Yet another exciting week of my year abroad has passed. Only
this week, I went on my first school trip as a member of staff, taking a group
of Year 13s to the city of clogs and coffee shops…the one and only, Amsterdam!
Bright and early on Monday morning, off we went. Actually,
it took us a while to get going, as no sooner had we sat down, buckled up and
began to drive away from school, than one of the students helpfully pointed out
that the luggage hold of the coach was still open. Once that was sorted, we
thought we were off again. But no! We were just pulling out of the school
driveway, onto the main road when the cry of “Achtung, das Taxi!” went up – for
any non-German speakers, that means “Watch out you crazy bus driver, you’re
about to hit a taxi!” - which, unfortunately, he did. So that set us back a
bit. In respect of “ ‘elf ‘n’ safety,” the police had to be called. But once
the police officer had come aboard, and clarified that none of us had been
critically injured during the small scratch sustained by the cab, we were finally, (third time lucky), on our way. I did wonder if that would set the
tone for the rest of the trip, i.e. one small disaster after another, but it
definitely did not. It was an absolutely brilliant few days, and I think
everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.
Amsterdam, though, is truly the quirkiest city I’ve ever
been to! It has none of the towering skyscrapers you would perhaps expect from
a capital city – its skyline couldn't be more different to London, for example – but it is beautiful in
its own way, nonetheless, even if some of the buildings are quite literally
sinking into the ground! Two major things that you can’t miss; firstly, they
love their cyclists! Seriously, I don’t think I've ever seen so many bicycles
in one place at one time, and the people who ride them are truly a law unto
themselves. ‘Survival of the fittest’ became a phrase often used during the
week. Secondly, they don’t really seem
to do pavements in Amsterdam, at least not along the side streets of the city centre,
which often makes it quite confusing as to who has right of way when a car, or
more often a tram is heading right for you. It would be interesting to see
whether statistically people are more likely to get run over by a tram or a rogue cyclist!! Possibly even both at the same time. I also hadn't appreciated
beforehand just how open they are about their ‘coffee shop culture.’ I thought
the whole smoking-thing they've got going on would be much more secretive and
on the down-low. But I discovered over the course of the week that it is
entirely normal to glance into the window of a coffee shop and see a group of
people sitting around a table, casually smoking a spliff! Each to their own, I
guess.
A little taster of the Heinenken Museum
But of course, you can’t travel to such a famous city, and
not see some of the sights it has to offer. I must admit, I’m becoming quite
the tourist since arriving in Germany. We visited various sights; Madame
Tussauds, the Ajax Arena to name a couple, and visited the Heineken and BOLS ( a liquor)
museum – I did wonder to myself whether there was a deliberate theme with those
two! Both were very informative, but I think we were all most excited by the
free glasses of either beer (Heineken) or cocktail (BOLS) that you get at the
end of your visit, which were really rather tasty. There was also enough free time for us to
explore the city for ourselves. I think Amsterdam is definitely a city, where,
if you have the time and the willpower to search off the beaten track, there
are so many things it has to offer! ( I do apologise if I’m sounding like a
travel brochure!) The evenings, for example were free, so the other teachers
and I mainly spent them sitting somewhere in a bar making the most of the cheap
Heineken beer, or chilling in the youth hostel and enjoying Happy Hour, which
was a really nice way for me to get on friendlier terms with some of my fellow
colleagues, whilst enjoying a beer (or three). It was also really the first time
since arriving in Bensheim that I’ve had the opportunity to properly get to
know my mentor. She is absolutely wunderbar, and I think we are going to be
great friends! On Wednesday night, we went to a nearby pub with her class of
Year 13s. They are such a lovely group, and made me feel very welcome, so it
was really nice for me to get to know them a little better too, especially as
we’re almost the same age. Also, I was so impressed with how they were
able to go out in the evenings, stay out till the small hours, and still make
it up in time for breakfast at about 7.30 the next morning!! Maybe two years at
uni has turned me into a premature old person, but honestly, if I go on a night
out now, I need about three days to recover, so I don’t know how they did it.
Lady Gaga and her new band - available for bookings now!
And then, as it inevitably does, Friday came around, and it
was time to wave Auf Wiedersehen to Holland, and head back to Bensheim. Walking
around a city for three days on the trot did eventually take its toll, so I was
very excited to sleep in my own bed, and make the most of my lie-in on
Saturday. Also, maybe it’s a European thing, but try as they might, they just
can’t make a good brew like the Brits do, and surprisingly enough, Yorkshire
Gold wasn’t a brand of tea bags that was available in our Dutch youth hostel,
so it was nice to get home, curl up with a good cuppa, and look forward to
many more exciting weeks here in Deutschland.
Ciao for now.
Ciao for now.
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