Day two begins! Starting the day off on a more rested foot, we began by splitting into two groups to tackle a walking tour of the city and experience a chocolate tasting from a local, ethically-sourced chocolatier. My group began with the walking tour and met with the charismatic Ian, a Dutch local whose family has been in Amsterdam since the 16th century! From the bull statue made by the same artist as the New York version to the “bike dads” to contrast soccer moms, Ian was full of genuinely interesting and rich cultural stories and facts. One that specifically stood out to me was the amount of trash that was on the street, which was an initial shock when we first arrived. We learned that there is so much trash on the street because the bottles, when recycled at depots, cash out 15 cents per bottle. Although the target is to be more environmentally friendly, it ends up causing a problem where some may riffle through the trash in search of bottles to recycle. This causes loose trash on the street and in the water that warrants street cleanings twice a day, every day! On a different note, we learned much about the rich history of architecture, affordable housing policies and the highly argued presence of sex workers in the city center, their historic location. Every aspect of architecture resulted in a story, be it the XXX symbols on the buildings and flags which represent the three tragedies of Amsterdam: water, plague and fire, or the large hooks seen at the top of every historical building used to haul large furniture and food up to the upper floors due to the narrow staircases. Every corner told a story and the friendly people of Amsterdam were happy to share it, as long as you kept an eye out for the bikes!