weekend at zaanse schans & gouda

8/27/22-8/28/22

hey! it's amelia. i had a really fun weekend so i thought i would share :) On Saturday, I went with Mar and her grandson Danny to Zaanse Schans. It is a touristy town with windmills you can climb up and historical houses and shops. The day we went, it was super busy with tourists but comforting to hear people speak different languages. I had a warm stroopwafel which was so good. We also went up to the top of a windmill. You climb to the top on a wobbly ladder and it's a little scary because it's not that safe and if you fall.. you'll just like fall. I also got to see the first Albert Heijn which is a really popular Dutch grocery store. We also went to a cheese museum that led to a market full of just cheese. Then, we went to a wooden clog exhibit which also led to a shop full of wooden clogs that were painted with all different designs and colors. Apparently, they were what farmers used to wear but no one wears them anymore cause they're super uncomfortable and to be honest a little ugly.

on Sunday, Mar and I went with my third host mom Thora and her boyfriend Koos to Gouda to see a band they like. Guess what they're called? The Amazing Stroopwafels. They're legit too, they're on Spotify. Anyway, we got to the concert venue which was a cute courtyard/garden with an elevated gazebo in the center, the Stroopwafel's stage. We sat down at around 1:30, and then I asked what time it started. And it started at 2. Which was so interesting to me because I would've never showed up early to this kind of event in the US. Like my family and I would be thirty minutes late. But, we showed up and it was already packed with a bunch of old people already waiting for the concert. I was definitely the youngest person there. So, yeah, Dutch people really are prompt. When the Amazing Stroopwafels started playing though, it was so cute. They're like a folksy band of old guys just jamming out, and then all these strangers started dancing around the gazebo together. The wind was breezy and the sun was warm, but not blazing like it is in Houston. And we made friends with the group sitting next to us, and they shared their cheese and bread and cucumbers and grapes. It was so cute, like something from a movie. We left a little early and decided to walk around the square of Gouda. Which is so cute. It's kind of like Leiden, but a little smaller and a little less for young people. There's still canals, boutiques, gelato shops, and little restaurants and bakeries scattered everywhere. The Netherlands is so special to walk around, especially the bigger towns like Gouda. There are buildings that have special plates on them that say the house owners can't change the design of the exterior of the house to preserve the beauty of the buildings. Every time I walk around one of these towns, I feel like I'm transported to a different time or like I'm in a movie.

When we walked around, I was talking to Koos and he asked if I wanted them to take me to church. I told him that I don't really go to church unless my parents want me to, and I kind of thought he would be a little disappointed I didn't want to go because maybe he wanted to go with me, but instead he totally understood. He thinks that God is a form of energy just like feelings like joy, sadness, and anger. He also told me that he accepts how other people see God whether they think God is a person, an idea, a feeling, or maybe not anything at all. I think that is so beautiful. I love that he sees emotions and feelings and ideas and religion as energy. How cool. Also, he's like a dad. The people I've met in the Netherlands are so open-minded. Like, not just young people, old people too. We got gelato and I got tropical sorbet which was really good. Then we went home.

Mar and I picked up poke bowls and I also got boba! My first boba in the Netherlands! it wasn't that good, but it still gave me a stomachache like it did at home which was weirdly nice.

Today, when I was biking to school, I missed my friends a little bit. The people at school are incredibly nice and great, but I missed having people I already love and getting to hang out with them every day. But, I am still excited to make new friends at school. Like I said, everyone is so nice. Right now, I'm trying to float around and try out different people. Like who I want to hang out with outside of school.

Oh, also I bought 3 concert tickets (Maggie Rogers, Girl in Red, and Grant Perez with Avery, the other exchange student from Houston who is in Meppel)! It was only supposed to be one ticket, but I was holding my credit card and I couldn't stop typing the numbers in and pressing buy. Because concerts make me so so happy. But, now I'm a lot less rich and my mom is going to kill me. But I have to live laugh love in the Netherlands, right?

That's about it. Ya :) I have a rotary meeting tomorrow night and this harbour day thing with Mar and her family in Rotterdam on Saturday. Talk soon !

- Amelia