrapbooks and writing small journals again. Anne truly inspired me to start writing for me again.

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Have you ever visited Amsterdam? If so, let me know what you thought in the comments below, or have a chat with me on Twitter. 

2 thoughts on “7 Things I Learnt in Amsterdram

  1. Love this post! I completely agree about trying to make writing more personal – it’s something I want to work on with my blog too
    theemeralddove21.blogspot.co.uk

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    Reply
    1. Thanks Lauren! I’ll take a peek at your blog later. 😊

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      Reply

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