Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands.
Amsterdam is the largest city and capital of the Netherlands.
The network of canals is characteristic, and famous tourist attractions such as the “Women in the Decorative Windows” and the “Anne Frank House”.
The Netherlands was originally a part of the Holy Roman Empire, then became a part of Spain, which had Spain as its suzerain, and in 1568 the independence movement began, and in 1648 the independence was approved, so it is actually a very young country.
It was a country with deep ties to Japan, as Tokugawa Ieyasu allowed trade in the early 1600s during Japan’s Edo national isolation period, However, at that time, it was not yet recognized as an official country in Europe.
I left London by train and crossed the Straits of Dover by ship.
After all, a big ship makes me feel good.
I aimed straight for the line of France-Spain-Portugal.
I was with full of dreams and hopes.
When I was on the train, the train suddenly stopped at a place that is not a station, and the conductor came around to check passenger’s passport one by one.
…I was sent back to Belgium….
People who were not allowed to enter France and sent back to Belgium like me.
Interrogation at immigration inspection at Heathrow Airport in England and refusal to enter France…
What the hell is this !?
I need you to let me through France, I want to …
See flamenco and bullfighting in Spain,
Eat delicious fish in Portugal,
Cross over to the African continent.
Possible reasons of refusal are long-term stays in Australia and the UK with tourist visas.
Around this time, France was in terror alert mode, and long-term travelers like me were easily suspected of being latent terrorists.
Speaking of Japanese terrorists, I still have a firm memory of the Japanese Red Army.
Also, just as England was plagued by illegal immigrants such as boat people, It seems that France was also a melting pot and had strict restrictions.
And today’s myself, Of course, like the last time, I have no “today’s hotel” reservation.
Okay, okay, then let me go north.
Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands.
I ended up going north to Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
In this town, I basically slept in the premises of the station.
Because there were a lot of families and backpackers huddled together in the corner of the station. It may be not allowed, but it may not be cracked down.
In Amsterdam, I walked around the city and saw “Women in the Decorative Windows” and “Anne Frank House”, etc.
During my stay in Amsterdam, I became friends with a German man at a cafe. he asked me to stay at a boat hotel, so I decided to stay for the night with him. Amsterdam is famous for that canals.
I had no information about the Europe at all, so he taught me various things about Europe.
Interestingly, what we had in common was we were doing something like backpacking, but we both were traveling with sports bags that were hard to move around.