The UVIth trip to Amsterdam was an unforgettable experience. Once we stepped off the train we were flooded with images of bicycles and trams on the way to our hotel. As it was a late night, we had a good night's sleep and visited the Van Gogh museum in the morning. This took us through a biographical journey of his life showing his interests and family, as well as his artwork. It also involved artists he inspired and those he was inspired by. Much of his work was extremely moving and made a poignant impact on many of us.

Afterwards we took a canal trip basking in the sunshine whilst listening to the running commentary on the history of Amsterdam. During the evening we wandered in the square and admired the sights over dinner.

The next morning we made our way over to Amsterdam's most famous attraction, the Reichmuseum. This contained the works of many famous artists, in particular Rembrandt, whose art inspired freestyle painting. The historical backgrounds of many of the paintings helped us to gain an idea of their purpose. We then visited a glorious flower market where we bought tulip bulbs.

On the third day we paid a trip to Anne Frank's house. I knew it would be a good experience, but many of us underestimated its ability to portray the harrowing events of the Holacaust. We were shocked at the size of the house and severe conditions that the families lived in. We then entered a room which questioned us on our political and moral beliefs, on aspects such as religious freedom, demonstrative freedom and freedom of censosrship.

The Amsterdam trip not only enlightened us culturally but delivered us a wonderful last momentum of Alton Convent VIth form life.

Emelia UVIth

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