Maastricht

Divya and I headed to Maastricht, in the Netherlands, last weekend, and while the weather was horrible and the town was smaller than we anticipated, we managed to make a good trip out of it.  We spent most of the weekend just walking around, checking out all of the different neighborhoods and sights, and enjoying coffee and beer stops along the way.  We also visited a really wacky bookstore, located in an old church, where the upper levels and shelving are just sandwiched between these massive old pillars; walking around was a very strange experience.

Overall, the town itself was quite pretty, situated on both sides of a river, and the trip reminded me of how much I like the Netherlands.  As you may have already gathered, I sort-of hate leaving Germany and being somewhere where I don’t speak the language, but the Netherlands is a huge exception to this.  Because:

1.     Everyone speaks freakishly good English

2.     The beer is delicious and varying in style and alcohol percentage

3.     The people are tall and beautiful and it’s fun to just watch everyone ride by on their bikes

4.     The peanut butter is shockingly inexpensive compared to in Germany

5.     The skinny little houses all jammed together are beautiful, and just fun to look at

6.     It’s always a lot of fun trying to decode (and pronounce things in) the Dutch language

There are also some big differences between Germany and the Netherlands, such as the fact that grocery stores and shops are open on Sundays! That, and the fact that they give you beer with an empty glass and you pour for yourself…

On the way back from Maastricht, I stopped in Köln to see an Ellie Golding concert with Becca.  Words cannot describe how incredible it was, and we were both dying of happiness and awe at the end.  Listen to her stuff if you never have!