Bibliography

lonelyplanet.com- 5 A's, Climate, Health & Safety
flightcenter.ca- searching flights
Oanda.com- currency
voyage.gc.ca- embassy info/ travel warnings
http://www.holland.com/global/Tourism.htm - basic info 5 A's

Activities

I have done so many activities in the Netherlands I can't even remember them all but the ones that I really enjoyed was shopping in the local markets and getting a  taste of the different things the locals eat. I also visited the Van Gogh museum and got to see all the beautiful paintings on display, unfortunately I wasn't allowed to take pictures for security reasons. The Anne Frank house is something that is very important and I made a point that I must go there, it is located in Amsterdam and is now used as a museum style attraction. Anne Frank was a part of history and she made a difference so I thought it was important to visit this place. Another activity that I will be doing in the Netherlands is biking because that is how I plan to get around locally to most places. Biking is cheap so I wont have a car and be constantly paying for gas and the rental cost per day. Another activity to go to is the De Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles. This is a place in Delft where the Delft Blue pottery items are made. I would love to go to this to see the process of how they are made, and then bring some home. The Rotterdam zoo is a place where I am excited to go as well because every time I travel I always go to the zoo if they have one!

My Daily Budget

My Daily budget for each day is: $150
Rounding up a little bit for extras it is going to cost me $5000 + flight
to travel for 4 weeks

Motivators & Barriers

My motivators that brought me to Holland was my family connection. History fascinates me and the fact that I can go to the place where my Oma and Opa grew up is just amazing. I have always wanted to travel to the Netherlands so I am so glad I have decided to pursue it. The large amount of canals is amazing and another motivator to see.
Some motivators that other people may have travelling to Holland would be possibly the Red light district in Amsterdam and also some of the café's.
I don't have very many barriers other than the language that is a little bit difficult if they don't know English but usually you can find someone who does know English to translate or help you. Another Barrier for me is being so far from my family and the distance being so long. A barrier for someone may be that it is very condensed because there is a large population with very little area. A barrier for me would be the red light district. I would not want to go near that area so that is a barrier for me and possibly other people as well.

Attractions

The Cultural attractions that bring me to want to go to the Netherlands:
Windmills
Canals and tours (Haarlem)
Dykes
houses along canals and their Architecture
the people living there
Church of St. Bavo a beautiful church with amazing architecture in Haarlem
Madurodam- miniature city built to display how the cities became a city.
Euromast tower- in Rotterdam
Erasmus Bridge -Rotterdam
Apeldoorn, Hoog Soeren Village where my opa was born.

The Biophysical attractions that bring me to the Netherlands:
The beautiful huge fields of gardens
Clingendael Park- Japanese garden in the Hague.
Harbour in Rotterdam
The whole country is below sea level which is really neat/ unusual!

Amenities

I have several amenities that are very important to me when travelling and would not make my trip very fun if I didn't have these, luckily being in the Netherlands all of these are easily able to find:
1. Clean Water: I need to have clean water because the last thing that I want while travelling by myself is to be sick and then have strangers looking after me. I prefer when I am sick that I am home and can be taken care of by my family.
2. A wash room to myself: I am not to keen on sharing a wash room with strangers which is why in every hotel I made sure that I had my own private wash room that I did not have to share and I can use whenever I want.
3. Hot water: If I do not have a very warm shower every night I get very upset. So this is why I need my hot water, having only cold water would ruin my time.
4. Food: this amenity to me is important because I do not like having completely different meals that I am not used to. Which is why being in Holland is great cause I know the foods their and I also know that they don't just have one type of food they have all kinds.

Getting Around

Since I am in the Netherlands I have decided to get around the way  the majority of the Dutch get around by Bike. Renting a bike was my best option because I did not want to have the hassle of taking my own bike on the plane ride. Biking around the Netherlands is a great form of transportation and plus I am getting in shape while doing it! There are soo many bikes everywhere so when I lock up my bike it is hard to find it again, because of this I attached a Canadian Flag so it is easy to find!
If I am going for a long distance that is not very bike friendly I have decided to use the train system which is a reasonable price and can take me almost anywhere I want to go.
The cities I am visiting are :
Apeldoorn
Rotterdam
Delft
The Hague
Haarlem

