144: We Took the Kids to Europe Instead of Summer Camp. Part 4 of 5: Amsterdam

Welcome And Trip Mini Series

Jessica 0:00

Welcome to the Sugar Daddy Podcast, where we help you build a clear financial plan so you can feel confident and in control of your money. If you are an OG, welcome back. So glad to have you. And if you're new here, we're so glad that you chose today to listen to our podcast. This is going to be a special little mini series. We just got back from a month, almost a month in Europe. And we're going to tell you all about it. And we're going to tell you a little bit about how much we spent. We went to four different countries across four weeks as a family of four. So let's get into it.

SPEAKER_01 0:35

Sugar Daddy Podcast, yo. Learn how to make them pockets grow. Financial freedoms where we go. Smart investments, money flow.

Jessica 0:45

Welcome

Why Amsterdam Mattered To Us

Jessica 0:46

to the Sugar Daddy Podcast, where we help you build a clear financial plan so you can feel confident and in control of your money. We are recapping our trip to Europe. We just spent four weeks in Europe with our family, and we're taking you through our family adventure. And we are now in Amsterdam.

Brandon 1:06

Yes. So this is the one country on our trip that I actually had been to before.

Jessica 1:10

And I had not been to. And you know what? Again, it we are kind of in this like, do we move to Europe? Do we not? And for context, I was born and raised in Germany. Um, I have dual citizenship, our kids have dual citizenship. And so moving to Europe is actually like a very real option for us. Uh, we wouldn't have to jump through a whole bunch of hoops, not saying that it wouldn't be work, not saying that it wouldn't be hard, but we're legally allowed to be there. So this trip for us really was like a where do we want to be? Like, where did we feel really good? And I just had this like idea in my head that I would like be obsessed with Amsterdam. And I don't know why I felt that, but it was this like gut reaction of like, I'm gonna love it there. And it was I.

Brandon 1:56

Yeah, like and what she means by I, like we enjoyed it, like it was a place I would have 100% travel to again.

Jessica 2:01

Yes, and I think other places. Yes, I think that there's still so much more

The Idyllic Waterland Airbnb Stay

Jessica 2:07

to explore. We weren't there for very long. We had three nights. One of my dear friends from college lives there, so we got to spend a lot of time with him. Our kids adored him. We had a blast.

Brandon 2:18

Like they got like a third Funkal now.

Jessica 2:20

Funkal, absolutely. Like the badge has been given. Um, so we had a great time. Um, I think the little town that we were in, it was Waterland in Brook in Waterland. Uh, again, if you want any of the links to our Airbnbs, like they the hosts were so welcoming, so kind, you know, gave us a huge bag of ice, which I'm like, does she know that we were Americans and we needed ice? Because the way to my heart in the heat is give me a bag of ice.

Brandon 2:48

And a whole box of like a whole bag of beautiful cakes.

Jessica 2:52

Oh, she also left us a pint of strawberries. Like it she was just, they were so sweet. Um, the town was idyllic. I literally described it as a scene out of the holiday, but with flowers instead of snow.

unknown 3:06

Yes.

Jessica 3:06

Like it was you had to literally cross a little white wooden bridge to get into the Airbnb. Like it was so cute.

Brandon 3:14

It's like when you, it's like really classically what you think about with Amsterdam with all the little waterways.

Jessica 3:19

Yes, and the bikes and everybody like running you over with the bike.

Brandon 3:22

Like I all right, so I knew that Amsterdam like was like the capital city of bikes. I did not realize like to this degree. Literally, I feel like there's more bikes than cars.

Jessica 3:32

Oh, 100%. No, I think there are.

Brandon 3:35

Yeah.

Jessica 3:35

Like it was it was so cute. It really was adorable. We enjoyed our

Bike Culture And The 24K Tour

Jessica 3:40

time there. Um, we did a 24 kilometer bike tour. Do not recommend. Um, A, again, it was so hot.

Brandon 3:48

Yeah. Well, also, like we, all right, so we're not bikers. So, first of all, first and foremost.

Jessica 3:53

I used to cycle. I used to do soul cycle, like pretty religiously.

