A few words about Ferweh. Ferweh is a German word. It refers to a nostalgic feeling you hold for somewhere distant, a longing for far-off places. Sometimes in a strange place, except for feeling detached and curious, a sense of Ferweh, or of déjà vu could occur, thus I name this collection of essays as Ferweh, a reminder of connectedness with places I've been to.

<prussian blue of Amsterdam>

prussian blue of Amsterdam

First, I have a confession to make...

I was never a pack-and-go type of person. In fact, I was such a female otaku that I could stay at home for days watching movies and reading books. Looking back on those years working in Beijing, I was astonished to see how oppressed I was by work. The only trips I did were with my company -- mandatory trips, so those don't count.

Thanks to this gap year I granted to myself, I've been doing some refreshing traveling in the past several months. And after all those years when we otakus leafed through lonely planet guidebooks or browsed qyer.com, now one of its members finally got ahead of herself. Applauds!

So back to the theme.

24 Hours in Amsterdam

Winters of Europe are boring, except for the northern part, I guess. And since spring is coming and everything grey and dull is turning green and bright, I told myself I should resume my trips! So my husband and I took a train westward, and spent roughly 24 hours in Amsterdam in the last weekend. And luckily, I have a friend working on her PHD in Rotterdam University who provided us a warm guide and company.

Food and Drink

Dutch cuisine is mostly no different with German ones (I'm temporarily living in Germany) -- potato chips and Heineken beer. What's special is its Kroket, fried meet with cheese in it wrapped in crusts, (If you learn Japanese, probably you would know the Japanese version of Kroket--コロッケ. Japanese are so good at fusing food. But this is a topic for another day.) and pancakes, topped with fruits and syrup or meat and vegetables.

sweet pancake
salty pancake Desperados and Heineken beer

Marijuana

If you've got a plan to try marijuana in Amsterdam, I can assure you it's really easy to find. most cafes and bars sell it. There are also shops selling "seed" and "cannabis". But if you are like me, couldn't pluck up courage to "undertake" it, then a space muffin with very slight dose will satisfy your vanity of boasting that you actually have taken pot .

space cake

Snapshots of the City

Photos speak for themselves.

The central station of Amsterdam is simply the most grandiose I've ever seen so far.

central station

In Europe, I've seen many trees like these in this photo and the following ones. Since I'm a plant and animal idiot, I've no idea what they are. Do you know?

tram and street view
Triangular roofs are called gables. These roofs are frequently seen here in Europe. People say the shape helps to drain off rain water and snow drifts.
gables

The blue colors of the sky and the water are simply absorbing!

the harbor
I was on a cruise going down a canal when I took these pictures.
canal view
canal view
Boating with family and friends on a Sunday afternoon feels like a good way to chill out!
canal view

We stayed on a cruise for the night as the cruise hotel is cheaper. And in fact many Dutch people live in cruises! cruises are their houses on the move!

my cruise hotel
A more distant view. The gables are so harmonious together.
gables
The Dutch are fond of decorating their buildings. Look at those exquisite tiles and metal designs.
decorations on the buildings
Please forgive me for my ignorance... I think they look like Yulan flowers, but... honestly I don't know.
unidentified flowers

Views on the Road to and back from Amsterdam

I'm obsessed with catching the moments of still nature while sitting in a train. You could see the flash of light on the window!

train view
train view
train view train view.jpg vast green train view

Ends with the trees. Do you know what they are? My heart beats faster every time these upright trees come into my view.

train view

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