Day 2: Bikes, Brews and Curry Fries

Today we met outside the apartment building at 11am so that we could head over to Dappermarkt, a popular street market in the city. It's a good place to pick up fish, produce and cheap souvenirs. I didn't see anything that really caught my attention, but there was a food truck at the end of the street selling freshly made french fries, complete with mayonnaise (a European delicacy!) That idea still kinda turns my stomach, so I opted for curry sauce instead, which was delicious. My buddy, Blake, got the "special" which had ketchup, mayo and onions. I tried one of the fries with mayo on it, and it wasn't bad. It's different from the mayonnaise we have in the States. It tastes lighter, but I don't think I'll be opting for a huge helping of the condiment anytime soon.

Later in the afternoon, we visited Mike's Bike Tours and rented bicycles for a fun, albeit hectic, tour of the city. I say hectic because bicyclists have the right of way in Amsterdam, so getting used to that fact plus veering through tight spaces on the street where you have cars and other bikers speeding three inches from your left side and pedestrians rubbing shoulders with you on your right was tough but worth it. We ended the tour at a local brewery that runs out of an old windmill just a few blocks from where we are staying. Sampling some of the locally made beers and snacks was an awesome late-afternoon recharge.

So now it's time to see what the rest of Friday night holds in store. It's 10pm here, but it looks like it's 2 hours earlier at least. I'm gonna try to catch up with some of the guys from the group at Rembrandtplein, which is a popular eating, shopping and drinking district. I think the girls are all heading out together for some drinks and dancing. There are bars and "coffeeshops" nearly everywhere you turn in this city, so we won't be short on things to do.

Day 1: Planes, Trains & Bicycles

It's 3:35 in the afternoon in The Netherlands on our first day in town. We started off at the Nashville airport Wednesday morning around 10:30 am central time. I've pretty much been awake since then, nearly 24 hours straight, if you account for the jet lag. Our flight was late in Nashville, so the group had about 5 minutes to book it to our next gate in Washington, D.C. We were there for maybe 20 minutes altogether and had to walk straight onto the plane when we got to the gate. No time for a bathroom break!

On the plane to Amsterdam, I watched two movies: The Call and Olympus Has Fallen. Head to thereelbennyc.blogspot.com to read a few of my thoughts on those two films.

Upon arrival we had to wind our way across the city with our 40-50 pound luggage. Public transportation here is great, but it's hard to blend in when all of Amsterdam is watching you struggle with your baggage, and you're taking up all the sidewalk space. We're still working on the concept of NOT walking in the bicycle lane. Those folks do not stop.

After settling in to our rooms, we headed to another part of town that features several restaurants, bars and high-end shopping. I've seen probably 3 H&M stores, a Nike store, Adidas store, Puma store, Fossil, Diesel, Vans, etc. We had lunch at this place called Wok To Walk, which was a really good stir-fry place where you got to choose your noodles or rice, meats, veggies and sauces from an eclectic menu. After walking lunch off, we're now resting at the apartments before getting ready for a group dinner at Saturnino, which is an Italian place near where we were earlier today. Can't wait to try that out. We're doing something else together as a group after dinner but I'm not sure what exactly. Whatever it is, it's sure to be another adventure. Today has been packed with them so far.

Rolling Out

To paraphrase Billy Joel, "Mama, if that's movin' up, then I'm headin' out."

I've got to be at the airport in Nashville early tomorrow morning. Today, Mom and I are loading up and heading that way for a final hurrah in the States and, most importantly, to ensure I make it on time to meet my group tomorrow.

This afternoon, we'll be in Bowling Green taking measurements of my new apartment and will probably find some place to stop for lunch. Double Dog's is a family favorite! Then we'll see what the night brings in Nashville. Mom and I toyed with the idea of going to see the Grand Ole Opry, but more likely we'll be finding a nice place for "meat & 3" and then just hanging out. We'll see.

I'm beyond excited for this adventure and can't wait to see what The Netherlands and Belgium have in store for myself and my classmates!

I'll be posting on this blog every day (maybe in some independent travel situations, every other day), so stay tuned for more of my adventures.

(Above is a picture of my bags, in case anyone's curious about what maybe 10 days worth of men's clothes and personal items looks like. Probably gonna have to do laundry. I don't have that much underwear...)