Topdeck: Amsterdam

This was it - the last stop on our epic journey all the way from Istanbul. The atmosphere was definitely affected by the knowledge that we only had two nights left, but it didn’t make our time in Amsterdam any less special.

We did the usual sightseeing before visiting the Heineken Brewery. What you can’t see under my brewer’s apron is my David Hasselhof t-shirt that I bought in Berlin, but that’s probably for the best!

We walked around the flea market where we found one of the best souvenirs ever – an 8XL Amsterdam t-shirt. Unfortunately it was a bit tight on Matt.

Of course, what trip to Amsterdam would be complete without a live sex show? Quite typically we were given front-row seats. In a way I’m glad I went, but I will never be able to shake the image of a 40+ year old Dutch bloke winking directly at me while he was on the job. Harrowing stuff.

Before we knew it our last night had come around. We began with a big group meal at a Chinese restaurant before heading onto an “all you can drink cruise”. This is where the 8XL shirt came in handy (apart from shortly after this picture was taken when all three of us were almost pushed into the canal).

To start, we were given little bottles of Flügel. When you’d finished you had to stick the cap to your head – this photo probably explains why I remember very little after the cruise.

The beer and wine kept flowing and the 8XL shirt made its way around our group. We may well have gone to a bar or a club, but I have absolutely no recollection.

My only other memory of that night was performing as “The Rude Rockband” in the vests we’d bought somewhere in Eastern Europe. I may have been a bit drunk, but I can say with no hesitation that it was the best musical performance since Queen played at Live Aid.

Morning came around (along with an almighty hangover) and it was time to say goodbye and head to Dover. It had been a brilliant and life changing three weeks in so many different ways and the memories made on this trip will stay with me forever. It’s hard to put into words the experience of a tour with such a varied group of people for such a long time. I guess it’s easier to say only this:

“People don’t make trips, trips make people.”