We kicked off Amsterdam day 2 at the A’dam tower. This was one of my favorite things we did in Amsterdam. The ticket package allowed us to take a couple pictures in front of their green screen, and two free drinks. We sat in the bar for a while and admired the views. Maggie’s friend, Bella, met us up there. She is studying in Italy and was so cool, she’s coming to visit London in a couple weeks and we can’t wait to show her around! The A’dam tower had an indoor bar, and then access to the roof. It was very targeted at people like me who are suckers for a photo op. They had tons of places set up for pictures, and a swing that went over the edge of the building. Obviously, we had to try it out and it was so awesome.
After the tower, we got some pastries at a food truck and headed to the Amsterdam Dungeon. I definitely recommend trying a strawberry waffle in Amsterdam, it was delicious.
The Amsterdam Dungeon is an interactive experience that takes you through horror stories of Amsterdam. I think its meant to be scary, but it was more funny than anything else. There was this one couple who were cracking up the whole time and we though seemed so fun. I walked up and asked where they were from and the woman held her fur coat open and said with an attitude “Milan can’t you tell” and then when I looked at her bag she said “its Prada do you want a picture.” In that moment I decided if thats the attitude money gives you, I’d rather be poor, geez. But everyone else there was really nice!:)
That night, we went to the Red Light District. This is literally a street where prostitutes stand in the windows to attract potential clients. I didn’t take any photos out of respect for the women, but it was definitely an experience. We went through a museum and did some research, and some women find it powerful. To them, more power to em. But unfortunately, a local told us over 60% of the women are trafficked. We went through the Museum of Prostitution that had a lot more information on it. I won’t spoil much, but it isn’t uncommon for women to get wrapped into it by boyfriends or “lover boys” who are basically pimps forcing them into it and taking their money. The Museum of Prostitution was actually audio guided by one of Amsterdam’s top prostitutes which was really interesting.
Saturday we visited the Food Hallen for lunch and it was delicious. I went to three different vendors, but only snapped two pictures because it was just too good. They also had clothing vendors, one specifically was a denim store that had designers in house creating new pieces and up cycling old. This was my favorite, and if I could’ve afforded it, I would’ve bought several things. There was also a closet sale for an influencer from Amsterdam, Diipa Khosla. I couldn’t resist a couple of her items, but I also had the opportunity to meet her and she was incredibly kind.
That evening we had tickets to a canal cruise, and the Amsterdam Ice Bar. We were trying to find the canal cruise along the side of the canal, and there were so many boats we weren’t sure which was ours. It was cold, and getting dark, and we realized our boat was heading to a dock on the opposite side of the canal, so we sprinted to the other side just in time to catch it. We were all giggling and winded when we hopped on, and then we basically crashed on the boat and didn’t pay much attention, ha. The glimpses of Amsterdam I did see were beautiful, but I slept most of the time.
After our recharge on the river cruise, we headed back to the hostel to change and eat dinner. We had Chinese delivered to our place, and sat at the bar doing shots with the bartenders, and passing our boxes of Chinese back and forth (bartenders included) sharing our dinner. It’s so funny, we go on these trips and meet people, and it’s like we’re all instant friends. We all agree, maybe one day when we have more money, or boyfriends/husbands, staying in a nice hotel with some privacy would be fun. But at the point we are in our lives, to have the opportunity to travel cheaply and meet like minded people, these hostels are where we make some of the best memories.
After dinner, we headed to the Ice Bar. This was one of my favorite parts of Amsterdam. You walk in, they give you some gloves and jackets, and head into a ice room where everything down to your drink glass is made of ice. It was cold, and silly, and the bartenders were hitting on us (and giving us free drinks, ha) and it was just SO FUN.
After that, we bar hopped to a karaoke bar and unfortunately, the Dutch DO NOT have “Baby” by Justin Bieber on their machines. When we walked in, the bouncer gave us strict instructions to “not dance on the table,” not sure if that was written on my forehead but it is my go-to. Between our dance moves, and our song choices, I think they were ready for us to leave, ha.
A promoter gave us free cover to the club Escape Amsterdam. Maggie describes our experience better than me. Apparently, we walked in and I looked at the VIP stage and said “we are going up there.” So I walked straight through the crowd towards the stage, went to the corner, looked at two dudes and next thing I know, they lifted us all up into their section. We got some bad gin and tonics and danced like maniacs before getting kicked out of the area for not having bracelets. Around this time, it was 1:30am and we needed to leave for the airport by 3am to catch our 6am flight. We headed back to our hostel, took thirty minute naps, and then I literally had to drag the girls out of bed to the airport. We got to the airport looking absolutely disheveled and the security dudes laughed at us the whole way. It wasn’t our classiest moment, but something we will laugh about forever.
