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Published: June 20th 2006
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My vacation to Holland was slowly winding down so the last 2 days I spent in Amsterdam. I thoroughly enjoyed Amsterdam and one characteristic of Amsterdam is there is a lot of bicycles! I even saw "suits" riding their bikes to work which I thought was pretty cool.
Another thing I enjoyed when I was in Amsterdam, is most of my dinners I ate outside. The weather was pleasant, I don't think I ever saw one fly, which is a true luxury! I had a variety of food, ranging from italian, indian, to dutch.
One place that I will recommend is The Pancake Bakery. The building is a 17th century warehouse and it is a 2 minute walk from Anne Frank's house. They serve over 75 different types of pancakes. I had apple pancakes and they were delicious!
There was one thing that I did struggle with while in Holland and that was with coffee. In the United States you get a free re-fill on coffee, in Holland, you have to pay for each cup of coffee.
I met a fella while I stood in line to get into Anne Frank's house. He was from Canada and was
a college student. He decided to take 2 months and backpack through Europe. His first stop was in Poland and he told me how emotional that was touring some of the former concentration camps. He was staying in a hostel in Amsterdam. I was so intrigued by this young man with his plans to backpack through Europe. For a brief moment, I had the "urge" to sell my house, quit my job and do the same thing he is doing. I've decided that when I turn 60 years old, that I will take 2-3 months and backpack through Europe. You'd better believe I wished I were in his shoes, I wanted to do that before I went to college, but we all know how that goes.
I toured Anne Frank's House. Be prepared to bring some kleenex because it is a good experience but emotional at that. They open at 9 a.m. so it is best to get there by that time or be prepared to wait in line. This is the former hiding place, where Anne Frank wrote her diary. The museum tells the history of the eight people in hiding and those who helped them during the
Poezenboot
I don't know if they live in luxury, but I thought this was pretty cool! You can see their beds. I wonder if they are water beds. war. Anne Frank's diary is among the original objects on display. I enjoyed seeing the pictures that Anne Frank pasted on the walls of her room. One of the things that saddend me the most is Anne had died just a few months before she would've been freed from the concentration camp. At the end of the musuem tour is an exhibition which is called "Free2choose". It is an excellent exhibition that shows how in our world today that our rights may clash with laws that may protect people.
One thing I had read in a tourist book was about a houseboat for cats. It is called St. De Pozenboot which is a privately owned houseboat for stray cats since Holland doesn't have any SPCA type of organization. I saw the boat but I didn't see any cats on the outside of the boat.
One of the churches that I got a chance to go by is Oude Kerk which is the oldest building in Amsterdam, and St. I wasn't able to go inside Oude Kerk since it was undergoing some renovation. The building style is Dutch Brick Gothic.
The other church I stopped by and went
Oude Kerk
This is "old church". It was undergoing renovation inside. inside is Church of St. Nicholas. The inside of this church is stunning!
Amsterdam is known as "City of Diamonds" for diamond cutting and trading. I took a tour of Coster Diamonds. Coster Diamonds was founded in 1840. It was fascinating to see diamonds being cut, polished, and of course sold. It does require a keen eye, a steady hand, and a ton of patience! I escaped from there without a single purchase.
One of my most amusing visits in Amsterdam was the Hemp Museum. Marijuana is quite an interesting plant, you can purchase pipes, seeds, and other Hemp related items there. There is one thing that Amsterdam is famous for and that is the Coffee Houses, there you can smoke marijuana. Actually, you don't have to smoke it yourself, just walk into one of the Coffee Houses and that will do the trick.
I was surprised to see the Van Gogh Museum in a building that is modern, actually it is 2 buildings. The museum has the largest collection of paintings by Van Gogh in the world. There are also exhibits on artworks from the 19th century. Van Gogh's art career lasted about 10 years, he
Church of St Nicholas
The inside of this church is beautiful. created 864 paintings and 1200 drawings.
My last tour of Amsterdam was Heineken's Brewery. It is a good way to quench your thirst.
Amsterdam is known for flowers, it seemed that every street corner, there was someone selling flowers. I loved the Floating Flower Market, the tulips were fresh and cost a fraction of what you would pay for fresh tulips in America. There were exotic flowers there as well.
Last but not least, Amsterdam is known for its canals. Each canal offers a different view of the city and a boat ride on the canal is a great way to see the city.
I enjoyed my vacation to Holland, the people were friendly, and I truly thought I was in flower heaven! There is so much to see and do.
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