Deported? Check.: Marry me Amsterdam

Do you remember when you were a little kid and you would say "I love ice cream" and then your smart-ass friend, brother, sister, etc would reply "why don't you marry it then?" Well, that's how I feel about Amsterdam. Not the smart-ass part, but the marrying part. I want to marry Amsterdam. I love this city!

By far my favorite European city so far and hard to imagine another I will fall for as hard in my future travels. I can't explain exactly why - it just has an essence about it that makes me want to sell all of my things (except of course my shoes - that would be crazy talk), put the dogs on a plane, and move here. Most Americans just think of Amsterdam as the epicenter of legal vices, but that isn't it at all. (Ok - maybe a teeny,weeny little bit of it).

It is a beautiful city with a live and let live attitude. Without being even more dramatic, it was a bit like finding "the one." You don't know why they're the one, you just know it. That's how I felt. The only problem, of course, would be that it would feed my little addiction problem. My close and personal friends know the one. No, not the shoe one. The french fry one. The best french fries/pomme frites I've ever had were here (sorry I topped them with ketchup Stephen - I know I looked like an American).

They also drive on the right side of the road, but if I move here, no car for me, I'm buying a bike and a rowboat. Now I've found the city I love, I just need to find a cute Dutchman with a big enough houseboat for me, Ithaca, and Avery. UK immigration has nothing to worry about now... If I were going to illegally migrate, it would be Holland all the way.

Some of the highlights: flower markets, the canals, red light district, pomme frites and pancakes, Dutch masters, houseboats, and liberals.