It is all about the people you meet in the places you go

I Amsterdam. Checked off my list. It was beautiful. I loved being in a canal city and all the bikes scurrying about. But what made Amsterdam really fun was not the coffeeshops or the red light district. It was not the Anne Frank House (even though it was really well done and a great experience) or the tourist sights. It was, hands down, the people in the hostel.


But for good measure, this is what Amsterdam looks like:

On morning 1 we met two Kiwis. That night we met a girl from Australia. And after that, a friend of the Kiwis. We were quite the bunch and shared many laughs, stories, drinks, photos, cards and travel advice. Steph and I may go visit Alex (New Zealand) in Austria next week.


While I feel like we didnt cram our days with things to do, I feel the most connected to Amsterdam and the Flying Pig Uptown Hostel. It has been proven again how much I thrive in the hostel world. I am absolutely infatuated by it. Even though we may never see the people again, they become close friends, and fast. We share the same mindset and similar desires. Hostel friends maz be more similar to me than my friends at home. They may even understand me better as they share the same passion of really seeing the world. As Alex watched Steph and I consider throwing our itinerary out the door, he said he knew exactly how we felt. He understood the Athens Airport experience I had. 

Hostel goers form such a specific and permeable community. The ebb and flow ensures no continuity between the people there, but ensures a foundation, a society in which one feels more at home in a foreign country than anywhere else.


So we left Amsterdam in high spirits and renewed perspectives. We are now in Berlin for 5 days and are already impressed. More later!