#fallineurope

Yesterday was a successful beach day trip to Zandvoort aan zee. It was a hazy day at the beach with some clouds rolling in and out until we got rained out near 4 p.m. Watching the storm move in off the coast was really cool and the storm cloud was quite distinct looking. I thought it was about to be War of the Worlds, with giant robot aliens coming out of the water to wreak havoc on the Netherlands. 

One train stop between the beach and Amsterdam has the largest IKEA store that I have ever seen. Apparently there is a full cafeteria inside with cheap food. Speaking of cheap food, that reminds me of how hungry I am right now. 

I got back from the beach with Zion and Alex and I had another first for the Dam, riding on the back of somebody's bicycle. Now the timing may not have been ideal with so much weight in my backpack, so it was hard to leverage myself. Eventually I decided to try straddle the seat instead of sitting on the side. Let me just that I can thankfully still have kids. Those metal bars were not very comfortable going over the brick and cobblestone streets. 

Zion's 21st birthday was at the crack of midnight so we went out to a bar. After a big party and pre-game in the courtyard of my dorm with other residents, we went to Leidseplein to the cheap student bar called the Geiter. We had a healthy dose of tequila shots to celebrate, even though turning 21 doesn't feel as cool in Amsterdam where you can drink anything you want by 18. 

Before Leidseplein, we went to Mulligan's Irish Pub near the River Amstel and I had a pint of Magners Irish Cider and snagged "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" from their free book collection. The live music made for a good atmosphere and the bartender told me, after I had asked for an IPA, about how over-saturated the market is with all the microbreweries popping up in the United States. IPA's he said are not very popular in Europe and especially the Netherlands. He did recommend searching for this one brewery here in Amsterdam that serves an IPA.