In August, Steve and I visited Matthijs and Jana in Amsterdam. It took me a while to write this article because the trip still feels too good to be true, especially after all the misfortunes that happened in the past two years. I still remember how we promised to travel the world together in the end of 2019, when everyone else started to leave the Bay Area. We lived in a very different world back then, and little did we know what chaos awaited us. Thankfully, everything started to feel a little more normal when we were able to see Felix and many of our friends at our wedding reception (and the incredible video that made me cry on the spot). When we were finally able to get the whole group together again in November 2021 for turducken, it really felt like a dream come true. After our trip to Amsterdam, I finally feel like we are picking back up from where we left off in early 2020, before the pandemic changed everyone’s life.
Although I have my fair share of complaints about Stanford, I know I will forever be thankful to Stanford for the friends I met there. We started with a lot of excitement together as first-year PhD students, supported each other through all kinds of challenges and frustration from our research, built the BEST memories together with our camping trips and different adventures, helped each other explore the next steps of our careers, celebrated our defenses with all kinds of themed parties, and saw each other continue to grow into the people we want to be after graduation. I respect them, see the best parts of them, and enjoy every moment I spent with them — I am so proud of everything we have accomplished together. Matthijs and Jana are perhaps the most similar to Steve and me. They enjoy life in a similar way we do, and I know I can always count on them. Callisto showed me courage, and no matter where she is in the world, she constantly inspires me to go beyond my limits. Felix has one of the most beautiful hearts I know and showed me how to appreciate life from another perspective. (And I married Steve — enough said.) I love everyone in this group and I always want to take care of them. During our first weekend in Einbeck, Uli called us the “Stanford family” and welcomed us back to Einbeck again. I really felt it — I am a part of another family, and I am sure I will visit them again in Einbeck, or anywhere else in the world.
We went back to Einbeck briefly and revisited the trip and the people that brought us so much joy in 2019. After we got back to Amsterdam, we did not rush to tick off all the tourist attractions. (In fact, we did not have enough time for that because I was working remotely the entire time.) Instead, we just did the normal things we used to do together (plus a baby) and added some Amsterdam flavor to everything we did. We prepared and ate every meal together, cleaned up, took turns to entertain baby Lorena, and walked around in different parts of Amsterdam after dinner every day, when Matthijs and Jana would tell us stories about the city. Callisto flew in from Ireland one weekend, so we went on a hike together like what we used to do all the time in California. We did a number of tourist things and helped Jana cross off a bunch of items on her bucket list (especially the pannenkoekenboot that she has been dreaming about). We talked about everything in life over drinks until 2 in the morning. When I was doing dishes with Jana in Einbeck while the guys were cleaning up the church after Uli’s party, we both felt so “normal” — these are literally the things we used to do together all the time. We would come up with fun ideas, make plans to make them happen, have a HUGE blast with everyone, and clean up afterward like a well-oiled machine. We have always been a great team. Yet now that we all live on different continents, it takes a lot more to do these normal things together again. Therefore, even though they are just “normal” things, they still felt very special to me, and they filled my heart with joy and gratitude.
I also really like the city of Amsterdam, and experiencing it with the locals feels very different from being a tourist. We were fortunate enough to stay in the heart of downtown Amsterdam with Matthijs and Jana. We were close to everything, had easy access to public transit, and could see how the Dutch people live their day-to-day lives. It is a city with a lot of history. From the Oude Kerk, the Waag, the Dam, the original part of Amsterdam, the three outer canals that helped the city expand quickly after the fall of Antwerp, the glorious relics from the Golden Age, Anne Frank Huis, which documents stories filled with blood and tears during WWII, to the modern skyscrapers and the swings on top of the A’Dam Toren, I felt like I was living through Amsterdam’s stories as I walk through the city.
I love the cobblestone roads, the narrow houses over the canals, fresh flowers everywhere, the fleets of bikers (as long as they were not running over me), the huge selection of cheese, the hustle and bustle of Centrum, and the cozy van den Bergs’ apartment. I also love how I could get to anywhere I need to on public transit and by foot. It really reminded me of Taiwan, where I never thought about needing a driver’s license. As much as I love living in Fremont, I do still miss living without a car from time to time. (Perhaps it’s finally time for me to go back to Taiwan after 2 years.)
I am incredibly thankful that I got to travel to Amsterdam to spend time with my best friends and experience a beautiful city. I finally started to feel a little more normal again since the COVID outbreak in 2020. Two weeks flew by in a blink of an eye, but I am sure I will be back again. Until the next time, Amsterdam!
