Welcome!

I wake up in my bottom-bunk dorm bed, number 10 A of Bob's Youth Hostel, to a slight, pale figure, shirtless, black jeans, obvious eyebrow piercing, bobbing in and out of my vision. As I rub the gook out of my eyes to take a better look he asks pointedly, "Are you high?"
"Uhmm... no," I respond.
"But were you high?"
"Uhhh... no.
"You're in fucking Bob's Youth Hostel and you don't smoke?!"
"Uhmm... well, no."
"Hmmm," he yawns, now leaning into his adjacent bed, feet on the pillow and his head on a pile of luggage, "I was out all night." His satisfied smile slackens into a sleepy droop until the cleaning staff comes through at 10:30 to kick out the late sleepers.

Welcome to Amsterdam.



My journey to the Netherlands progressed more or less like this: I planned my trip to Holland under the guideline of: "Just have yourself a structured adventure." This prompted me to consider the sometimes trite"big questions" of travel and identity--what does it mean to be a Dutch citizen, a dual citizen, a young traveler, a travel writer, and a citizen of the world? More personally, I wanted to explore the history of my Dutch family. Through the medium of writing, I hope to address these questions. Though I can claim citizenship to this country, I couldn't even begin to explain the political system or how to apply for college or even the broader details of my family's history. On a more technical level, I had never booked a hostel room myself or bought a train ticket completely on my own. In short, this trip began as a loosely structured adventure, with a few broad goals, a few more specific ones, and a fervent excitement for solo travel.