Brandon 3:58

And I used to cycle like on a on a regular weekly basis? Yes. I can't remember. Like, it might have been like Yeah, I did that.

Jessica 4:05

And like I had, you know, I had my own bike seat. I had the shoes, all the things. So, like, was I out street biking? No. Was I cycling for exercise? Yes.

Brandon 4:17

I think the last time that we'd been on a bike was a couple years ago.

Jessica 4:19

Yeah. And this was terrible. Like, I talking about it, like my butt still hurts.

Brandon 4:25

It was uh so it wasn't terrible. It was beautiful to see the countryside and the scenery. Um, I ended up having a bike that had a long cart in the front for the kids. For the kids. So I was also pushing an extra hundred extra hundred pounds on mine. And the way that the cart was, it wasn't like a three-wheel. So I was still on two wheels, having to balance them in the front, which was um, you know, a learning curve process to begin with. So yes, I definitely got my workout in.

Jessica 4:54

I think it could have been half the amount of time.

Brandon 4:56

Yes, half the amount of time probably would have been better. And then, like, also too, like in the future, if I did it, I would probably see if I could do an e-bike tour. Yeah, an e-bike tour.

Jessica 5:04

Or I have the option of maybe ask for a padded seat.

Brandon 5:07

Well, I think if you did an e-bike, it might have been different as far as like getting a little bit of a little bit of exercise in, but then also being able to use the um electric bike part when you needed to.

Jessica 5:16

And again, it was a hundred degrees.

Brandon 5:17

It was just it was hot.

Jessica 5:18

You know, when I booked this, it was supposed to be like mid to low 80s, and it ended up being 100, and it was just a lot.

Brandon 5:25

And then also like in the city where like the bike tour starts, you do have to navigate the biking of other people in the city. And this is the city that's known for biking and it's they're aggressive, so it's a lot going on around you.

Jessica 5:38

We tried to get our eight-year-old to ride her own bike, and then by the time we got through the city center part and got to the ferry, we were like, no, there's no way she could be.

Brandon 5:47

Oh, she would and the it's a good decision she did not because she would have never been able to bike that far.

Jessica 5:51

Yeah. I was worried about your mom. She had like a little like she was a little unbalanced, and then the the guide was like, here, put this helmet on. Like he was like, You're not riding without a helmet. She did end up falling at the very end, like five, not even five minutes from Luckily wasn't too bad of a fall.

Brandon 6:07

The place.

Jessica 6:08

But it was All in all, you have to be a confident biker. And you, even if you're not a confident biker, like you have to get in the right mindset of like, you're not gonna eat me alive today. Yeah.

Brandon 6:20

So, like my mindset, since I especially had the kids in my bike, was is that if you get in my way, I'm not swerving. Yeah. It's either we're both going down, I'm not going down by myself.

Jessica 6:29

Right. It's either we're both going or something. You have to have that mindset of like, it's gonna be both of us, it's not just gonna be me. And like you have to just be confident because they are the bikes are coming from all directions. If you're on the road, you're following the regular road traffic signs and rules. Um, but I mean, the bikes are coming from all directions and it can feel very overwhelming. Yeah. Yeah. So that was that was a lot. It was, you know, we got to see the windmills, we got to see cows and sheep and learn about the rising tides of the water and like it was just like also the the construction of um Amsterdam itself in regards to how like a it's really a created city. Yes, how they're basically like taking away the sand.

Brandon 7:13

They're like creating the land. The land.

Jessica 7:15

Yeah, they're creating the land. It's very interesting. So, like we had a good tour guide. Um, you know, we we did it, we checked the box. I don't know that I would need to do it again.

Brandon 7:24

The bike tour? Yeah, probably not.

Jessica 7:26

Yeah.

Brandon 7:26

Um but Amsterdam in itself, like there was a lot of like, you know, like I said, where we were staying was beautiful. So even just walking around the neighborhoods that we were um that we were staying in was beautiful.

Jessica 7:37

Absolutely idyllic. Um, we were about a 20-minute bus ride, a direct shot from Brook in Waterland to which I think means bridge. Probably. I don't know. I need to ask I think.

