This morning began with an early trip to Zaanse Schans, a historic Dutch village known for its authentic windmills and picturesque houses. We spent the morning slowly exploring everything the town had to offer. With its traditional windmills, canal islands inhabited by goats, and countless small bridges, the village felt almost like something out of a fairy tale. From the top of a watchtower, we had an incredible view overlooking the entire community and the surrounding countryside.
One of the most interesting aspects of the town was seeing the difference in water levels on opposite sides of the dikes. The canals and water management systems built throughout the village were originally made to help prevent flooding within the town, showing the Netherlands’ long history of adapting to life below sea level. Sustainability was especially seen in the town’s windmills, which represent one of the oldest and cleanest forms of energy production. Historically, these windmills powered saws, crushed spices, and pressed oils, being one of the earliest examples of renewable energy and sustainable industry.
On top of its windmills, however, the village famously houses a multitude of cheese variations. After touring the windmills, we had a chance to taste test one of the foods the Dutch are most known for, cheese. From Spicy Jalapeno to black garlic, there was every type of cheese you could think of. Small stands with sampler plates were even better than I’d thought.
However, I think the most impactful portion of the day was the tour of Anne Frank’s house. One of the most crucial pieces of history to understand what World War II was like for the average person brought new enlightenment to how I viewed it. Before the tour, I thought I knew a lot about her story, as we walked through the house, learning the names of her family members, the people that helped her, what they went through, and new stories I had never heard. It made the atmosphere feel thick. That said, I think it is one of the most crucial points of Dutch history involving the war, so seeing it in person was very intriguing.
Ending off the night meeting with Pitt alumni currently living in Amsterdam was a cool way to see how different career paths can have people ending up thousands of miles away from where they studied, never having thought they would be in that position. It gives me hope that I too someday will live in a foreign city as cool as Amsterdam. That’s it for today, see you tomorrow!
