Jour 17 (part 2)- The Flying Pig Hostel

So I used to think hostels were like those straight out of the horrific, gruesome,and disgusting movie appropriately named "Hostel". After seeing the movie with my sister, I promised myself I'd never stay in one of those creepy places. Well, I lied because that's exactly what I did the second I got into Amsterdam. When booking our trip, Natalia really wanted to stay at this one hostel called The Flying Pig. She said it was the second best hostel in Europe behind the number 1 hostel which is in Interlochin, Switzerland. I took her word for it, and b/c we were going a day early, we booked a room for 2 in a 21 person room. BEST DECISION EVER!

I am so glad we stayed there. When we arrived, we went to find our hostel and check in. It was in the downtown main area which was convenient and when you walked in it had everything a world traveler would want. It had a bar/coffee station with a pool table and bar stools. That's cool because no where else in a hostel does it have a bar. Even better, they had a "smoking room" where people spend a good amount of their day(s)and night(s) just smoking and talking. What makes this room even cooler is the giant floor bed they make. Tons of people lay there. It's great because you meet so many cool and interesting people. Also, they have a room called the "Happy room" downstairs where they serve morning breakfast and there's tables and a giant TV for people to watch. How great!

We checked in and set our stuff down and then went straight to a coffee shop. There, I introduced myself to these 5 guys from Liverpool and we played black jack and smoked. Pretty cool guys. Their accents were so strong tho, I didnt know what they were saying half of the time, and they were speaking English!

After Natalia and I got food (duh) and I discovered my love for chocolate covered Belgium waffles. Yes, you heard me right. So they make these waffles and after they have cooled, they dip one side in any flavor of syrup--chocolate, white chocolate, strawberry, banana, choc and nuts, etc. I'm pretty much naming you all of the flavors I had because that's how much I loved them and couldn't control myself! After dinner and many waffles, we explored the streets. The city is extremely interesting and there is a lot to do. There were so many people out which was surprising. The shops had cool clothes and there were many souvenir shops, which I will hit up later in the trip. After, it was like 7 p.m. and we went back to the hostel to chill in the smoking room. There, we met the coolest chick named Naina. She was from Chicago. She was on a vacation from her job at a chemical company and wanted to go to Amsterdam. Hey, I would too if I needed a break. She was 23 and super chill. We hung out with her all night, as well as this cool guy named Jeff who was also from the states but has been living outside Amsterdam for the past months for a job. He comes to the hostel all of the time and chills.

I'm pretty sure I spent a good 5 and a half hours in the smoking room because Natalia and I didn't leave until 12:30 am. By then we were so tired, sleep was inevitable. Thus, we went up to our 21 person bedroom and passed out. It was a great great stay at The Flying Pig.