Accomodations

All my accommodations are reasonable prices that I can save money on and have a comfortable stay where I have my privacy. Each is a hotel that has a private bathroom which is important to me because I like to have one to myself.
I am travelling to 6 different cities so I will be staying in 6 different hotels. Here are the hotels that I will be staying at:
1. Amsterdam- the conscious hotel Museum Square, this hotel is a comfortable hotel with reasonable rates and a close distance to the city. The conscious hotel company is focusing on sustainable hotels that are eco friendly.  http://www.conscioushotels.com/hotelsMuseumsquare/rooms



2. Apeldoorn- A very nice hotel called the Hampshire Hotel which is located just outside Apeldoorn and has breakfast included which is AWESOME! So I can save money! The hotels seem to be fairly pricy so I settled with a $82 per night which is cheap for the area.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/nl/apeldoorn.en-gb.html?aid=306395;label=apeldoorn-qc_OT9wQAihSZcHZB8lz5AS8163978629;sid=7bd82581302d454d742ad1e0723c4c5b;dcid=1;checkin=2012-06-19;checkout=2012-06-20;srfid=fab7af095269a42c41060135f3329da6X1

3. Rotterdam- The hotel I will be staying at in Rotterdam is a cozy small hotel that had a VERY great price which is why I chose it. This hotel is on a street outside of the busy areas so it isn't too loud at night when you are trying to get a good night sleep. http://www.travellerspoint.com/accommodation/33747-Eurohotel-Centrum/

Delft- The soul inn hotel is a very nice small place which is located close to the train stop so when I need to travel it is at easy access. http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Soul-Inn/Delft/13467?



The Hague-This hotel is located in a nice neighbourhood with many different restaurants and places to shop right around it. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g188633-d620710-Reviews-Staten_Hotel-The_Hague_Zuid_Holland.html

Haarlem- this is a very nice hotel which is located in a nice location with many places to go around. The hotel includes internet access as well as laundry machines which is perfect for when I need to wash some of my clothes.http://www.eurobookings.com/haarlem-hotels-nl/ambassador-city-centre-hotel.html?q=start:2012-02-20;end:2012-02-21;rmcnf:1[1,0];rad:10;dsti:5311;dstt:1;dsts:Haarlem;lbl:ggducaen-bc-2145280;cur:CAD;sort:0_desc;frm:1;

Arrival Accommodation

I am finally at my Hotel! It is 9:00 am and I am so tired because my flight was through the night. I landed in Schiphol International Airport at 7:45 and then travelled by taxi to the Conscious Hotel Museum Square which I got a great deal for $55 per night. The rooms are smoke free and have internet access which means that I can keep blogging! I spoke to the lady at the front desk and she told me that there is a tram stop right in front of the Hotel which is great if I want to head into town. Also, the hotel is within walking distance of the Van Gogh museum and more tourist sights. I plan on having a relaxing rest of my day today just getting settled in and then begin my journey tomorrow! 

Culture Shock!

Today I begin my journey! Being in the Netherlands has created a sort of culture shock that is exciting and frustrating. I enjoyed hearing the people speaking in Dutch but also found it hard to communicate with them when I needed important information or directions somewhere. It was also quite a surprise to me driving past down town Amsterdam and seeing Café's where you can smoke drugs freely. I am not very used to this so it will take some time for me to adjust. Something that I thought I might have troubles adapting to was the food. The food has a very large variety so it doesn't seem to bother me as I am not stuck with one type of food and no other options. I am also used to some of the foods because I have tried them from my own home and my Oma's cooking yummm!

Climate

The weather in the Netherlands is fabulous! The average temperature all year is 16 degrees. July and August are known as the months for the hottest temperatures with a high of 22 degrees. Seeing as it is June now, and I am travelling in late June and early July it is a very nice temperature that is not to cool or not hot. Holland usually has mild winters and cool summers. I always bring a light jacket or sweater along just in case it gets a little bit cold as well as a umbrella just in case it decides to rain.

Making sure that I am Healthy to travel!

Everyone knows that when travelling to another country you need to see if you have to have certain shots or immunizations. Fortunately, there are no required shots that you must have before entering the Netherlands. A few shots are recommended such as but are not mandatory:
Diphtheria
Tetanus
Measles
Mumps
Rubella
Polio
Hepatitis B

                It is suggested that you have these shots at least 6 weeks before your departure date. Seeing a doctor before I leave is important as well just for a regular health check making sure that I am healthy to travel. I have packed a  small first aid kit with things that may help me if I am not feeling well or get hurt. In my first aid kit I have:

-some Advil/ Tylenol
-sunscreen
-bandages
-sanitizer
-scissors
-tweezers
-safety pins
And MORE!