Hamburg & Amsterdam

Just got back from a dizzying bus trip across Europe
to Hamburg & Amsterdam. 20 odd hours on a coach
crammed with Europeans really does your head in.
Border checks were rather strict after the Sept 11th
incident. Couple of Middle Eastern folks & Koreans got
hassled by the nazi-esqe 'Polizei'. Fortunately for
me, I totally avoided getting cavity searched. :)
Singapore passports rule!

Hamburg's a great city. Got a good deal hanging out
with the locals. Surprisingly, the Germans seem
friendlier than I expected them to be. Guess they
hardly meet tourist there, especially a dodgy asian
dude from Singapore. One striking feature about
Hamburg is the city's affinity towards social order &
efficiency. The Germans never talk on the trains. It's
really weird. Everyone just sits there, looking
straight ahead.

But they do know how to party hard. Got my ass hauled
over to a drum & bass party by the docks. The club was
housed in a run down, vacant building with bordered up
windows. You could see the steam coming out through
the door because of the packed, sweaty bodies inside.
The vibe was amazing.

Then it was over to Amsterdam. The city where sex is
for sale & the drugs almost legal. Brilliant. It's a
lovely city as well with its quaint narrow houses and
canals. So it wasn't all weed & porn. I actually
managed to get a little cultural enrichment as well.

Well, now I'm back in gloomy London waiting for
classes to start. Kinda realized today that I haven't
had seafood in about 6 months. Really depressing.

28/01/2002