So Shannon and I just finished up our brief tour of Amsterdam, and I think it's probably best we did keep it brief. It's a shame that so many travelers only see the one small part of the Netherlands, especially when a good part of feel seeing Amsterdam is the equivalent of seeing the whole country. We would have loved to do more around the country, but travel times, budgets, etc. just didn't allow it. So, my apologies to all the Dutch out there and those who sympathize with their plight of being seen only as a bunch of pot-smoking-prostitute-pedaling-party-happy folk. I know that's not the case, but it's all I had time to take in.
And what did we do and see? I'd like to think we did it all, but there's far too much to ever do, and much of it I would like to avoid from ever being written down on any kind of permanent record of mine, be it a travel blog, government file, or even a cocktail napkin that might fall into the wrong hands. I will say though that we spent far too much money one fun evening out, and took in one of the live sex shows you so often hear of and think to yourself how you'd never lower yourself to watch something like that. Well, it's probably best you don't, cause while it was fun to do, I don't think the "shock" or "comedy" of the event was enough to cover it's nastily high ticket cost (and yes, I do feel the ticket price was indeed the "nastiest" part of the evening).
So what else about Amsterdam was there? Well, we saw lots of the canals, Anne Franks's house, a comedy show put on by a bunch of American improv comedians, and we went to a jazz club. I'm not sure if it was the area we were in, or if this is just how Amsterdam works, but there is a bucket-load of American tourists around town. Of the 8 other people in our dorm room, 7 of them were from the US, and I think all of them were on their first trip outside the US (or at least North America). Even the comedy show we watched was all about Americans visiting Amsterdam and figuring out the "Dutch" ways of things. Now, I know I don't want to sound prejudiced here, because every nationality could in some way be catagorized negatively on the way they travel (loud party girl? Aussie. Talking about football and being drunk? British. Naked and middle aged on a beach? German. I'm sure I've put myself in countless Canadian stereotyped situations), but when you're surrounded by a mojority of one nationality (that isn't native to that country), and there's plenty of jovial mockery already taking place of this nationality, it's hard not to jump on board and start mocking as well. Two obese people talking about how hard it is to walk around town? Silly Americans. Can't stop talking about the legality of pot and the obscenity of sex for sale? Silly (probably christian) Americans. Can't stop saying things like "yeah it's good, but in America we do it like this." Silly Americans. I dunno, maybe I'm just a jerk.
(To be fair Shannon and I met plenty of great Americans, so it's not just rude but incorrect of me to speak like this of the whole traveling population. I suppose it just makes for interesting blogging).
On our way out of town, as we headed to catch our bus to Paris, Shannon and I met a Belgian guy, who was filming a promo or application video for a reality TV show he was trying to start. Basically, the guy wanted to meet up with random travelers and travel along with them, filming them as they went and trying to get some interesting drama or humour out of their experiences. The guy unfortunately had already found a person or two heading east to Germany, and not our direction. We were pretty sure if we didn't already have $400 invested in buses and hotels we would have turned tail and hopped on board with the gang he was assembling, and I'll be heart broken to see his show on air one day and think "that could have been me!"
Traveling Tangent - Tipping
Over Christmas, I got into a slight argument with my brother over the notion of tipping. He felt it was a positive thing, and I felt otherwise (though he may just have been trying to goad me into a ridiculous argument for fun). Traveling though has further asserted my position that tipping is a terrible way to reward behaviour. Take this example:
You're at a crowded bar, you push and jostle your way to buy a beer, and after being overlooked a dozen times by the bartender, you finally get your drink.
The next day, you realize you don't want to leave the town your visiting, but it's too late to change your bus ticket. You head to the station and the nice guy behind the counter bends all the rules in place to get you a new ticket.
Who should be tipped?
I'm personally pretty tired of throwing money at folks who get tipped because their "supposed" to be, yet have no way to thank and subsequently encourage great service and work from others. And so, I've basically stopped tipping on this trip, saving us $100-$200 so far. No change in the service we get, though I'm sure a few servers have been a little peeved at us. But I mean really, do I need to start throwing money around so strangers I'll never see again feel a little better about themselves? Not on this trip.
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