Advertisement
Published: October 21st 2016
After a wonderful trip around Iceland it was now time for a quick add-on to Amsterdam before our return home...we originally thought the ten days in Iceland would be enough (in hindsight we could have spent longer but were still satisfied with the amount we saw) so decided a three day hang here would be a nice way to wrap the trip up, and it was!
Arrived to a beautiful sunny day and more importantly an unexpected heatwave...temps were near 30C, which is unusual for Amsterdam at this time of year but we'll take it! Made our way from Schiphol to Centraal Station, then hopped a street car to the Spui district where we had rented an apartment...the Lovely K had been here before but this was my first time, and the area she picked to stay in couldn't have been more perfect; central/walking distance to everything, tons of cafes and patios (although that can be said about most spots in this town!) and a beautiful view overlooking a canal (again not a rarity here...).
Sorted out our digs and then headed out to explore, first stop the oldest pub in Amsterdam: Hoppe (conveniently located around the corner from
I am Amsterdam
...iconic sign behind the Rijksmuseum..where we were staying). Cool spot, had some refreshments and back to the exploring...what a town, I haven't seen a lot of Europe so things like the architecture and especially the vibe were all new to me, and I absolutely loved it...went for a great stroll along the various canals before hopping onto a boat tour in the afternoon...
Boat tour is a must here, figured we would do both a day and night tour to see the city in two different lights...amazing, it was awesome just puttering down the canals watching the locals getting on with their days, learning some of the history of the town and admiring all the cool architecture...the city is just buzzing, and one of my biggest takeaways is the level of enjoyment the locals get out of the canals: boats of all shapes and sizes are constantly buzzing by filled with families, parties, tours, you name it...fantastic! The night cruise was really cool as well, the lights are beautiful (most bridge arches are lit up too) and this particular cruise sported some wine and cheese, not a bad way to go!
The following day we had the only really planned activity on
our agenda; a bike tour out to the countryside...K had done this before and really enjoyed it, I thought this was another must-do so we signed up for a four hour tour...met the gang of ten or so in the morning, sorted out our bikes and it was into the fray...
We made our way to the free ferry service behind Centraal Station, crossed over and after finding a couple of lost strays we were soon leisurely pedaling our way through the Dutch countryside...really pretty; we would stop now and then to get some info and history on the different locales, including the many dykes and dams we would come across...this was another beautiful sunny day which made for a great ride, and also included a pit stop at a fun pub in a small town along the way...
Made it back alive and then it was time to check out the (in)famous Red Light District...I and everyone have heard stories of this place, I certainly had some idea as to what it would look like but I was pleasantly surprised to find it had all sorts of cool shops, pubs and restaurants as well...was thinking it might
be on the seedier side but it wasn't bad at all, and seeing the ladies in the windows was pretty cool...checked out a couple of record stores and stopped for some pints along a canal after our walkabout, superb...
Great dinner at a place called Tomaz, highly recommend it...it was a quiet night and when we arrived it looked like they might be closing but they enthusiastically sat us and fired things up again...specializing in Dutch cuisine, the food was excellent (I had lamb meatballs, K had a steak), with nice ambiance and friendly service...
Headed back to the Red Light District after dinner to check it out now that the sun had gone down, and it was certainly more lively than the afternoon...tons of folks down for a peek, some for the offerings themselves...the whole spectacle of scantily clad women in windows under red lights was pretty fascinating, and the women themselves were younger and more attractive than the ladies during the day, guess due to the "peak" time of day...
Final day dawned and this was going to be a big wander...the Lovely K wanted to check out some markets, the De Pijp area as
she hadn't been and also the Rijksmuseum...me, I wanted to check out a record store in the De Pijp area...I'm a simple man...so after some coffee at the flat we were on our way...
Started with some more canals; it was another beautiful day so a great opportunity for a hearty walk...passed by Anne Frank's house, fronted by a massive line so would only see the exterior...next stop was the Flower Market; we both had visions of all sorts of colours and varieties of flowers for purchase but it was all tulip bulbs and seeds...d'oh! Still cool and lively though...
Made our way south to the De Pijp area, neat little bohemian neighbourhood with its own array of shop, bars and restaurants...grabbed some lunch and then checked out the Albert Cuyp Market, a street closed to traffic and lined with all sorts of stalls selling clothing, souvenirs, knock-off stuff and food...
More wandering and then we hit the Rijksmuseum, the national art gallery with a wonderful collection of Dutch and world art...some Van Gogh's here, but the main attraction is Rembrandt's "Night Watch", a truly stunning piece of art...it was much larger than I thought, and absolutely
Hoppe
...oldest pub in Amsterdam apparently...cool spot... beautiful...saw as much as we could but unfortunately we left it a bit late and the place was now closing...bit of a shame but also a good reason to go back...
Started making our way back to the flat with a detour through Vondelpark, a large park near the museum...popular spot too; all sorts of folks enjoying the green space with bbq's, tunes and general laziness...
Speaking of laziness we made it back to the flat and we were done, kaput...forget how many km's we had walked that day but it was tons...just enough energy left to grab some food and wine at the shop beside the apartment and that was it for Amsterdam...
My God I loved this place; the city is beautiful, folks are nice and the vibe is fantastic...it has certainly whetted my appetite to see more of Europe...
Advertisement
Tot: 0.134s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 9; qc: 25; dbt: 0.1028s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Cheers
Looks like great explorations. keep the blogs coming.