Wrapping it up in Amsterdam

After Soup left, T and I decided not to head back to London for our flight a few days later as planned, but to stay and enjoy Amsterdam a while longer. We ate some absolutely delicious dinners, including one of my favorite Thai meals ever, did some last minute shopping, and enjoyed some local museums. We visited the Anne Frank Huis, AKA the row house in which Anne Frank and her family lived in hiding from the Nazis. This was truly one of the most moving experiences of my life and you all should experience it, too, if you're ever in the neighborhood. I read Anne Frank's Diary twice growing up. It was introduced to me by my favorite teacher of all time, Mrs. Sinks. The little things in the house were really the most emotional of all- like the wall in Anne and her sister's room that was still covered in aged photos from fashion magazines just like any other pre-teen girl's would be. I read a quote while there that really spoke to me:
"One single Anne Frank moves us more than the countless others who have suffered just as she did but whose faces have remained in the shadows. Perhaps it's better that way; if we were capable of taking in all the suffering of all those people, we would not be able to live."
Primo Levi, writer and Holocaust surviver

Now, I certainly can't end on such a sad note, people. So here goes with the hilarity. T and I started a game while in Amsterdam based on the fact that even the smartest non-Dutch speaker cannot remember the name of a store, restaurant, or anything else in Holland for more than 2 minutes no matter how hard he may try. We would challenge each other regularly and prove this point over and over. Well, we read about a local (and historical, really) distillery that served a traditional beverage called jenever. This gin-like liquor is served in tulip shaped glasses and filled to the top so that the drinker must lean over and drink it sans hands in order not to spill it. T and I went to this distillery that has been in business since 1679 and is still going strong. While we visited it twice, talked about it 10 times, and drank there extensively, the best I could muster up when challenged to remember their name was "Handjob Junkbox," and it will forever be known as that. However, if you'd like to check out Wynand Fockink yourself, here's their website!
http://www.wynand-fockink.nl/en/home.html

Canal Tour

Soup insisted that we go on the canal tour while in Amsterdam- and boy am I glad! We drank some Dutch beer wrapped in paper bags and had a fabulous time. There was so much amazing information shared on the tour about the architecture and history of different neighborhoods. Sadly, I remember none of it. But here are some pics for you to put your own stories to.