Capital of the Netherlands and yet Amsterdam is a city you can easily explore by foot. From my first steps in the city I loved its atmosphere; quirky and open-minded, the city is a delight to visit.
Amsterdam is one of the most bicycle-friendly large cities in the world; there are bikes everywhere in the streets. To give you an idea, there are about 500,000 bicycles for about 760,000 inhabitants! It is not something you expect from a European capital.
Amsterdam is, in my opinion, much more than the “coffee shops city”, this beautiful city deserves to be known for its wonderful architecture, particularly in the historic centre; and for its peaceful and quiet atmosphere, which is ideal for a relaxing weekend trip.
I particularly liked wandering in the fabulous floating flower market (Bloemenmark) with its colourful cactuses, tulips and bulbs of all kinds. I could not resist buying a few of them!
I really enjoyed seeing Amsterdam from the canal cruise, it allows you to discover not only the beautiful 17th century building along the canals but also shows you the growing 21st century city. An interesting sight observed from the boat is the architecture of certain houses that are crooked! This is definitely an experience not to be missed during a visit to Amsterdam.
During my stay, I also visited the Museum Van Gogh, which was over-crowded with tourists as it was a rainy day. At that time, there was an interesting exhibition of more than 120 original letters showing alongside the works that Vincent Van Gogh was writing about, including his sketches’ letters to his brother and other artists. The museum has the largest collection of Van Gogh’s paintings and drawings in the world. Even if I’m not a huge art fan, I have to say I found Van Gogh masterpieces fascinating, and the museum definitely worth a visit.
Finally, like every tourist in this town, I went to the Red Light district to see what it’s like. It consists of a network of roads and alleys containing several small apartments rented by female sex workers who offer their services from behind a window or glass door, typically illuminated with red lights. To be honest I found it quite gloomy!
While visiting Amsterdam, why not use the Amsterdam Eyewitness Guide which gives you loads of useful details, or Amsterdam Directions from Rough Guide if you are going for a short stay. Even though you can’t really get lost in the city centre, I would advise you to get a map from MapEasy Inc or a more classic one from GeoCenter or Michelin.
Author: Violaine Sabot