travel with aimee

On the 15th we left Copenhagen and headed down to Hannover. We used this as a lay over to break up the 14 hour journey all the way to Amsterdam. We stayed in the Box hotel for £17 a night and it was quite cool. The rooms were definitely a squash and a squeeze and the shower being next to my bed was questionable however it stayed true to its name.

We left our little box on the 16th and got the 11:56 train to Amsterdam, Our final stop.

Our train ended up being an 1 hour and 20 minutes delayed, literally just stopping in the middle of the tracks for ages. Ben’s pasta pot had ripped so cheesy sauce powder was all over his bag, covering everything in the substance. It was quite a chaotic train journey.

When we got to Amsterdam we went to the tram station which would take us to our hostel, Hostel Leidsplein. I have never felt more like a sardine. It was horrible. Sticky sweat glazed over everyone, no handles to hold on to…a high stress experience.

We then got to our hostel and checked in, going up to our room to ditch our bags. Triple decker beds, is all I shall say. No lockers so I hid my bags under my duvet before leaving again as the atmosphere was unsettling. We wandered the area nearby, getting a taste of Amsterdam. We passed the viral Van Wonderen Stroop Waffle shop which looked fantastic. It was lively and busy every corner you turned, whether this was due to the approaching ‘Kings Day’, I’m not sure.

We got back to our hostel, and tried to chill before eventually going to sleep. I didn’t feel the safest and at 1am some guy turned on the light, from then on I woke up at 4am and then 5:30 am. Great first night.

17th April –

We had to check out of our hostel at 10am and we weren’t getting to our friend, Yasmin’s house, till 9:30pm. We hung around the communal area for a bit before getting the tram to the station to store our bags for the day. No way were we lugging them around with us all day! It was €10 each to store our bags but worth it.

We spent all day walking around Amsterdam, admiring each canal and nearly getting hit by every bike. We went to a coffee shop, however realised in Amsterdam if you want a coffee, you go to a cafe. It was still so cool though as we went to one of the very famous Bulldog coffee shops. Obviously indulged in the culture 😉

We found ourselves on the red light district by accident and we really weren’t prepared. It was mid day so we didn’t expect to see what we saw, but it was inescapable. Every direction you turned, there was another window. By this time we still had hours till we could get to Yasmins and we craved a seat. What better way to waste time with an interrail ticket then to catch a random train just for a sit down?! We went to a random estate type place and walked a long way to an Aldi and back in time for the train to Amsterdam again. Possibly the longest trip anyone has ever made for an Aldi. We then got our bags, got the train and once we arrived in Utrecht, Yas picked us up and welcomed us to her little flat. She made us both a coffee and instructed us to try a stroopwaffel by letting it sit on top of our mugs for a bit. They were surprisingly nice! Thanking her for her hospitality we settled in to our little air mattress and went to sleep.

18th April –

We had the breakfast of royalty. Honestly Yasmin was so accommodating and amazing. She laid out a whole spread with warm bread and spreads, juice and coffee. I tried the true Danish breakfast of butter and chocolate sprinkles, strange but it worked. Then she made us mini pancakes too! My belly was so happy, it felt like it was having a party!

Once we were up and ready, we three got the tram into central Utrecht. Personally I thought Utrecht was much prettier and more of what I expected from Amsterdam. This could have been due to there being less people but it had a lovely old town vibe with all the canals and orchard trees still. We went to a coffee shop on a boat, called the Culture boat, where i got some brownies. We then headed back to her lovely little flat for some lunch which we ate in her garden. It was a beautiful warm sunny day and it was made all the better for Ben with free beer from Yasmin.

When the time came, she drove us all the way to the campsite where we were staying for the weekend, Camping Ter Leede.

Still relishing in the weather, we got to our pitch and we Ben put the tent up. I stood there and looked pretty. With our abode all set, we moved our sleeping mats outside and sat, admiring our cute little setting. We cooked some cous cous which we had with falafels and hummus and then had a bottle of rosé. Not long after, we were giggling and loving life. We went for a bit of a bounce on the really good trampoline which was built into the ground, and then got our sleeping bags and lay down outside to watch the stars. It was beautiful.

