Amsterdam - August 17-19, 2007

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Next to Paris, I'd have to say Amsterdam was my favourite city in Europe. We stayed at the Bicycle Hotel, which was a fantastic place that offered cheap bicycle rentals and complimentary breakfast consisting of bread, cheese, salami and excellent coffee. The coffee everywhere in Amsterdam is really good and relatively cheap, as is the beer. The old Heineken brewery that now serves as a museum, called Heineken Experience, is a must see for any beer lover and the admission price includes 3 beers and a souvenir. The Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum is another interesting place to spend some time at. We also went to the Van Gogh Museum and Anne Frank's house, and I would recommend these to anyone planning to vist Amsterdam as well. And of course, no visit to Amsterdam is complete without eating out at a delicious dutch pannekoeken huis. Yummy!

Amsterdam is a very easy place to get lost in. All the street names change after a few blocks and they are all very long and hard to remember. The network of canals also make the city confusing to navigate. Bicycle culture in Amsterdam is HUGE. I've never seen so many people riding bicycles in my life, it's quite inspiring. It can be difficult as a pedestrian though, because bicycle lanes are given more space than pedestrians, and it's not a good idea to walk in the bicycle lanes - you'll get run over real quick.

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Photos

Canal
Just one of the many canals that run through Amsterdam.

The Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum
A permanent exhibition about the history and use of cannabis around the world, this museum includes a mini grow-op.