Goooooood morning everyone! We started today bright and early with a Generator breakfast. I’m really gonna miss the breakfast buffet and self-serving espresso machine come time to go home. I’m taking advantage of it when I can! We all met up at 10am in front of the hostel to meet with our guide, Max, and depart on our journey to Ij-Hallen, aka the biggest flea market in Europe!

When it comes to me, I am a die-hard thrifter. This market was a dream come true. I only wish that I had more money, more time, and more space to bring things home because I would’ve bought everything. Lauren and I walked through the endless stalls of vendors for what seemed like hours, and eventually had to surrender because our feet were going to fall off soon. I ended up buying a vintage denim jacket, a tank top, and necklaces for some friends. This was definitely one of my favorite stops of the trip so far, and I’m happy we caught this event since it only happens once a month!

We all took the ferry back to the city and hopped on the bus for our next event of the day. We were going to a restaurant in Amsterdam to meet some Pitt alumni who currently live and work in the Netherlands. It was amazing getting to talk to all these people and hear their journeys from college to now. I especially liked talking to Chris, who is an avid member of the Pitt alumni association. I was really interested in his background after hearing he speaks four languages, one of which being French (which is my minor). He told us that he’s traveled all across the world, and the only time he lived in the US was for his undergrad at Pitt, which he also did with his sister. I’m really inspired by his worldliness, and one of my goals as I go through school and life outside of Pitt is travel as much as I can. Hopefully, I can reach out to Chris in the future and practice my french with him!

After speaking to many different alumni and having an all-around great time, we had to leave and get back to our hostel for dinner. Overall, today was definitely more chill than others, but it was exactly what I needed after a loaded week. Thank you to all the alumni, and Happy Mother’s Day mom! I wish I could’ve spent it with you, and I hope you had the best day, you deserve it <3

Also here’s a cut pic of a dog on the bus today 🙂

Maybe I miss my dog a little too much.