A Weekend of Windmills
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Our first weekend in Amsterdam included windmills, pancakes and our favorite activity, walking!
After a full week of classes and excursions, it was time to see what lies beyond the city limits. On Saturday, our QLA group got to experience the beautiful sights of Zaanse Schans! This charming little town 20 minutes outside of Amsterdam is filled with the iconic traditional windmills of the Netherlands. Students were given free time to roam through the museum, learn about how wooden clogs are made and taste delicious cheese. Despite warnings from locals, we’ve experienced nothing but stunning weather so far and this day was no exception. Pancakes were on the menu for lunch, and we learned that the traditional Dutch style is a little different than what we may be used to from the United States. While we took a luxurious tour bus to reach Zaanse Schans in the morning, we had to face public transit on our way home. Everyone was so flexible and patient as we watched not just one, but TWO trains get canceled. When the train finally arrived, it felt like we were commuting with the entire population of Amsterdam. Packed together like sardines, we arrived at Centraal Station and took our trusty tram 14 back to the hostel for the night.
And on Sunday, we sleep in. Students had all morning free on Sunday and many of us opted to sleep as long as possible before taking part in the Dutch tradition of biking! Even though traditional jet lag seems to be behind us, our bodies are still getting used to the constant activity and late sunsets. The sun is still high in the sky at 9pm which makes it hard for our bodies to wind down. We headed to the beautiful Rembrandt park in Amsterdam West where 20 bikes were waiting, along with a picnic. While some took to the bike paths, others played frisbee and soccer or read in the grass. This week has been such a whirlwind that we all needed a little bit of solo reflection time once we returned to the hostel. Journaling, reading or napping took up our evening before we all turned in for the night.