Brandon 7:49

I don't speak Dutch. I don't speak freaky dickie Dutch.

Jessica 7:52

It was about a 20-minute bus ride into Amsterdam. So I thought it was really nice that we were in the country and it was so cute and quaint, and that we weren't in the city. All of the places that I sent our friend who lives in Amsterdam, um, he was like, Yeah, you don't want to be there with the kids. No, that's not gonna be safe with the kids. Oh, that's gonna be gross with the kids. So I was like, Okay, what about this place? And he was like, Yes, it'll be perfect. And so easy, again, easy public transit. The bus was what, two euros and forty cents.

Brandon 8:22

And kids were free.

Jessica 8:23

Yes, for the adult and the kids were free, which was really nice. So again, very affordable to just use public transit and then and there you didn't even have to get like get a ticket.

Getting Around By Bus And Card Tap

Brandon 8:32

You could just tap your card each way on the bus. Yeah, you tap and you get on, you tap and you get off.

Jessica 8:38

That was one thing. Was it in France and definitely in Barcelona?

Brandon 8:45

France and Barcelona's public transportation was cheaper. Was cheaper.

Jessica 8:49

Yeah. But you had to go to a specific place to buy your ticket, which sometimes felt inconvenient. Yeah. Um now if it was.

Brandon 8:56

Because we didn't have the app. So for those people who were like, oh, you know, you could have just gotten the app. Yes, we understand that.

Jessica 9:01

Yeah, we could have gotten the app.

Brandon 9:02

We didn't do that.

Jessica 9:03

And depending on how long you're staying, you um could also get like a 12-hour, 24-hour, like you could do a multi-day pass, which might would have saved you money depending on instead of doing like one-off trips. So, you know, do the math, run the numbers. There are options. There are options, yeah. Um, the one thing that we did in Amsterdam that I thought was wonderful is

Visiting The Anne Frank House

Jessica 9:25

we went to the Anne Frank Museum. We started reading the diary with our kids uh prior to the trip. We should have started earlier. We did not end up finishing the diary before we got to the museum, but they have a child-friendly audio guide experience. And then they have you're in Anne Frank's house.

Brandon 9:47

Yes, the museum is the actual house's that she was hiding out in.

Jessica 9:51

Yes. So that was I thought it was very impactful. I think having those conversations again with our children, teaching them about very important parts of history. That is important to us. That is something we will always do, whether they learn it in school or not. They will learn it in our home. And our daughter is eight, our son is six. I think it was more impactful for her. But I'm I'm glad that we took them. And, you know, walking behind, like they got to see the bookcase, yeah, they got to walk through the rooms. I think it made an impact.

Brandon 10:20

It also sparks conversations that you know kids can understand at this age in regards to, you know, racial inequality, discrimination, you know, 100%. Unfortunately, the ugly side of humanity.

Jessica 10:33

Yeah. So highly recommend. Um, we need to finish. When now we're getting back into our routine, being at home. Our kids are about to start school again. So we'll get back to like our evening routine where we would read to them and we'll finish the diary. But um, I think that is definitely something I would recommend. It's very well done. It takes you about an hour to get through, so it's not this like long belabored thing, um, but has a lot of value.

Brandon 10:58

Yeah. And it's just, I mean, unfortunately, with you know, where we're at in the US, it gives you also some real perspective in that I think not to go on this whole long political, you know, tangent, but it gives you perspective that people in the United States, I think, too often think that certain things can't happen here. And they think that, you know, oh, you know, what happened in um, you know, Nazi Germany happened overnight. No, it did not.

Jessica 11:24

Right.

Brandon 11:24

It was over a 20-year process for it to happen. And to think that history can't repeat itself is is ridiculous.

Jessica 11:31

And terrifying.

Brandon 11:32

So it gives you some real perspective. And unfortunately, you know, one of the things that, you know, for people that um understand history and study it, there are often there's too many similarities going on in the United States currently. You can be upset about me saying that, but it's not my opinion, it's literally facts in regards to what we're seeing.

Jessica 11:48

Yeah. Well, and also the playbook that is being used.

Brandon 11:51

Playbook is the same.

