Out of Utrecht early on a hot Tuesday morning as we were off on our final long bike ride of the trip. Chip led us in a nice stretching circle before we hopped on the bikes and rode to Amsterdam. We had a few stops on the way including Kasteel de Haar, a spectacular castle from 1892 that was home to the Rothschild family. We hung around the grounds in the shade for a while and a few of us kicked a volleyball around that was painted like a soccer ball. We continued on past the castle and the heat continued to bare down on us. We had biked in rain, cold, sun, and clouds, but the nearly 100 degree heat was a first for the ride north through Holland.
When we eventually reached the Dutch capital, it was time to check in to the Bicycle Hotel, the smallest place we had stayed yet. Up three flights of steep stairs was my room and I was one of the lucky ones to get a shower and toilet in the room. While it was a tight fit, I appreciated staying in a place that was older European style instead of the newer big hostels where we had been staying. I am not entirely sure why it was called the Bicycle Hotel, other than they had bikes for us to rent. Nevertheless, it was an awesome final place to spend our week together in Amsterdam.
To kick off our first night in the land of canals, Erik, Mikah and I biked around the city and explored. Perhaps more out of curiosity than anything, we walked through the Red Light District and noticed the absurd amount of tourists wondering about. Most of city center it seemed there was a 9 to 1 ratio of tourists to locals. I am sure it is the worst in late July, but Amsterdam is one of the worst in terms of tourists looking like tourists. The Red Light only amplifies that effect because it seemed so many were there to soak in their sins. Amsterdam, we found, is a confusing place to bike around due to the canals and bending streets. It makes it feel like even Copenhagen is on a grid, when in fact it is far from it.
