AmsterDAM

This had been a dream for Rishi since he had come to France. And so he literally forced us to join him on this trip to Holland .... Quite reluctantly I agreed and joined him. Our bus was at 11:00 pm from Paris Galleini. There was a problem because Rishi, Vishesh and Pushp's tickets were not there but finally it got solved and we boarded the bus. Actaully that day we felt that none of our trips have been without hiccups. Had a good sleep in the bus and was surprised when at five in the morning the driver said, "Amsterdaaaaam ... he he he ... Amsterdam". It was raining and we hurried up to take shelter in the eurolines station. Around 8:00 we took the metro to the main station. The scene when we came out was splendid - A huge canal lay in front of us and the skyline looked beautiful. We took a few snaps ands then went to look for our hostel - Youthhostel meeting point.

We changed and then took a tram for the Heineken brewery. I did not know that the experience inside was going to be real fun and a memorable one. It was a free tour for 10 euros plus three Heineken beers (or soft drinks) and a souvenior at the end. We started roaming at will, taking shots and seeing the brewing process. A few highlights of the tour were - the beautiful shires (horses) used to carry beer barrels, the 3-D picture (where we were a beer bottles and moving like them), the holocast of a scientist, a ride on the horse-cart (he he he ... that was also a movie without horses) and ofcourse the beer (with a huge orange group swaying with it).

Our next stop was the Madam Tussad's museum (for those who dont know it is the wax museum having lifesize statues of people). The wax idol of Pierce Brosnan at the door was attracting us. But the price was too high. Rishi, Vishesh and Rizi went in for 15 euros. And because of me, I and Saurabh made it in 10 euros (hurraaaayyyyy !!!!) ...... and so I now have photos with beautiful damsels like Kylie Minogue, Princess Diana, Julia Roberts and other hollywood biggies plus politicians like George Bush, historical figures like Anne Frank (the Anne Frank house is in Amsterdam), Mahatma Gandhi, scientists like Einstein and painters of the ranks of Vincent Van Gogh and Picaso ... oh i forgot - The horror zone was the best!!!! I kept shouting all the time (because waxed people were jumping out from nowhere) and I was holding tight onto Pushp's hand.

The central part of the city around the railway station is the famous red light area of Amsterdam .... this was our destination for the night .... I, Rishi and Vishesh were the first to enter it and we were enthralled to move through the narrow lanes seeing sex shops and sensuous prostis. And suddenly I saw a familiar face .... I told Rishi "hey, this one looks like Shilpa Shetty" and by jove all the girls in that street were no less than bollywood heroines. Rishi was instructed to memorise the way to this street by heart. Our first victory (kind of) was the 2 euro peep show which we saw and that gave us all the energy to call the rest of the gang from the hostel and get going. Before going to bed, we had a feast of another peep show and the football match between Spain and Portugal.

The second day, I with my intelligence reached Rishi's hostel all by myself and then with him, Vishesh and Saurabh, I went to an artificial beach nearby. Oh God! The beach was so good, the girls so beautiful, the breeze so cool and the environment so exciting that we could not spend more than 10 minutes there!!!!! We rushed off to the city and found respite in strolling through a good market where I and Rishi got lost into the shops of our interests. We then went to MacD and had lunch and I got an icecream free. From here the others went to the Holland Experience theatre and I went to the flea-market where I did a lot of shopping. A tie with Vincent written on it was attracting me but I could not make a good bargain.

In the evening we went to bid a last good-bye to Shilpa Shetty .... oh yes we also thought of giving the Holland Casino a try and I won 2 euros for just 20 cents. The other Indians (a few boys) there were really surprised because they hadn't made a penny since evening and I did it in 2 minutes. Coming out from there we met the rest of the gang and then after last minute shopping headed for the eurolines station. There was a problem with Pushp, Vishesh and Rishi's tickets but with my blessings everything went off right and so we cheered up loudly (quieting the other group of Indians who were trying to be bonds). Our bus went through Hague and so we also got to see the windmills and the beautiful buildings it is famous for !!!!!!

Helpful Notes: Amsterdam is the most different city of Europe (leaving aside Rome and Venice) ... because I now know that all others look the same. Another thing is that this city is below sea level and sea has entered the land everywhere .... that is why the country is called hollow land or Holland. The Hague is a complete city nearby and has the miniature amsterdam built on a 1:25 scale.