Amsterdam part 2.

Oude Kerk ( Old Church)

Magere Bruge

The next morning was very cold but clear and sunny which suited me just fine. I find it easier to move around when it's not excessively hot. When I travel somewhere I tend to walk for cca 20km at least every day.
My colleague spent some time in Amsterdam just few days before I arrived and I asked her to send me a report about the weather and her impression of the city. She told to bring some warm clothes with me because it was very cold and sent her regards from the city of drugs and prostitution. Not from cold, warm, rainy, beautiful Amsterdam but....you've read it. I guess she caught the virus too. Why?

As much as I'm familiar with very liberal attitude Holland has towards light drugs and prostitution I must admit this message hurt me a bit. It wasn't something I expected, at least not from her.

Amsterdam is so much more than this. It's a wonderful city that's unjustly famous by it's liberal ways.
The more streets I walked through the more I thought my opinion was justified. Let's get this clear; I did walked through the Red light district however I haven't found anything fascinating there. Those girls behind the windows displayed as some kind of a commodity left a very heavy and painful impression on me. Before I came to the city I wasn't sure if I even wanted to go through these streets, but curiosity took the better part of me so I decided to go there anyway. Maybe If I saw some older, more mature faces, maybe I would be ok with this, but I saw the faces of very young women, children that are not vulgar nor mature but simply girly. I guess the mother in me woke up seeing them and I just couldn't avoid comparing them to my daughter and feeling so, I don't know.....sad, sad.

Facing these facts leaves you a bit divided inside. I know this is all happening around us as well but I guess it's easier to deal with it when you can't see it. I know all that is is just closing the eyes before the problem, so maybe this is actually more fair and honest. The "black market" is far more worse in my opinion and maybe that fact made me so sad. I have the same feeling about drugs. Next to any coffee shop you can smell the scent of weed, you can buy seeds, lollipops, bonbons.....don't know, I don't want to pass judgement, I'm just telling what I saw. We were told not to take photos of that part of the city, so we went back there not only to take photos but also to visit the oldest church in the city, Oude Kerk. Unfortunately it was closed so I guess I should leave that for my next visit.

Anyway let me go back to the beginning. The main goals of my visit to Amsterdam were the Van Gogh museum, Rijskmuseum and Heineken brewery. Ah yes, my vice is beer...I just love it so much.

To be continued...