Amsterdam Part 2

Hello again, and welcome to the second part of my Amsterdam trip!
So I promised to mention three more things in my trip that I utterly enjoyed and those were the street performers, two Dutch chess players, the wonderful Heineken beer, and the method of transport in Amsterdam.

I'll start off with the street performers because I spent a bit of my time in Amsterdam watching them. There were a number of different types of street performers, some who just dressed up in costumes for the tourists to have pictures made with them for a donation. While others were "professional" performers doing dangerous tricks, but they still only accepted donations.

Those who dressed in costumes included Batman, Darth Vader, Aquaman, and some sea type creature. They merely stood on a booth and waited for people to come up and give them a donation. On the days I was there, the same people were in the same places every day and I believe that those donations make for a full time job.

A definite sight to see was the professionals who started their performance by just yelling really loud "Okay let's get started!" and walking around drawing peoples' attention. I watched as one street performer had to do this three times in order to get enough people to look at him and stop what they were doing, after this he lit a torch and raised it high in the air to draw even more attention. After talking for a bit explaining what he was doing and such he started the performance. Now I have seen jugglers on TV, but seeing one in person is something completely different. You are there and watching them risk their life for entertainment, and you feel a sort of responsibility if anything was to happen.

This particular act involved a sharp machete, which he used to cut an apple, a torch that was on fire, and finally an apple. He placed his briefcase vertically on the cobblestones and stood on it, which was a feet of itself. Then he had members of the audience hand him the torch, machete, and apple. The amazing thing about the juggling performance was not only did he juggle but he ate the apple when he had it in his hand!

Even though was a life risking act the performer only accepted donations for it - though they were highly encouraged. What was even more interesting was the method of donation, most donations in the States have people place money in a bin or something that leaves them anonymous; this was not the case here. The performer proudly stood and held out his hat for donations. There was a certain connection with the person then after him seeing you giving when you could walk away. I proudly gave both times I watched performances and I was surprised to see people not pay a cent.

After staying around for a while I saw the act start up again and I realized that this is their complete living, they don't do this on the side, they depend on donations. That is a very unique way to live life, purely on the hope that someone will choose to give money. I find it very admirable.

There was also a constant sound of music on the streets of Amsterdam. With many people singing, playing guitar, playing steel drums, playing anything; it conveyed a very high level of love for music. Music, for those who don't know is one of my other passions. I love playing the drums, the rhythm and beat, the whole essence of music is uplifting.

One amazing guitarist was the typical dreadlocks, baggy clothes, and laying by the street just playing music. I could tell he wasn't looking for money, or anything, just being with the people and sharing the love of music. After listening to a few songs I thanked him and gave him a couple of Euros.

These types of experiences I find are far worth more than the average donations. Most museums and shows perform for tourists, but in reality most of the actual culture never goes to the events. Therefore, by paying more for them you lose out by not paying a few Euros to listen to music, or see a street performer that people are exposed to every day.

Truly an amazing experience in such a short time.