So I embarked in a journey to Amsterdam from Toronto. Lucky for me I sat next to a screaming toddler which was fun, it was an overnight flight. As soon as I landed there, I switched up my SIM to a international data only SIM card I brought from Amazon. I totally recommend it if you are travelling to Europe.

I was confused at first but luckily I did my homework and found the cable car that took me from the airport to my hostel. I stayed at the Stayokay Vondel park hostel for two nights. In Amsterdam on the second day, I purchased the I AMSTERDAM CARD which allowed me to see a buffet of sights in 24 hours.

When I went to the Hostel I was dead tired, and since it was an early check in I could not gain access to my room. I slept on the bench inside and took a nap. I am never doing an overnight flight again. It is just too tiring. Please note not to swipe your credit card when using it or else they block it. I ran into this problem so I called my bank and they unblocked my card.

First activity I did was a canal cruise it was fun, and I walked around the city. I also had their famous French fries. I saw the architecture and wonderful buildings, monuments. In the afternoon I returned to my hotel and took a much anticipated nap. I then ventured out and walked around the red light district. It was filled with tourists who were “window shopping.” It was an interesting sight just herds of people. I also had some food there, specifically Chinese food (shrimp pad thai). They made it hot and fresh. It was good.

The next day I went to the Rhijksmuseum, it was filled with many paintings and artifacts. I spent a couple of hours in there. Then I took another canal cruise compliments of the IAMSTARDAM card. I also headed to I AM Holland tour which was an immersive 3d VR tour and you get splashed with mist which was fun. It takes you on a tour around Amsterdam. Finishing that I ventured out to the Sir Adam lookout tour which was nice and gave me an opportunity to see Holland from a very high point. During commuting between the spots I took the subway which I thought was quick and very efficient. You can tap your credit card instead of buying a ticket and the metro is very easy. I relied on Google Maps a lot to find my way around.

I was tired in the afternoon so I went back to the hostel and took a nap. When I woke up I toured around Amsterdam again by walking. I probably did couple of hours walking everyday. I recommend investing in a good pair of shoes especially if you are travelling in Europe. I loved the shawarma places there it was very tasty as there is a big Arab population there. Then I woke up on Sunday and checked out. I made my way to Amsterdam station and waited for Flixbus to Brussels.