I'm Going Back

This past weekend, I got to travel to my dream destination: Amsterdam! Visiting this city of canals, history, and beautiful flowers has been a dream of mine for years. Finally getting to go and experience it in person instead of through pictures was absolutely amazing. Since Amsterdam was my number one destination, I did let myself spend a little more money getting there and on souvenirs. It’s important in my mind to recognize that splurging a bit on a destination you really want to visit is okay. Let yourself have that number one destination and in the words of Donna and Tom: treat yo self.

Getting to spend a weekend in Amsterdam was a dream come true and definitely worth every penny. I was lucky enough to have my mom join me for the weekend and to see the famous Keukenhof Tulip Gardens. They are only open for two months a year and have an amazing display of colorful tulips and other flowers. The luck didn’t stop there though: on Friday, my mom and I visited the Van Gogh museum and were able to see two paintings that had been stolen 14 years ago and recently returned to the museum! It was a crazy weekend jam-packed with incredible moments and experiences.

But it was only one weekend. All in all, I had maybe 48 hours in Amsterdam to explore, eat, sleep, and see all the sights. It was impossible to see everything. I didn’t get to see the Anne Frank House, the Rijksmuseum, the Heineken Brewery, and so much more. Truthfully, it’s hard to fully see a city in a weekend. You really only get a taste of it and have to pick out what you want to see from all it has to offer. But here’s the thing with visiting for a weekend: you get a taste of the city and can see if you really like it. Then, you can make the decision about whether or not you want to visit the city again for longer and see more.

Getting a taste of Amsterdam for a weekend was amazing and only made me love it more. I’ve read about it and researched it before, but getting to experience it myself was absolutely incredible. And a weekend just wasn’t enough. I definitely want to visit Amsterdam again in the future, there’s still so much to see and the city is fun to explore. Going back, having more time, and getting to see more is definitely on my list now. There are just some places where a weekend isn’t enough.

Weekend travel is amazing, especially if you get to visit a city you’ve wanted to go to for a while. But if it turns out there’s just too much to do, don’t push yourself to do everything. Enjoy what you can and try to come back at some point if it’s viable. Make it a goal, and try for it. It’s okay to revisit places and not see the whole place in a weekend. Enjoy what you can and go back when you can.