I have been in Amsterdam, the Netherlands for about a week now, and, overall, I love it here! Amsterdam is a huge metropolitan city with over a million residents, and over half of those residents are not Amsterdam natives. This city is a true melting pot. There are people here from all cultures and ethnicities. In my hotel, restaurants, and on the streets, I can hear conversations in countless different languages.
I’m from a suburb just outside of Pittsburgh, so I’m familiar with living near a city. But Amsterdam is incredibly different from anywhere I’ve ever been. At any given daylight hour, there are thousands of people strolling around the city center (maybe more people than I have ever seen in one place before). Tourists and locals alike hustle around the city constantly.
One of the first things I noticed was a lack of cars. Looking around the inner city of Amsterdam, there are very, very few cars, which is so nice as a pedestrian. The atmosphere is always relatively quiet considering how many people are out and about. So how do people get around? Phenomenal public transportation and bikes!
Compared to Pittsburgh, the public transportation in Amsterdam is absolutely amazing. Between the 4 kinds of public transport (train, subway, tram, and bus), you can get just about anywhere in the city at any time of the day pretty quickly. The subway, tram, and bus are all familiar to me; we have those at home. However, the train is the fanciest public transport I have ever seen. It costs just a little bit more than the other modes of transportation, but it is very clean, safe, and fast.
In Pittsburgh, public transportation is pretty limited. The buses can get citizens around the city, but they’re pretty slow and unreliable. Amsterdam’s buses arrive very close to their scheduled times, so it’s easy to rely on them consistently. Furthermore, Pittsburgh’s trolley system is hardly comparable to Amsterdam’s. Its route is extremely limited while Amsterdam’s subways and trams travel to just about every corner of the city, even if it isn’t that frequent. Overall, I’ve been very impressed with the public transportation; it’s so convenient, cheap, and environmentally friendly!
Another part of Amsterdam culture that I really admire is the constant use of bikes. As soon as I stepped outside of the train for the first time upon arriving to the city, I saw a huge bicycle parking lot with more bikes in it than I’ve ever seen. Every local owns a bike, and it is common to commute to work on them. It’s environmentally friendly and good for the rider, but I’ve also seen how dangerous bikes can be. Here in Amsterdam, bicycles almost always have the right of way, and they moved fast. Pedestrians constantly have to look out for bikes when crossing any street as there are very few traffic lights. Although I’ve only been here a week, I’ve seen multiple pedestrians get hit by bikers.
There are some similarities between Amsterdam and Pittsburgh, however. I have found that in both cities people are generally really nice. I grew up in Pittsburgh, so I’ve always been accustomed to strangers being pretty friendly and welcoming. In other American cities, people aren’t always so kind. For example, in Philadelphia, I had a lot of bad experiences with generally rude people. Here in Amsterdam, most of the locals I’ve interacted with have been extremely friendly, accommodating, and welcoming! As a result, I feel very comfortable and safe here, which is part of why I love it so much!
A typical day here in the Netherlands is very different from a day in Pittsburgh. We start every morning off with the hotel breakfast, where they serve primarily lunch meats and breads. That is very different from what I am used to; it was difficult for me to adjust to such a different breakfast style.
Next, we take either public or private transport to a site visit or museum. Of course, it is very unusual for me to a visit a company or a museum when I am in Pittsburgh. For lunch, I’ve noticed that the food options are relatively limited. Despite the fact that there are so many different cultures represented here, the vast majority of restaurants serve sandwiches. That was also difficult for me to adjust to. In Pittsburgh and at Pitt, I eat a variety of cuisines each day easily. After lunch, we typically do another culture or business visit before getting dinner. Although life here is very different from at home, it’s a very nice kind of different – at least for two weeks!
