Sodom and Gomorrah

Whenever people around here hear that I am from Holland, they will immediately begin talking to me about the time they went to Amsterdam. What little they can remember of it, that is.

I find it kind of depressing that most of these people have apparently not managed to see beyond the coffeeshops and the red light district. With some luck they might have made it to either the van Gogh museum (and picked up the famous blue triangular box) or the Anne Frank house but that is about it. It annoys me because I really love Amsterdam and want other people to enjoy this beautiful city too but not just for drugs and whores. I understand the fascination with coffeeshops and a stroll through the red light district can be entertaining but the city is so much more than that.

The worst group are British blokes on their stag parties. I was listening to Dutch radio this morning when I heard that some hostels are so fed up with them and their rowdy behaviour, that they are banning all groups of Brits! It must be pretty bad for dutch people to ban anything! A few weeks ago I was at the airport, checking in for my flight to Amsterdam, when I found myself standing in line behind such a group. They were all dressed up in superhero costumes; Batman & Robin, Superman, Spiderman and the groom to be as...Wonderwoman. I was fully expecting them to show up on my flight but they didn't. As it turns out the Brits are discovering Prague, Warsaw and other Eastern European destinations as their new favourite hangouts. I feel sorry for the Czechs and Poles already.