19th April –

We woke up the next morning and put our mats back outside to enjoy another glorious day. The sun was shining and it felt like another day in paradise. We spent a lot of the day chilling, chatting and just enjoying the views before I decided it was perfect picnic weather and it HAD to be done. Even if it meant a 40 minute walk to Aldi and back. To make my dream a reality, I persuaded Ben by saying it was my treat to celebrate the end of our adventure. So off we went, on our merry way, all the way to Aldi. I spent ages in the shop, making Ben wait outside, filling my basket with anything that looked remotely nice. I didn’t exactly think about the journey home, but Ben carried it the whole way back.

I then did a mini haul as I laid it all out on our mats and we tucked in. Nothing beats a picnic. We once again sat in our sleeping bags however after the sunset we retreated into our tent for an earlier night as I was exhausted. Not even 10pm, I felt my eyes grow heavy and I fell into a deep sleep.

20th April –

It was weird not being home for easter but we made sure to still have a nice day despite not being with our families. We spent pretty much all day nibbling on the rest of my picnic haul while catching by the rays. I won’t lie, we both got quite sunburnt…

We went on another little walk around the area because it was just gorgeous. The wildlife everywhere was so abundant, swans, ducks, ducklings, deer, horses, cows, chickens etc. You could tell it was spring. About an hour or so later, we had a bit more nibbly bits and then settled down for our last night in our tent.

21st April –

We packed up quite quickly and went to check out. It was then that we found out the bus’s weren’t running so we had about an hour walk to the station. Not fun. The trains were then all cancelled and so we sat and got a milkshake by the platforms, contemplating our next moves. Luckily, the bus stop was opposite and a bus we could get was incoming. Once on the bus, we then had to get a train then another bus before arriving at our last hostel of the trip : Flying Pig Beach.

A little under an hour away from Amsterdam, set in Noordwijk aan zee, but very close to a beach. The flying Pig hostel was so funky and the decor inside resembled an awesome beach shack. We got to our beds,chilled and then went to make some food. Cup a soup for the win. The hostel also holds nightly events, albeit smaller than OneFam Budapest, and we got there in time for Malibu Monday! Basically you pay for the Malibu but your mixer is free. There was also a live band on that evening so we sat at the bar for a bit and listened. It was a nice calm atmosphere and chill was just whatever we needed.

22nd April –

Waking up felt like a chore this day and so we had a long morning just slowly getting up and ready. We were in high need of a rest day and so ditched the original plan and decided to chill all day with just a little excursion to the food shop. We also checked out the beach (it’s a perfect looking beach) before continuing our rest day.

When we got back we had some food while watching Netflix and then decided to go to the bar for tequila Tuesday! We played some board games together and about 5 drinks each later we were both quite tipsy and sleep was calling us. We went to bed quite late, hopeful for some good rest for the next day.

23rd April –

After getting up and ready we caught the bus and then train to Amsterdam. Our first stop was NDSM which we got a free ferry over to. We wandered around the area a bit however it wasn’t what we expected. It is intended to be lots of shipping crates which squatters took over and now inhabits food places, shops and flea markets. There was none of this. There was tons of amazing artwork and graffiti which we looked at but other than this, it felt like an abandoned scrap yard. Quite a let down.

We got the ferry back over, then went on a souvenir shop crawl, finding the perfect gifts for our parents. We went into every single shop we passed, enjoying browsing all the funny little souvenirs. It began to rain and so we felt it was time to head to the Red Light secret museum. We paid €15 each for entrance and we got a free booklet and a little audio headset which you scanned at certain points to hear from Inga a real life prostitute. We walked around all the rooms, reading people’s stories, and taking a seat in one of the red light windows. It was a really cool experience and we both learnt a lot, definitely something to do while in Amsterdam!

24th April –

I was so excited for this day as we were heading to Keukenhof for the tulips! This has been on my bucket list for years and I couldn’t wait to tick it off. We got a bus there and then wondered around for ages. It was a beautiful place. I didn’t expect it to be as big as it was but it’s full of lots of different gardens filled with tulips and gorgeous lakes and rivers.

When we got back we had a few drinks at the bar in our hostel and then went to bed.

25th April –

Our final days approached and so we used this day to chill, sort out all our stuff for the very final time and prepare for a long journey home.

Amsterdam was a nice last stop and a brilliant way to end our trip.