My commute

Before I moved here I told everyone my plan for Day 1 in Amsterdam was as follows: 

1. Get to apartment
2. Buy bicycle
3. Bike to bakery for bread and cheese store for something delicious

What actually happened looked more something like this:

1. Get to apartment
2. Spend longer negotiating terms of apartment with owner than I anticipated
3. Say goodbye to owner, take possession of apartment
4. Look blearily in the mirror at my exhausted and emotionally drained face, hold back tears
5. Go over my friend Hannah's house, be comforted and make quiche.

Ok, so I didn't exactly follow my original plan.  In fact, I am on Day 11 of My Life In Amsterdam and I have yet to buy a bicycle!  I think I am intimidated to find a second-hand bike that is the desired perfect combination of "cruddy-enough-so-no-one-will-steal-it" and "useable-so-it's-actually-fun-to-ride-it".  Also, I heard a bike lock is going to cost me almost as much as the actual bike itself.  I am, however, already the proud owner of not one but TWO cute bike bells.  Hey, at least I come prepared!

So, as long as I have no bike, I take the tram to work and then walk through an alley to get to my work building.  I thought I'd share a little bit...

Here are some pictures I took this morning on my way to work.  I love this alley - even at 9 in the morning there are people smoking in the coffee shops and old men drinking beers in the cafés.  (Reminder note: you can click on all pictures to enlarge them to get a better look)

And then this street is the street where I work.  See that orange "Magic Mushroom" over on the left?  Yeah, I work right above that.  Top floor.