Their national team had just defeated my country's at the Euro championship and I decided to go and see for myself what they were about. Call it crazy, but I think it was worth it all the way.
We arrived at Schiphol airport on a busy Friday afternoon and found it really easy to get to Amterdam. The train took us there in 20 minutes and it took 20 more to figure out that we can buy a tram ticket from the driver and get to our hotel. (It didn't make sense to buy the usual 15 trips tickets as our tourist cards covered the public transport routes for the weekend.)
The trip by tram to the hotel was like riding a rollercoaster from the sudden shaking point of view. As someone put it, you wouldn't want to ride a tram in Asterdam if you have kidney stones.
However shaky the tram trip may have been, the glimpses of the city's beauty gave us a preview of what the next few days would be like. The wonderful architecture of the squares and the buildings, the bohemian air felt everywhere, the ever charming cannals creating these amazing settings; it was breathtaking.
The hotel was exactly what the reviews said about it, therefore I wasn't dissapointed at all. It served its purpose completely. (I wouldn't have minded paying less, but I think we got a good deal anyways.) We didn't spend much time in the room, but the hotel was within a walking distance of the main attractions and that was really an advantage.
Walking on the streets of old Amsterdam and along the cannals is an experience in itself; it feels like the city IS the main attraction... you don't know what to look at first (the pavement, the buildings, the bridges, the cannals, the boats, the bikes/ bikers, the people, the birds etc.) and it always leaves you with the mildly frustrating feeling that you've missed on something or haven't paid enough attention to some details. It's just overwhelming; but in a great way.
Back to the city, I don't know what to start with. Maybe the bikers and their huge number, which is an aspect that I noticed straight after exiting the train station. Everybody's riding a bike and they all have their own style and they're very pushy in their traffic behaviour. It's just crazy.
You are in more danger of being hit by a bike when crossing a street in Amsterdam than you are of being hit by a car.
But I have to give it to the city as a whole. It puts a spell on you and there's no going back.
We started our trip with a boat ride on the city's charming cannals and I have to say that it was the best decision; we got an introduction to the main historical attractions, which has helped us in planning the rest of our stay.
We managed to see, among many other memorable locations, the Rijk Museum (the Art Museum), the Van Gogh museum, Rembrandt's house, De Oude Kerk, the Pijp, the Dam, the Flowers Market, Our Lord in the Attic chappel and, not least, the much talked about and notorious Red Lights District (where the smell of pot still floats in the air early in the morning).
And we have not seen it all. Two days was not enough time for us, therefore we have made a promise to return as many times as needed. And it will be a pleasure to oblige. :)
Cheese everywhere...
The old observation tower
Rembrandt Square
Rijk Museum
Sarphati Park
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