Absinth in Amsterdam

It was a sweet day when my boss asked me to go to Amsterdam for the annual meeting of our PR agency association, WorldCom. The four day conference starts on Tuesday, so naturally I was on a plane last Friday for a fun weekend in the city of canals and coffee houses! I'm staying in a great hostel (StayOkay, Vondel Park) until I move over to the Marriott, which is right around the corner, for work.

Jetlagged but happy on Saturday, I started my stay in Amsterdam as a voyeur. I spent the day walking in lively Vondel Park, and sitting in the city's two big squares, Leidseplein and Rembrantplein. Before and after my nap, I watched young Amsteram parade around in the sun and debated the burning question which is better Heineken or Amstel? In the evening I also stolled around the famous Red Light district with all the other tourists. It gets it's name from the working girls legally showcasing their wares in windows under red neon lights -- not good examples of Dutch beauty. Apparently the government is buying up property in this district and providing it at low cost to artists. Maybe the next time I visit here the age old area could be transformed like Disney's Times Square.

After a good nights sleep, on Sunday I went in search of beauty. I took a fun trip from the hostel out to Keukenhof Gardens, the largest bulb flower park in the world. It was magnificent! We spent several hours exploring the 7 million flower bulbs planted by hand. There were over 100 different varieties of tulips alone. The grounds took my breath away!

Back in the city, I stepped back to the 17th Century with a canal boat tour. Fabrizio, a professor of Bio-ethics in Milan (probably wouldn't be very ethical to describe him as a hot young Italian), and I spent an hour taking in the Dutch architecture. Couldn't understand the narration, but I learned a lot about bio-ethics!

After a bite to eat I hooked up with a fun group at the hostel bar and we were off on an adventure. There's always a party when Aussies are involved! Dave our ring leader from Perth was inspired by the Van Gogh museum to find genuine Absinth in Amsterdam. We swore not to allow any ear chopping and managed to step back in time and down in the basement for the mystical drink. It was a flaming experience but we chased it down with a visit to one of the local coffee shops (they don't sell coffee). Now, I've had a proper party in Amsterdam!

More to come from this enchanting city...