Today I went to Amsterdam

So far we have been living in Den Haag, a town not too far from Amsterdam. Saturdays are my day off, so I decided to make a trip into town. I heard five languages on the tram ride, plus three different English speaking accents. I've noticed that even coughs and throat clears have an accent to them. The Austrailian guy kept coughing and I kept thinking, blessed kangaroo, even his hack sounds Austrailian.

Amsterdam is crowded: full of tourists and birds and boats, busy and compact with a lazy cafe undertone. I like Amsterdam enough but I fear it is losing its European romance, the charm that all cities with rivers, twinkling lights and pedestrian-only streets seem to posses. I wonder if the city sighs with relief after all the tourists have gone and the local old men with their rolled cigarettes and nightcaps can finally have some peace and quiet by the canals and the tulip shops. I wonder if it finally feels beautiful then.