Doris Wu does Europe: Amsterdam: When in Amsterdam...Drugs, Sex, and Van Gogh

Amsterdam's reputation of marijuana, shrooms, and prostitutes, as well as a raging night scene, proved to be true. But the city was a lot cleaner and nicer than I had expected. We stayed in the Hotel Continental, located a few blocks from the Red Light District and right above a place that claimed it served "Holland's best fries!" They were.

I did not expect those stairs! All the stairs we encountered were ridiculously steep. Going up and down them almost gave me vertigo. Everything there seems narrow, long, and tall. Walking down alleyways, you feel like the buildings are leaning over you, and some of them may very well be.

The first night, my friend and I went to the club Escape (or Ess-ka-pay as I kept calling it from Finding Nemo's Dory), the largest club in Amsterdam. We arrived early by their standards (midnight) with only a handful of people there. However around 1 a.m. things started heating up. Unfortunately, after a long day of traveling from Paris, we called it quits early and headed home, while enjoying some of those delicious fries.

The next day we explored the city, which is cut through with many canals. The city is gorgeous, which no one really tells you, and the shopping is pretty good. Everyone bikes and there are boats and houseboats everywhere. Be warned, stores all close at six, so get your shopping done early. Parts of the city become ghost towns as stores close and street cleaners pass through. However, a couple blocks away are the bars and sex shops, so those streets are bustling and full.

We tried going to the Anne Frank House, but the line was longer than the Louvre's and wrapped around several blocks! We decided to skip, took a picture and moved on to the Van Gogh museum. This proved to be less impressive after seeing The Louvre and other larger museums but it was still pretty cool and we got to see his less famous and earlier works.

In Amsterdam there are coffeehouses and cafes. In coffeehouses, you can order weed. You walk in, tell them your budget, what kind of high you want, and they give you some choices. In cafes, you don't dare ask. You're allowed to smoke in coffeehouses and some bars and I saw a lot of people light up while walking. On July 1st however, a law was passed that banned smoking (cigarettes) indoors. Shrooms are also readily available in smoke shops with signs saying "Magic Mushrooms? Just ask!"

In the mornings, coffeehouses are some of the first things to open. Try going shopping before 10 and you'll only come across coffeehouses and the occasional food place. I guess things open late and close early, the perfect workday.

The Red Light District is surprisingly classy. There are no prostitutes wandering around, instead they are all posing in windows, almost like mannequins. They were all wearing lingerie and none of them were nude or topless. The red lights reflecting into the canals gave off a dream-like feel. In the heart of the Red Light District is one of Amsterdam's oldest churches, whether it's still in service or not I never found out. Some of the prostitutes were downright gorgeous, some not so much, and some you thought were until they opened the door and came into the light. But mainly they just looked bored. Some were sitting and texting on their phones, while others would knock on the glass to get your attention. One especially bold girl stuck her leg out to tease men as they walked by. Walking down with my friend, we got asked if we wanted to put on a lesbian show for one of the "theatres" that puts on sex scenes. I didn't know whether to be insulted or flattered. I was also told by a stranger that I didn't need to be in Amsterdam and that "I could do better," again didn't know whether to be insulted or flattered. Especially since I was in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt and not at all showing skin.

My only complaint about the city is that everyone is a tourist. However, Amsterdam is a gorgeous little city and a great way to end the trip. I met my favorite character there, an artist in his 40s who does wire art. He made some wire bikes, guitars, motorcycles, and saxophones, all from one continuous wire. I told him I was interested in wire art and he showed me how to make a bike, which he then gave to me at half price. I asked him how he started out and he said the same way as me, someone showed him how to make a bike. I told him he should start a website or make business cards since he was extremely talented. His reply was that he's been told that, but he already makes a good living off of what he does right now, is able to travel from city to city, and that he is not a business man and just wants to be free. I fell in love with him, and Europe, right there (in an “I want you to be my mentor” kind of way, not an “I want to marry you” way).