My number one rule for travelling is...was...I never go to the same place twice. This self imposed rule began at the age of 19 when i went to china, Hong Kong, Macau on my first trip abroad. I loved Hong Kong so much I wanted to move. I have that feeling of juicing and absorbing a place almost every time I go anywhere. I knew I was in trouble and made the aforementioned rule to keep myself from going to the same place again and again like a comfort zone. Even if I visit the same country, I didn't want to visit the same city. It was my way of making sure I see every gali, koocha I could possibly see and move on without regrets.
I knew this rule was broken when I landed in Amsterdam. I honestly had heard a lot about the city and expected it to be a fab party-city and such. Day 1 the first place I went to was the van gogh museum. I legit teared up infront of his paintings of chinese asters and gladioli. The 4 day trip went in meeting film school friends, do a boat cruise, visit the museums, the historical buildings, the red light district and the usual suspects. I barely sat still and I still didn't manage to see the tulip fields, the anne frank house and so much more. A lot of it may have been because I spent a ton of time meeting new people in my hostel and chill in the museums, the cafes and streets. I also did most of the trip on foot. That's how I do my gali-koocha explorations. I also went for a most awesome cheese making class in the countryside. That cheese is the God of cheeses! Worth every second. But so the side trips outside the city didn't happen. It also helps that the Dutch embassy gives the best visa options and the city is so small you can easily club it with a main course trip in Europe. Maybe France again. Maybe Greece for the first time. And keeping Amsterdam as the incredible dessert it is. Yum yum.