Day five in Amsterdam is officially over. I can’t believe tomorrow we leave for Rotterdam! 

This morning, we started off with our usual Dutch breakfast before heading to the Anne Frank house. Seeing the Anne Frank house was surreal. I can’t even begin to describe how I felt while seeing the house. We got to see where the Franks hid from the Nazis, and some of the original pages from Anne Frank’s journal. We not only got to see her bravery hiding from the Nazis, but we immersing myself in Anne Frank’s powerful words was such a privilege. It was captivating how a teenage girl who was just a few years younger than me was able to transform her complex emotions into compelling writing. 

Before coming to the Netherlands, many people told me that going to the local markets was a must. Today, I went to the Albert Cuyp Market, which is Amsterdam’s largest frequent market. It had so many vendors, and you could find anything there. I got a chicken gyro from one of the Greek vendors, and continued to wander around the market looking for other souvenirs. 

I then went and got boba at a local boba shop. I was very excited to try it and see the differences compared to the United States, and it was very interesting to see. They offered to make your boba in a cup you bring to lower plastic waste, which I thought was very nice. Once the drink was prepared, I was given a paper boba straw, which I had never seen in the States before. I believe this shows how sustainability is engrained in the Netherlands’ culture. Even small differences like changing a boba straw to paper can reduce how much plastic is used severely. 

Afterwards, I went to the Van Gogh museum. The first thing that I noticed was the form of hand drying in the bathroom. It was just a towel you pull down instead of typical paper towels. This again shows how sustainability is casually integrated into Dutch culture. This museum was so beautiful, and each floor of it highlighted a different part of his artwork and where in his life he was. I also loved how the museum was able to portray Van Gogh’s mental health. There was an emphasis on that Van Gogh was not a great painter because of his mental health issues; instead, Van Gogh was a great painter who had mental health conditions. 

We ended this night with an alumni dinner. It was so fun to meet other former panthers and hear about the work they were doing in the Netherlands. I really enjoyed hearing from the vast number of career paths each alumni took, and it was very cool hearing everybody’s reasoning for moving to the Netherlands. 

To finish off the night, one of my friends played Vienna by Billy Joel on the piano. Many people in the metro station sang along or were dancing along to the music. Billy Joel really does bring everybody together!

Unfortunately, today was our last day in Amsterdam. I really enjoyed the public transportation and the liveliness of the city. Amsterdam was such a beautiful city, and I was very happy to spend my last day learning about Dutch culture and finishing the day in the Amstelstation, for the last time. Can’t wait for Rotterdam!