amsterdam.

Our weekend began at 4pm on Thursday, as we departed for a train from Vienna to Munich before connecting on our overnight train to Amsterdam. We arrived in The Netherlands/Holland (still not sure which is politically correct) around 9am in search of a quick breakfast at a local cafe. Then, we headed to Dam Square, the town center of Amsterdam, to begin a 3 hour New Europe walking tour of the city. If you can't tell from my previous blogs, we're all about these free tours! Our native New Zealand guide introduced us to the history, beauty, and quirks of Amsterdam. The tour ended around 245 in front of the Anne Frank House, which was our next destination. This is where Anne and her entire family attempted to hide from the Nazis during WWII. We had the opportunity to see the actual hiding place (behind a bookshelf Anne's dad installed) as well as Anne Frank's original DIARY. It was such an incredible experience. Sarah and I had hoped we could tour the Corrie Ten Boom house as well (in Haarlem), but time escaped us. Upon leaving the House, we purchased tickets for the metro bus before heading out to the Van Gogh museum. This 3 level museum contains hundreds of original drawings, paintings, and sketches by the man himself. His sketches were my favorite, because he would write letters back and forth between his brother Theo and would include rough sketches of his future compositions. Through my time at this museum, I developed a stronger inclination towards Van Gogh.

Next, we went to the train station to meet back up with the New Europe tour company for an informal walking tour of The Red Light District. I'm sure you're probably wondering why I would choose to do such a thing, but I definitely felt like I needed to experience and understand that part of Amsterdam since it is such a large part of their culture. Needless to say, the tour was certainly interesting and incredibly sad. I don't understand why any woman would desire to associate herself with the business of prostitution. God has created us in His perfect image, and the women (many of whom are strikingly beautiful) are choosing the path of fornication. I think seeing the Red Light District is important to us as believers to expose us to different cultures, opinions, etc. because if we don't, our faith will remain naive and extremely close-minded. After the tour ended at 9pm, we headed straight to our hostel in Haarlem (a 20 minute train ride from Amsterdam) and passed out after a long, productive, and eye-opening day in Amsterdam!