Letters From Europe: Class of 2006
May 21, 2005
May 20, 2005 Braunschweig, Germany Greetings from Germany! Thursday was our final full day in Amsterdam. Our first big event of the day was a tour of the historic Anne Frank Huis. It was really powerful and moving to see what Anne Frank and her friends and family went through. It gave us a different view of discrimination than we are used to at home. The house was amazingly preserved, with original furniture and pictures on the wall from more than 60 years ago. The rest of the day we spent exploring Amsterdam. For a big city, Amsterdam is very easy to get around. There are trains that go to all parts of the city, and everything is close enough to walk as well. There a lots of different modes of transportation. Between the cars, bicycles and scooters, it's hard to know which one to get out of the way of. Some of us visited an open air market in the afternoon. There were some good deals to be had, and the people were very friendly. Most people in Amsterdam speak English, and they are happy to help you. Thursday night we played our second match of the trip against Martinus, a First Division Dutch club from Amstelveen, a suburb of Amsterdam. On the way we stopped at what looked like just a gym for dinner, but they served a chicken salad that everyone agreed was one of the best meals of the trip so far. We took the train to Amstelveen, and then had a short walk to the gym where we played. It was amazing how many sports they play in the facility. There were lines everywhere - it was hard to tell the volleyball lines from the ones for handball, basketball, etc. Friday morning we boarded a bus for Braunschweig. It was a seven-hour trip, which seems like a long time until you realize that you have driven from one country half way across another. You can't do that in the U.S. We stopped for lunch on the road, and everyone got their first real experience with the language barrier. Germans don't speak English like the Dutch can, so ordering our food was an adventure. But the German countryside was beautiful, and we finally arrived at our wonderful hotel in Braunschweig! Camilla Ihenetu, McKenzie Byrd, Dani Nyenhuis and Taylor Rayfield
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