Yay! We officially arrived in Amsterdam this morning, having flown for almost 24 hours yesterday and last night. Let’s be completely honest, I am a bit jet-lagged, but I can say with confidence I made it through the day with a smile on my face, seeing as all my peers were going through the same thing. The day started bright and early at 6am when we landed in AMS with the most beautiful sunrise ever, then we went to customs and left the airport for what would be our first full day in Amsterdam. After that, we met our SAA guide, Brian, who taught us all about how the train system and metro work while we got to our hotel. Once we got to our hotel, we were immediately able to put our bags down and into the storage at the hotel while we freshened up and got ready for our day.
Once we left the hotel, we arrived soon after at Centraal Station in the heart of Amsterdam, where we would start our scavenger hunt! Once we got paired into teams, we immediately started going out and figuring out each clue, and let’s be honest, it was quite a struggle, but it did help us to situate ourselves and see how to move around this beautiful city while also learning some of its history. We mostly focused on the city center, where we found the Anne Frank House and Magna Plaza, a big shopping center, as well as things we found along the way, like the famous Amsterdam Duck Shop! This was a very entertaining part of the day, and the one we took most advantage of.
Afterward, we had the afternoon free until we met up for our welcome dinner at 7, so some of us decided to go to Keukenhof, which is where the iconic tulip gardens are, and it was its last official day before closing for the season. This I really enjoyed, even though it was more of our free time, seeing the most beautiful flowers and gardens to take pictures and sort of reconnect with nature.
Overall, despite the jet lag and everything, it was a great first day in Amsterdam, and it is definitely getting me excited to see what else will be happening in the next two weeks. I know tomorrow we’ll be doing a walking tour, a chocolate tasting, and a canal cruise, so until tomorrow. Welterusten! (Good Night!)