The third day that I was in Amsterdam we took a tour to a Belgium town called Bruges. the bus ride lasted for three hours but we had a great tour guide who, once we arrived let us loose to wander the town. Bruges is famous for to locally made chocolate and the beer. There was a shop for one or the other (sometimes both) on every street corner. The town was packed with tourists. We spoke with two couples from New York City who had been trapped in Europe by Super-storm Sandy. It was amazing just how many people there where in that predicament.

As we walked through on of Bruges many great cathedrals we saw the Madonna and Child carved by Michele Angelo. It was the only piece of his work to leave Italy while he was still alive. the only thing protecting it from the outside world were a pair of elderly ticket sellers and a pane of glass. I was astonished that belgium had so few worries about a terrorist attack.

O, and Happy Halloween. I REALLY missed it.

Germany is awesome! For the past two weeks I have been enjoying a school break. October was wonderful and the fact that I had no school made it even better. For the first week I simply enjoyed being in Germany, but the second week I went to Amsterdam. Plus, a bonus is that I finally was able to charge my camera for the first time, so here are the pictures. 

 This is the Amsterdam Central Train Station. It was quite busy. 

       The Anne Frank house (short one in the middle) was really interesting. We had to wait in line for an 11/2 hours but when we got in, it was worth it. On the walls were quotes from her diary. The entire house was silent. In her room, the pictures she had glued on the wall are still there. 

      When we went downstairs again we got to see the actual diary which is covered in red checked cloth. We were NOT allowed to take pictures, sorry. 

Every house in Amsterdam is built tall, thin, and squashed together. 

Holland is famous for two things; wooden shoes and windmills. Both of which can be found on every street corner. 

Seen from the train window.

       We passed through the Red Light District, but just to say we had been there. I saw nothing. For those of you who don't know what this is, the Red Light District is the section of town where the "dirt of society" works.

       Note: prostitution and marijuana are both legal in Amsterdam so you can guess what is to be found in this area of town. When taking that walk, I watched my feet and held my umbrella very low over my head. So that was day one and two of my week in Holland.