As some of you know, my husband I returned from our honeymoon in Europe a few weeks ago. We spent a whirlwind of a week and a half traveling to some of our favorite cities, two of which were new destinations for me! Rather than do a full trip recap, which I don’t feel remotely qualified to do after spending just a few days in each of our gorgeous destinations, I’m going to share a few photos and a favorite memory or two from each of the cities we visited over the next three weeks. First up…Amsterdam!
We started our honeymoon with an amazing four days in Amsterdam spent languidly wandering the the banks of the canals, popping into cafes and taking in the sights and sounds of the city. It was my first time in Amsterdam and I have to say that it stole my heart. It is a friendly, vibrant, beautiful jewel of a city and I can definitely see myself living there in the future. Perhaps just not during the holidays…
We arrived on December 30 and spent New Year’s in Amsterdam which was quite the experience. The first thing to know if you’re going to Amsterdam over New Year’s is that fireworks are completely legal. And I’m not talking about the little ones you played with as a child. These are the real deal…the kind outlawed throughout most of the United States because Americans kept blowing their hands off every Fourth of July. The Dutch are apparently much more responsible with their explosives and you will find people of all ages setting off REALLY BIG FIREWORKS up and down every city street, even in the most crowded of squares, the days leading up to and following New Year’s Eve.
As we walked through the city on December 31 we saw and heard fireworks going off but it wasn’t ever too alarming. It sounded as if they were safely in the distance. At first. As the sun dipped below the horizon the frequency of BOOMs picked up and the sky was consistently alight in color. Our ears rattled as the sounds got closer and closer until, as we were walking through the Red Light District, one went off about five feet in front of us. Let me tell you…TERRIFYING but not a deal breaker. It’s a unique Amsterdam experience, right? We persevered and headed back to our hotel to get ready for the evening.
If you’re planning on spending New Year’s in Amsterdam you’ll likely research what to do ahead of time and you’ll come across dozens upon dozens of really awesome sounding events and parties. We considered going to just about all of them. Ultimately we took the advice of several friends, all of whom actually live(d) in the city, and decided to forgo the clubs and wind our way through the streets on foot, ending in Museum Square for one of the city’s official fireworks shows.
At some point during the evening we noticed that a friend from LA was also in Amsterdam with a few of her friends and decided to all meet up and take on the terrifying city streets together. The smell of freshly lit explosives permeated the night air as my husband and I walked to their apartment. There were fireworks going off on ever side of us and remnants all over the sidewalks. You had to step gingerly and treat each pile of rubble as a live firework that might go off if you looked at it the wrong way. It was a long and scary walk but by the time we got to our friend’s apartment we were feeling more comfortable with the general chaos of the evening.
Our newly expanded group of six meandered towards Museum Square popping into a few bars along the way, making new friends from all over Europe as we went. When we finally reached the Square before midnight we bought a bottle of champagne at a bar, took it outside and settled in next to an ice rink for the countdown. As the clock struck midnight a few of us hopped over the barrier of the ice rink and started skating around in our shoes as the show went on behind us.
We lingered by the rink a bit longer and made friends with a group of German girls who were lighting off their own fireworks. They handed the three of us girls sparklers and fireworks and we officially became the hooligans we were so afraid of just hours earlier. It was a magical night filled with new friends, excitement, and laughter; exactly what you want to surround yourself with when ushering in a new year. Unfortunately we were having entirely too much fun and our photos are a bit of a blur, so here are pictures of Amsterdam looking picturesque and peaceful.
Next week we are on to Prague and you’ll find out why I sadly did not particularly enjoy our time there.