Jessica 11:53

Is the same. So it's literally like they are trying to repeat this history.

Brandon 11:58

So like I I've refused to have an argument with someone who hasn't put in the time and the research that I've had.

Jessica 12:03

Yeah.

How History Echoes In The US

Jessica 12:04

Um, just to completely switch gears as a call out, especially if you're traveling with kids and you are a coffee drinker like we are. Coffee shops in Amsterdam are not coffee shops.

Brandon 12:17

No.

Jessica 12:17

They are dispensaries. Yes. So um we found that out one morning when we were like, oh, let's stop for coffee. We literally went to a place that said coffee shop. The smell, I will say, was very strong, but I was like, oh, it's Amsterdam. Yeah. So I didn't think anything of it. And then there was a guy sitting outside smoking, and um, he was like, Oh, the kids can't go in. And I it didn't even click for me.

Brandon 12:42

We're like a coffee shop.

Jessica 12:43

He's like, Yeah,

Coffee Shops Are Not For Coffee

Jessica 12:44

he looked at us like it's not that kind of coffee shop.

Brandon 12:47

I was like, oh so you need a cafe. We're not bad parents.

Jessica 12:50

We didn't ever so you need a cafe in order to go get actual coffee and do not go into a coffee shop if you are looking for a beverage. So just a fun little call out. But um, I mean, I think Amsterdam has a lot of history also that we didn't really get into. Um, you know, it's very cute. You see the bikes everywhere, you have the bridges and the canals, and they had, you know, the riverboat cruises and the booze cruises and all of those things going. Um, there was plenty of shopping to do. You got to get the little Dutch pancakes, those are delicious. Um I think there was more to explore. And I think that maybe when it comes to like the Netherlands as a whole, maybe Amsterdam proper is not where we would potentially want to be. But I would go back and explore more.

Brandon 13:41

Yeah, because the the one the one time that I'd been to um the Netherlands previously was when I was 18 for a soccer tournament, and it was in an area called Harlem.

Jessica 13:49

Oh.

Brandon 13:49

Um, so it was outside of Amsterdam, and I was 18, I wasn't really paying attention to all architecture and stuff out there.

Jessica 13:56

Right. So um it was definitely I think it was dirtier than Barcelona, definitely dirtier than France than uh when we were in Paris.

Brandon 14:05

Unfortunately.

Jessica 14:06

Uh you know, it's a big city, obviously.

Brandon 14:08

It's not any dirtier than like major U.S. cities. Like, but it was definitely like it was noticeably coming from the other Barcelona and from Paris.

Jessica 14:15

We were like, ew, it stinks here. Oh, why is there trash on the ground? You know, that's it.

Brandon 14:19

It's also the water doesn't help that there's a bunch of water there. That also tends to lend to a certain smell.

Jessica 14:23

Yeah, that that too.

Airbnb Price Breakdown And Groceries

Jessica 14:25

Um for our Airbnb, we had it was like a guest house. It was very cute. Again, it was not in Amsterdam, but it was adorable, had air conditioning. Um, we had a full bathroom downstairs, full bathroom upstairs, had a living room, had a kitchen. Um, we had a bedroom that did not have a door. It was kind of like off of the living area, but it was fine. Because I took around the corner. And then our kids and um Brandon's mom were upstairs. There was, again, it was more of an open space, like kind of a converted attic space. Um, that's where the washer was. It had air conditioning, it had a nice big bathroom, little kitchenette upstairs. Little kitchenette. It was, I thought it was great for what it was and for the cost. We spent $1,445 for the three nights there, which I thought was a good price.

Brandon 15:14

And the nice thing is like where we were sitting at outside of this, uh, you know, the main downtown area of Amsterdam, outside of there, the uh public transportation was phenomenal.

Jessica 15:23

Yeah, no complaints.

Brandon 15:24

Like, so you're not in the like you can get the same quality of public transportation, even if you're not in like, you know, a city atmosphere.

Jessica 15:31

Yeah, and we just took the bus. We didn't take the subway or anything. We just took the bus into town and then we walked from there.

Brandon 15:38

But it was so easy to then once again, you know, the same theme, the groceries were definitely affordable.

