After an early morning breakfast at the hotel, we started the day with an amazing boat canal tour at 10 a.m.. The tour not only took us down the canals, but it provided very interesting information about Amsterdam and its canals. Some facts I found most interesting were that houses are visibly leaning and the canals are about 2.5 meters deep. It was great getting to see Amsterdam from a different perspective.
With some free time after the boat a few of us went to the seventh floor of a bibliotheek where I got a tuna salad sandwich and a chocolate milk in a glass bottle. Something I learned was that you can return your glass bottles for money in the Netherlands, part of their strive for sustainability. The view of Amsterdam from the seventh floor was tremendous. Shortly after, it was time for the Cocoa and Spice Chocolate Shop which included a tour of the company and an informational tour of Amsterdam. While learning about the company and their sustainability practices, we got to taste some of their chocolate which was spectacular. We even tried a spicy chocolate that was way more spicy than I thought it would be. They practice sustainability by sourcing their chocolate from sustainable and ethical manufacturers and even making their own sustainable chocolate. Something I found interesting was the cocoa plant. For the first time I saw what one looked like and learned that it’s a fruit. I never knew cocoa was from the seeds of a fruit.
On the guided tour around Amsterdam we learned so many interesting facts about Amsterdam and the history while taking in the great views. Some things I found interesting were the facts pertaining to the leaning buildings and the red light district. The leaning buildings are caused by the soft soil and the fact that they stacked wooden planks for the foundations, which would rot and cause the buildings to lean. They easily solve this problem by just straightening the interior wall and adding more brink on the exterior to reconnect it to the building next to it. Below is a a picture of a restructured building.
With more free time after the tours I explored Amsterdam even more and went shopping. All of the little shops in Amsterdam are so cool. I bought some souvenirs and saw clogs for the first time in person. We then went to dinner at a restaurant called Casa Del Toro where I got spaghetti bolognese.
I would say my favorite part of the day was the guided tour through Amsterdam on foot. I learned so much from the amazing tour guide and felt a lot better after the information and tips he gave us.