Matt Lauer visited Amsterdam, the city that conjures up images of windmills, bicycles and tulips, but Amsterdam has much more to offer.

TODAY producer (and funnyman) Sean Reis shares his impressions of a city of bikes and vice.

TODAY producer (and funnyman) Sean Reis spent three weeks in Amsterdam in preparation for Where in the World is Matt Lauer. In the following travel journal, Reis shares his sketches of a city of bikes and vice.

What's in a name?
The correct name is the Netherlands. Holland only refers to the provinces that ring Amsterdam. The flag's red, white and blue. The national color — and one you'll see a lot of — is orange. Why? Because the House of Orange, led by fun kids like William of Orange, who got the country out from under Spanish rule. My favorite leader's name is Willem The Silent. How'd they know what he thought?

The Red Light District
Now, SIMPLY BECAUSE THE RED LIGHT DISTRICT IS BEHIND MY HOTEL I have to pass through it from time to time, to have dinner, go to the grocery store, that kind of thing. People talk about the girls in the windows, and I thought they'd be right on the canals. Not so. They are in the alleys, and because I haven't made a study of it, I don't know which alley is going to have girls in the windows and which isn't. It's rather like a pathetic lottery that you have to play, even if you don't want to, to get from point A to point B.

Amsterdam
I know we write the line "this city is truly a gem" all the time, but it really means something. Around every corner, across every bridge, there is something new to behold — something old, something well cared for, and people are proud to be the caretakers of history, rather than just, you know, tearing it down and starting all over again.

Another weird thing, maps are pretty deceiving. Ninety small islands, 165 canals, 1,200 bridges. You could probably cross from one side of the canal part of the city to the other in a 30-minute walk. Everything's close, but the difference, in my view, is that, while lots of cities have an old part that's cutesy-poo, in this city, it's all the old part, so there are some adaptations and easements given to today, and lots of respect given to the past. That's pretty cool.

I think Matt's job is a great job, but while many will envy for his travels (in a positive way) let's ralize how much work it takes. Yesterday in Argentina, today in Amsterdam, tomorrow we don't know where. Add to this the travel time, jet lag, time zone difference, and the production quality and you will see how tremendous is the amount of work to produce the show "Where In The World Is Matt Lauer."