After a bit of a late start, I went off to explore the city. I grabbed lunch from a food cart underneath the Belfry and ate in Markt, an excellent spot for people-watching. I walked past innumerable chocolate and waffle shops, stopped briefly at the Church of our Lady (which houses Michelangelo's Madonna and Child) and then continued on to Begijnhof, a compound of white buildings originating from 1245 where a group of women have lived like nuns (but without takin...

The last few hours I spent in Amsterdam were short but sweet. Raquel and I got around to some souvenir shopping and then lunch in Chinatown at a restaurant with a sign stating 'where the Chinese go'. They weren't lying, we were the only non- Asian customers in the place. We spent the rest of our time just hanging out by a canal and talking (it's become part of our daily schedule by now). I connected with Raquel in a way that I can't explain and after only a coupl...