Hoi from Amsterdam!

Hoi!

That's how they say Hello in Dutch. As I am writing now on board of Thalys, in two hours time I'll be saying Bonjour! This is the worst time to travel around Europe as the weather is unpredictable and bad. I had to stay back in Den Bosch for 1 more night before going into Amsterdam due to the heavy snow. I heard the traffic going into Amsterdam is so bad that it only cleared at 2,30 am. That leaves us with just 1 night in Amsterdam.

Lucky I am now on the Thalys and is on time for my trip to Paris. Many trains were cancelling their schedule due to the heavy snowfall. I was so afraid that they will cancel my train too. Phew..

Anyways, one of the must try while in Amsterdam is the Haring. The trip will not be complete without at least trying to eat one Haring. Haring is actually a the slimy little fish sold in street side stalls that the Dutch can’t seem to get enough of. And my boss strongly advised me to try one of these.

Instead of chomping the whole haring down my throat, I prefer it to be cut into pieces as it looks less scary than swallowing the whole fish. The haring is served with diced onions and pickles which makes it nicer to eat. The fish is totally raw. It's something like sashimi but of course sashimi comes in a pretty looking platter.

The cost of this is 4 Euros.

You're supposed to eat the whole fish this way but I prefer to have it pieces by pieces.

It might be a little fishy for some people as the taste tends to linger in your palate long after that. However, it was indeed a nice experience and I don't mind eating it again except that my breath smells like onions and it might not be very pleasant if you plan to kiss someone after that! haha..