August 15th: Amsterdam is only 45 minutes via train from The Hague, but it might as well be in a different hemisphere! Here, a coffee shop is NOT a coffee shop, and prostitutes (legally) make more than teachers (and pay taxes for their "services" they provide). As soon as I arrived here, I could literally smell the marijuana in the air; It is EVERYWHERE! People smoke it like cigarettes, and, it is not a big deal (no, I definitely DID NOT partake either; I don't really condone it all that much)!
The home of Van Gough and Rembrandt also happens to be the most liberal, free spirited city I have ever been, and like so many other places I have been in Europe, it seems surreal! The public transportation system here not only consists of subways, trams, trains, and busses; it has a series of boats that take you along the hundreds of miles of canals that move really efficiently! It is also EXTREMELY clean and has just an incredible vibe that I have not experienced before.
Tonight, I did go to the Heineken "experience", which in reality is just the "Disney Land" for the fabled, yet overrated Dutch beer. It takes place in what used to be the brewery and lasts about 90 minutes! Afterward, I just walked the endless streets, chilled along the canal, and enjoyed one of my final nights in Europe!
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