今年八月，我和 Steve 去了阿姆斯特丹拜訪我們的朋友 Matthijs 和 Jana。我花了不少時間才寫完這篇文章，因為直到現在，我還是覺得這趟旅程恍如一場夢境、美好得令人難以置信，尤其是經歷了過去兩年多的新冠疫情和諸多不幸之後，我更是格外珍惜這次重聚。我還記得2019年底大家陸陸續續搬離灣區時，我們許下了要一起繼續探索世界的諾言。現在想想，從當時到現在，我們似乎從一個無憂無慮、充滿希望的世界，跨越到了一個完全不同的宇宙，我們當年完全不知道未來等著我們的會是什麼樣的驚濤駭浪。好在去年八月，在我們的婚禮上見到 Felix 和許多好久不見的朋友（還有那段讓我感動得熱淚盈眶的影片）之後，生活感覺開始一點一滴地恢復正常了。去年十一月，當我們全部的人在佛利蒙重新聚首，延續了感恩節火鴨雞的傳統時，對我來說就是一場美夢成真。造訪了阿姆斯特丹之後，我終於覺得我們回到了我們2020年初分別的地方，重新開始實踐我們一起許下的諾言。
儘管有時候我對史丹佛有諸多抱怨，但我知道我這一輩子都會因為我在那裡結識的朋友們而對史丹佛永懷感恩。剛入學時，我們都胸懷大志、天真地想要改變世界；後來，在研究所經歷各式各樣的困難和挫折時，我們支持著彼此渡過難關。我們一起露營、一起旅行、一起開趴、一起探索職涯的下一步、一起慶祝我們通過博士論文口試、一起看著彼此逐漸成長為我們想要成為的人。我發自內心地尊敬他們、在他們身上看見最光輝的一面、享受我們在一起的每一分每一秒，並且深深地以我們一起達成的所有成就為榮。Matthijs 和 Jana 大概是跟我和 Steve 最像的，他們以跟我們相似的方式享受著生活，也是我最可靠的朋友；Callisto 是我見過最勇敢的人之一，無論她身在何方，她總是不斷地激勵著我超越自己的極限；Felix 有著最美麗的心靈，他教會了我如何從另外一個角度欣賞生命。（然後我嫁給了 Steve。）我愛極了這群朋友，也總是想盡我所能地照顧大家。我們第一個週末在艾恩貝克時，Jana 的爸爸邀請我們以後有空再回艾恩貝克玩、說我們是他們的「史丹佛家庭」——我也覺得我們真的像個沒有血緣關係的家庭。我確信我一定會再度造訪他們，不論是在艾恩貝克還是世界的任何角落。
我們在荷蘭一下飛機，就匆匆驅車前往艾恩貝克，重溫了2019年那趟帶給我們許多歡樂的旅程。回到阿姆斯特丹後，我們沒有趕著去參觀所有的觀光景點。（其實我們並沒有足夠的時間，因為在阿姆斯特丹的兩個禮拜我都在遠端工作。）相反地，我們只是一起做著所有我們以前一起做的平常事（加上照顧一個寶寶），然後在每一件事中都揉進一點阿姆斯特丹的風味。我們每天都像以前一樣一起做菜、一起吃飯、一起打掃、輪流陪 Lorena 寶寶玩、一起在晚飯後在阿姆斯特丹的各個角落漫步，Matthijs 和 Jana 也會在散步時告訴我們這個城市各式各樣的奇聞軼事。第二個週末，Callisto 從愛爾蘭飛來跟我們團聚，所以我們大家一起去爬了山，就像我們以前在加州時一樣。除此之外，我們一起做了好些觀光活動，幫助 Jana 完成了她願望清單上的不少事項（尤其是她幻想了很久的煎餅船）。我們也一邊小酌一邊天南地北地聊著我們生活中的所有大小事，直到凌晨兩點所有人都撐不住為止。我還記得在艾恩貝克，Jana 的爸爸的獅子會派對結束後，男生們在教堂中清理善後，我和 Jana 一起在她家的廚房洗幾十人份的碗，我們都覺得一切十分「正常」——這些都是我們以前一起在加州做的事。我們總是會有好玩的想法、制定具體的計劃去實現我們的想法、在實現想法的過程中一起玩得很開心，然後一起清理善後，就像一部運轉良好的機器。我們一直都是一個配合得非常好的團隊，但是因為我們現在四散各地，想要再一起做這些「平常事」變得越來越不平常。所以即使這兩個禮拜我們花了很多時間做所謂的「平常事」，一起做這些事的每一分每一秒對我來說都很特別，也讓我的心充盈著喜悅和感激。
我非常喜歡阿姆斯特丹這座城市，而且跟著當地人一起探索和作為觀光客的體驗是十分不同的。我們很幸運地能和 Matthijs 與 Jana 一起住在阿姆斯特丹的市中心，距離所有東西都很近，也有方便的大眾運輸系統，讓我們可以好好體驗荷蘭人的日常生活。阿姆斯特丹是一個擁有悠久歷史的城市，從老教堂、秤量所、水壩廣場、老城區、在安特衛普圍困後迅速幫助阿姆斯特丹擴張的運河系統、十七世紀黃金時代的遺跡、記錄二戰血淚的安妮‧法蘭克之家、現代化的高樓大廈，到阿丹塔上的鞦韆，在走過這座城市時，我覺得自己正在親身經歷她的故事。
我喜歡阿姆斯特丹的鵝卵石街道、運河上的狹窄房屋、無所不在的鮮花、成群結隊的腳踏車（在他們不撞到我的前提之下）、琳琅滿目的起司、市中心的喧囂，以及溫暖舒適的 van den Berg 公寓。我也喜歡阿姆斯特丹四通八達的大眾運輸系統，靠著我的雙腳和大眾運輸，似乎沒有我到不了的地方。這也讓我想起了臺灣——以前在臺灣時，我從來沒有想過我需要考駕照。即使我很喜歡現在我們住的佛利蒙，我偶爾還是會想念不需要開車的日子。（這大概代表經過快兩年之後，我終於應該回臺灣了。）
我非常感謝我能有機會去阿姆斯特丹和我最好的朋友們共度一段難忘的時光，並一起體驗一座美麗的城市。自從 2020 年新冠肺炎疫情爆發以來，我終於感覺生活開始恢復正常了。兩週的時間轉瞬即逝，但我相信我一定會再回來。下回見，阿姆斯特丹！
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