Culture of Foods in Amsterdam

I had the opportunity to travel to Amsterdam over the weekend during my global seminar during week 4. I would highly recommend taking a bus whenever possible for travel in Europe because it is much more cost efficient than a high speed train or air travel. The bus was also very comfortable, with air conditioning and USB ports for charging electronics. We booked our bus during the late night time (12 AM) so we could sleep during the trip to Amsterdam. At 8 AM we arrived in Amsterdam. My group stayed in a hostel. This was my first experience staying in a hostel, and it was a positive experience and would highly recommend if traveling on a tight budget. The hostel included air conditioned rooms and many ammenitites downstairs. My roommates from Paris and I were able to stay in a 6 bunk-bed room.

When I travel, I like to experience the culture through foods. One thing I noticed right away was the many different options of food cuisines of Amsterdam. I made a list of foods local to Amsterdam but unfortunately did not get to try all of them, due to time constants. One of my favorite restaurants is one called "Moeders" which is Dutch for "Mother". I loved this small family owned restaurant because customers can leave a picture of their mother hanging on the wall. The walls were covered from floor to ceiling, including even the bathroom! I was able to try a local pea soup called Snert. It was very filling. I later stumbled upon a small street market and found a vender selling Stroopwafel. Stroopwafel is two wafers sandwiched between a caramel filling.

I had to also try the thick cut Belgian fries at a street market. The one I found had 24 different sauce flavors to choose from. I choose peanut sauce and a truffle mayonnaise. They were also served with raw onions on top. I would highly recommend if you are ever in Amsterdam. Another recommendation I have is to find a street market that selling Kibbling, which is a white fish (cod or herring) that is fried and served with a tartar sauce.

For dinner I found an Australian restaurant and had to try something that caught my eye on the menu. I ordered a kangaroo burger and a side of maggots and grasshoppers. To my surprise, I enjoyed the maggots, but was not able to try the grasshoppers. They still had their big wings attached and seemed to be very crunchy. Maybe I will try them another time!
 
I wish I could have tried many other restaurants but did not have enough time. I would love to travel back to Amsterdam in the future to see more of this beautiful diverse city. 










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