We flew from Rome into Amsterdam Schiphol in the early evening of the 8th of August, and met Pieter (who’s wedding I would be shooting) and Jan Hendrik his cousin. After a quick stop at one of the Netherlands hundreds of McDonalds for a Big McTasty, and trying to speak to the cashier lady in Afrikaans (which was an epic fail- she couldn’t understand a word) we headed off to Pieter’s parents place in Hoegenlagen. Such lovely folk who made us feel right at home straight away!
The next morning, after we had done some location scouting for the wedding, Pieter dropped us off at Bunnik station where we caught the train in to Amsterdam. 32 Euro later- Kim and I convinced each other that for THAT price, we had better enjoy Amsterdam properly!! Once there, we found a McDonalds (which is not hard to do- there is one on every street corner) and indulged in a few of their 1 Euro burgers, before taking on this bustling city. (Just in case you were wondering…we are not big fans of McDonalds. But being armgat South Africans in Europe we naturally gravitated to the cheapest food we could find).

 

 

We then met up with Lara, a friend of ours, outside the Rjiks museum, where we were just in time to catch a live street performance. After a very entertaining show, we moved back to the Rijks museum for our 11 o’clock appointment. All three of us are art enthusiasts, and were really excited to see famous art pieces such as The Third Watch (Rembrandt), Self portrait of Vincent van Gogh, and the Milkmaid (Vermeer).

 

 

 

The Museum was really full though and one had to push past people to even get a glimpse of the paintings. My feet were ridiculously sore (the story of the whole Europe trip)- so my ability to “stand my ground” amidst the pushers and shovers was a bit limited. We decided to cut our museum trip a bit short and rather to go enjoy the sights of the city. I was in “street documentary photography” heaven. Amsterdam is such a cool, vibrant city filled with people from all walks of life!

 

 

“Where’s Wally?” The blue version.

 

 

It’s no easy task moving in Holland! In order to save space and build more houses, passage ways and stair cases are designed to be very narrow. So all furniture has to go through the windows!

 

 

 

After a full day in this cool city we headed back home, where we prepared for Pieter and Samira’s wedding on the Saturday. What a cool couple and SUCH a great celebration- had so much fun shooting their wedding. To view their pictures please click here.

The sunday, Kim and I went cycling. There are a few things that made this cycle very enjoyable and memorable:
a) I survived
b) Its really flat- and easy to cycle there
c) I didn’t cause any accidents
d) It was really beautiful
e) It was our last day in Europe- and we cherished every moment of it.
Then it was time to start the long journey back home. We enjoyed, (and lived in) every single moment we were over there. So many good times, so many funny moments and so many fantastic memories- all with my best friend! It was incredible! I am so blessed to have travelled to the places I did, to see and experience what we did- and I am humbled and in awe of God’s goodness through it all. I am truly grateful for it ALL! The travel bug has bitten, good and hard, and I look forward to another opportunity to travel abroad! :)

Travelling Trips for Holland:

1) Say no to cookies that look like they have herbs on.

2) Take a whole day to wander through the streets of this gorgeous city and observe “life”.

3) Don’t go on the Holland International ferry ride…unless you want to learn 4 different languages. It’s expensive and they repeat everything 4 times…in a different dialect of course. Maybe our expectations were just a little too high- so don’t take our word for it. If you want to go on that ferry ride- you’re welcome to naturally ;)

4) Wear comfy shoes and take LOTS of photo’s!