Jessica 15:43

Yes.

Brandon 15:43

Um, I definitely remember like, you know, going and like, oh, this is all I'm paying for this, you know, amount of groceries. I'd be like, this is nice.

Jessica 15:48

Yeah. No, that was very nice. There was one thing, um, you we ran out of lotion and you were like, I wanna, you know, I want to buy this lotion. And you had picked up a bottle of Nivea and it was like 14 euro. That was and I was like, absolutely not, we're leaving for Germany tomorrow. And I was like, you're gonna pay a third of that. And I'm glad that I was correct because when I went to the store in Germany and I got you Nivea, I sent you a picture of the whole shelf and it was like under five euro for the same size.

Brandon 16:18

Yeah, I didn't know that I also didn't know it was a German company.

Jessica 16:21

So I was like, no, no, no, we're not spending that in in Amsterdam.

Brandon 16:25

And in case, in case you people don't understand, black people do put lotion on every single day. I've just seen on social media the you know other people of lighter pigmentation. Lighter pigmentation. Don't necessarily put lotion on every day. And we put lotion on every day.

Jessica 16:41

Oh my gosh. Well, and I I will say we packed in a way because there were certain items that I did want to buy while over there. And so we didn't pack like our big bottles of body wash and things like that because I wanted to buy them while there. A, because they're more affordable, b, because they have better ingredients, and C, because I like buying bath and body products in Europe just period.

Brandon 17:06

But also, I mean, but but like overall, like it was a great experience. Once again, like I said, uh, we got to, you know, visit Jess's friend that she hadn't seen forever. Yeah. And he got to meet our kids, and we got to watch, um, he came over and we watched um the Netherlands versus Sweden, and he had brought the kids like hats and the scarves to, you know, for the team. So that was really cute.

Jessica 17:26

It was it was just a nice, like, it was just a nice couple of days.

Brandon 17:30

Yes.

Jessica 17:31

Yeah. Hot, but really, really nice. So would recommend, would definitely stay at the Airbnb again.

Brandon 17:37

100%.

Jessica 17:38

We um when our friends, when our friend came over, he saw a sign on the outside of the house and he was like, Oh, this used to be a dentist's office. And I was like, I have no idea. I don't speak Dutch. So when I asked uh the the homeowners the next day, I said, Was this a dentist office? And he said, Yeah, I had this practice for like over 40 years. And then when I closed the practice during COVID, you know, we converted this into an Airbnb. And so they were just absolutely lovely. The home was lovely. I thought it was a great accommodation and very affordable. And the town was so, so cute. Yes, like absolutely would go back there.

Points And Miles For The Next Leg

Jessica 18:14

So from Amsterdam, we flew to Nuremberg, Germany. And of course, we did that with points and miles again. I think those flights were uh 9,000 points per person. Um, our flight from Barcelona to Paris was 4,000 points a person. And then our flight home from Munich back to North Carolina was 40,000 points per person. So all right, the last leg of our trip, my hometown, Nuremberg, Germany. Hope you'll stay tuned and tune in next week for that one. Talk to you soon. Don't forget, Benjamin Franklin said an investment in knowledge pays the best interest. You just got paid. Until next time.

SPEAKER_01 19:00

Sugar Daddy Podcast, yo. Learn how to make the pockets grow. Finance and freedoms where we grow. Smart investments, money flow.

Closing Thoughts And How To Connect

Jessica 19:10

Thanks for listening to today's episode. We are so glad to have you as part of our Sugar Daddy community. If you learned something today, please remember to subscribe, rate, review, and share this episode with your friends, family, and extended network. Don't forget to connect with us on social media at the Sugar Daddy Podcast. You can also email us your questions you want us to answer for our past the sugar segments at thesugardaddypodcast at gmail.com or leave us a voicemail through our Instagram.

SPEAKER_02 19:39

Our content is intended to be used and must be used for information for the public. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment based upon your own personal circumstances. We should take independent money to advisor reliance professional and connection with or infinitely research and verify any information you find in our pockets and which to rely upon, whether for the purpose of making an investment decision or otherwise.