holland
My last night in the Netherlands was so surreal. I arrived by train just after sunset and was met at the station by a friend I met in Costa Rica. She was so generous and offered me a place to crash at her family's home in Weesp, just outside Amsterdam.
Read MoreThe rugged and small island of Vlieland ended up being one of my favorite stops of my Europe trip. I arrived on the ferry on the eastern part of the island around 7pm on a balmy day, and woke up the next day to cold rain pattering on my hotel room window and a clucking chicken...
Read MoreDon't go to Utrecht. It's not cooler or more relaxed than Amsterdam, there aren't lovely bakeries and lunch spots along the canal, and there definitely aren't any bicycles to rent. ;) Some Dutchies prefer to keep Utrecht a secret from hordes of tourists, so I promised I wouldn't sing Utrecht's praises!
Read MoreDuring my extended stay in Rotterdam doing HelpX, I took a quick overnight trip to Amsterdam, a very convenient train ride away. I got a behind-the-scenes tour at the Van Gogh museum with a relative (no photos allowed), and took a canal tour which was very touristy but still worth it...
Read MoreI spent three weeks in Rotterdam, city that my great-grandfather left in 1912. Land of my Dutch last name: Schoenmaker (literally shoe-maker...the kids from middle school were right, for once).
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