One of my favorite places...Amsterdam!

Through OU's President's Leadership Class, I've gotten the chance to study abroad twice! After my freshman year, I went to Arezzo, Italy.  After my sophomore year, I studied in London, Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam.  However, out of all the cities, Amsterdam had the biggest impact on me! It is a stunningly beautiful, diverse, and accepting city whose history is as interesting as its modern charm.  Here are a few of my favorite moments!

One morning, we had a fascinating visit to a local farm, where the farmer makes cheese and is one of only 3 remaining wooden clog makers in The Netherlands.  The farmer was so kind, and gave us insight into the cheese making process, while illuminating the differences between factory made and farm made products.  Of course, our favorite part was the free samples!  The farmers joy was absolutely contagious, and we all delighted in being called things like “happy little woman.” 

Image Information: Personal photo of shoe and cheese maker in Amsterdam, June 2014

The only member of our group that was less pleased with the terms of endearment was my friend JD, who was affectionately called “funny looking man.”  Then, we actually got to watch him make a pair of wooden shoes!  He made them from a special wood that had to be green for ideal carving. He explained that plain shoes are for gardening, engraved shoes are for weddings, and red shoes are for dancing! It was really great to see an element of Dutch tradition so alive in modern Amsterdam!  Of course, I had to bring back a wheel of the farmer’s cheese for my family as a souvenir!  

Image Information: Personal photo of me with a cheese wheel and clogs, June 2014

After talking to the dairy cows, we said goodbye to the farm, and were off to a nearby windmill.  The Netherlands’ famous windmills are minuscule in number as compared to the 18th and 19th centuries, but now, there is a special organization that aims to preserve those that are left.  Like many being preserved, the windmill we saw was a family home.  Families live there for a low rate in exchange for helping with the windmill’s upkeep.  The windmill was absolutely beautiful, and I can’t imagine how magical it must be to look out your window and see a little lake and fields of Holland countryside!

Image Information: Personal photo of a windmill outside Amsterdam, June 2014

However, the most powerful part of my experience in Amsterdam was my visit to the Anne Frank House. I honestly don’t know how long we waited to visit the Anne Frank house because the entirety of our wait was filled with intriguing conversation about the legal customs of Amsterdam, the changing political atmosphere in Europe, and international and domestic human trafficking.  After learning so much throughout the trip on about these issues, I am excited for the opportunity to research more about them on my own.  Finally, we entered the museum.  I cannot convey the depth of emotion that I felt walking through what was the Frank family and friends’ secret home for two years.  I read Anne’s diary years ago, and have seen countless pictures of the secret annex.  However, the wave of emotion that hit when I saw the little pictures she pasted on the wall was indescribable.  It was suddenly so real.  The unfaltering hope that she retained within desperate and bleak times is something I admire beyond words.  Anne’s message of love and faith have brought light into the saddest hearts.  At such a young age, she had remarkable wisdom.  She understood the necessity of understanding and the truth in the goodness of others while living in an environment of evil and hate. Her words preceded later messages for equality regardless of ethnicity, religion, or gender.  From her silent room, she gave voice to a generation that had their voices cruelly stolen, and hope to new generations for the future of the world.  To me, the most remarkable part is that Anne is only one little girl.  While it is absolutely heart breaking to think that many people suffered the discrimination, hatred, and terrible fate that she did, it is uplifting that, regardless of the most dismal of circumstances, hope can prevail in the minds that seek it.  Leaving the museum with damp eyes and an open heart, I have a renewed belief in the necessity of hope.  Hope through education of the past, so that we may never let such a tragedy happen again.  Hope in the minds of the joyful, that their spirit will never waver and lift others up.  Hope in the generations of the future, that we will work to truly understand others and appreciate each person for who they are.  Hope for the world, that each person will have freedom and joy.

Image Information: Personal photo of a side street in Amsterdam, June 2014

    After the experience at the Anne Frank House, it seemed only appropriate to spend our last night in Europe with each other.  We walked to a nearby restaurant, and dined on huge pancakes.  We laughed and joked and took in what little time we all had together on that incredible journey. It was so sad to leave, but I couldn’t be more thankful for the phenomenal experience I had.