Honest, The Curtains Were All Closed
So, if I asked you to tell me one thing that you associate with Amsterdam in The Netherlands, what would it be?
Just one thing.
Now, and of course I am guessing here so I could easily be wrong, I would respectfully suggest that most of you, if you were being completely honest, would have mentioned either the red light district or cannabis on your list.
Anyone willing to be honest? Anyone?
I thought not.
Well, in the hope of not coming across in a rather unpleasantly smug way, our recent, rather glorious, winter trip to Amsterdam managed to avoid visits to brown cafes, controlled weed smoking areas or even the splendidly notorious and allegedly “cleaned up” red light district.
Of course, when I say that we avoided such visits, what I really mean is, well, we did sort of visit one of these areas, but it was during daylight hours and all of the curtains were closed.
Honestly.
So, I'm not sure that actually counts, right?
Anyway, what I am trying to get across is that Amsterdam is a brilliant place to visit, with far more to it that the obvious things that most people imagine.
So where to start?
Amsterdam is a city that is made for walking.
And cycling. There are literally bicycles everywhere. Cycle lanes are respected and numerous.
And they cycle fast. Very, very fast.
Oh, did I mention that it's very flat.
We walked everywhere, apart from a cab between the station and our hotel. We clocked up around 25 miles during the three full days we spent in Amsterdam, which is not bad, even for us.
So, what experiences, what memories, have I brought back home with me from this trip? There are many, which has to be a good thing, and what I want to do in this post is to share the highlights, the things that made, and still make, me smile about Amsterdam.
a breakfast of warm croissants in a small bakery with a pigeon hopping around indoors, sweeping up the crumbs as we ate, and the friendly staff telling us “Yes, he is working hard for us this morning!”
the free ferry service from behind the Amsterdam Central railway station, over to NDSM Wharf, taking in the sights in the cold, fresh air and feeling just like a local;
the strangely fascinating Botel which, upon closer inspection, had rooms inside the very large letters on deck;
walking round the cold (absolutely freezing) NDSM Plein, full of stunning street art on a vast scale and next to the Straat (street art and graffiti) gallery (sadly closed on a day when we really needed the warmth);
a walk through Oosterpark in the morning sunshine, stopping off at another bakery for breakfast, served by two friendly, young girls with perfect English;
a walk through the Albert Cuypmarket as it was closing, chatting to the stall holders as we found interesting things to eat for dinner in our hotel room (Amsterdam is not cheap for those that want or have to eat out every night);
lunch in the cutest little cafe, somewhere in the 9 Streets area, beautifully decorated and clearly used by the local “women who shop”;
a couple of hours browsing the exhibits in the impressive Rijksmuseum, searching out my favourite little Rembrandt painting (self portrait c. 1628), finding a Van Gogh and mingling with the school kids and tourists;
an afternoon at the achingly cool De Hallen, a newish centre for culture, retail and media, with a wonderful food hall, located in the hip Oud-West area of Amsterdam and all in a beautifully renovated tram depot. I particularly loved the “makers” art shop where everything had been lovingly created by hand;
a walk back to our hotel from De Hallen, probably no more than a couple of miles, which started off dry and gradually went through drizzle, heavy rain, sleet and ended up with a very atmospheric snow storm, all in the fading light. (It is worth noting that the joy and novelty of this walk may not have been appreciated by both of us at the time);
a visit to a bar in the red light district, seedy (cash only) with 90’s R&B music videos on the screens and some enjoyable people watching (young lads playing pool, friendly female staff who may or may not work evenings and the steady stream of locals asking to use the toilet facilities for some reason);
the coolest little shop with the most outrageous and stylish designer furniture (Seletti, who apparently also have shops in the UK);
breakfast once more, this time outdoors in a very frosty Museum Square, freshly made waffles, with crispy bacon, cream and hot coffee, whilst watching youngsters learning how to skate on the outdoors ice rink;
an unexpected and wonderfully snowy few hours with the highlight being watching the school children having snowball fights on the rooftop playground next to our hotel;
and finally, a day of education, emotion and reflection, with an afternoon visit to the Dutch Resistance Museum and an early evening tour around Anne Franks House. Both fascinating and horrific in their own ways, it was an eye opener for us and allowed a little understanding as to what life in Amsterdam was like during the Nazi occupation.
So perhaps the message to share regarding Amsterdam in this post is an obvious one.
By all means go there if you want to explore the red light district or to smoke a few joints. It’s all legal and completely acceptable, unlike other countries that like to think of themselves as open and forward thinking.
But really, Amsterdam has so much more to offer than this and it’s all so easy to find.
Go and make your own adventures, it’s really not difficult in Amsterdam.
