Amsterdam....."coffee shops" and the red light district.
That is what I thought until I got here. Amsterdam was not in my top 10 list, but John had to go for work and I found a cheap ticket, so away we went. To my pleasant surprise, there is so much to this city that we really enjoyed. Amsterdam is beautiful with a lot of charm, bikes, and tons of canals with small walking streets. I absolutely loved it!
That is what I thought until I got here. Amsterdam was not in my top 10 list, but John had to go for work and I found a cheap ticket, so away we went. To my pleasant surprise, there is so much to this city that we really enjoyed. Amsterdam is beautiful with a lot of charm, bikes, and tons of canals with small walking streets. I absolutely loved it!
John left on a Monday and in my "I can do everything" moment, booked the kids and my ticket for Wednesday. Luckily, it is only an hour flight. Once I started exploring this wonderful city, I was sad that we did not fly out earlier.
Amsterdam is known as being small. I walked almost the entire city each day and we were exhausted. Our hotel was 20 minutes from the Centre of the City so going back and forth taking naps was not going to happen. Thank God for the double stroller!
After the first day they passed out on the train!
Amsterdam is broken up into 10 different neighborhoods. Instead of detailing each day, I thought I would show you highlights of each neighborhood. Each is truly different than the other, including the look of the buildings and feel of the streets. The kids and I walked from 9-6 the first day and then John joined us for the second day...again walking from 9-6! I walk a lot in Glasgow but my legs were tired after this marathon.
I really enjoyed the people of Amsterdam. They spoke great English and were very nice to the kids. I was taken back at how pretty the people were. Men were tall, women were fit. Everyone looks healthy and in shape...must be the bikes! The food is a mogpog of items, but you won't go wrong. Fries (Chips) are all over and when you have kids who are sitting in the stroller, chips are great to keep them entertained. The traditional topping is Mayonnaise, but they have Cheese, Mustard, Ketchup, etc.
Bikes
Experiencing bike life in Amsterdam is like nothing I have seen before. You hear about it, but it has to be experienced in person to appreciate it. The unspoken rule in the city is - bikes have priority. Both cars and people will wait for bikes to go first. John was asking the people he worked with in Amsterdam and they said it is not uncommon for people to own multiple bikes - one 'normal' for daily commute and then their nice 'weekend' bike that is used for hitting the town. Parents will ride with 2 kids...no harness/no helmets and they are fine. I loved it!
You have to wait in line at a traffic stop just like cars do.
Those are all bikes!!
I snapped this picture of brothers riding together.
I want this bike so bad. I could use it to take Ava to school. I did a little research and they are $2000! I will never get one:(
Boats
Amsterdam has roughly 2,500 houseboats on the canals. Yes, people live there!
This is the home to Albert Cuypmarket. It is not like a flea market, they only sell new items. We got there early one day while everything was getting setup. It was filled with really amazing items.
They are very proud of their Gouda cheese. It just so happens to be my favorite....
They have great modern stores throughout the city
Ava of course wanted these...
In the De Pijp neighborhood, all the buildings have this look.
These are made out of felt!
The Dutch are known for their Stroopwafels. It is a waffle made from two layers of baked dough, filled with a caramel filling.
---------------------------------------------------------
On the way to the market the first day, Ava saw this lady and told me that she liked her pants and she wanted some.
Lucky for us.... we found an outfit for her!
------------------------------------------------------------
Heineken
Heineken is the Dutch drink. John says it tastes incredible in Amsterdam. Its like when people go to Ireland and have a Guiness... totally different.
This is the factory they make Heineken.
This was how they transported the beer in the early 1900's
If looking at a map, to your left will be the Old South. The major museums of Van Gogh, Rijksmuseum and Stedelijk Museum are all together with a beautiful grass area in between. This area is known for being wealthy and when comparing the 'houses' to ones across town, it is fairly easy to see the difference. It was such a nice day that I didn't feel like going into the museums, so we enjoyed the areas around.
Cute little cafe with benches
Concertgebouw
Stedelijk Museum
Look at the houses...beautiful
Rijksmuseum
You always have to find a playground
Van Gough in the back
This is just north of Old South. I was amazed once we crossed the street how jammed packed the area got with people. There is a ton of shopping and a lot to see. There are not many cars because the streets are fairly narrow, but the trams go straight through.
We ate lunch at a Dutch Pancake place. I could not tell the difference between their "Pancakes" and French crepes. (...but don't tell them that...haha)
Cute square with people out
Gouda cheese shops everywhere
Bikes are used for everything...including this man carrying all those grapes! This is the street that you cross to go into the Canal area and Old City.
Southern Canal area
Somehow this was built later on...
Southern Canal area
Flower Market Bloenmenmarkt
Started 1860, it was originally a floating market with each shop on the water. They have since made it stationary and secured each shop to the street. When walking it, I was hoping to see all sorts of flowers in bloom, but was surprised to see that most of the inventory were flower bulbs to take home and plant.
Note: when you buy, make sure customs will allow you to transport
This is located just east of the Red Light District. Top sites are the Museum het Rembrandthuis and the Flea Market
John Luke - my little model!
A group of kids from nursery were out for a stroll. I am sorry, but don't you want this!
You can get to the Canals through this bridge to go to the Old City / Red Light District...
On the other side of the bridge, we ran in to some incredible little bakeries...
Medival Centre & Red Light District
At first, I did not want to go by the Red Light and technically we did not go through the street... we just walked a second and I guess passed it. I did not want Ava to see it and have to explain anything to her. If you look for it, you will find it. Otherwise it was not in your face. I can't say that about the smoking:) Somehow I would get a little smell here and there walking down the street!
This area is much like the Canal area but you have the Palace located at the Dam - Amsterdams central square. All the roads head to the Dam. I loved the buildings within this area. It is said that little has changed since the 17th century.
This is called the Old Church and is the oldest building in Amsterdam. It dates back to 1306. It is interesting because it is only a stones throw to the Red Light District. There is actually a golden torso of a naked woman held by a padlocked hand on the cobblestones right outside the church. The Gothic Style church still holds the city's oldest bell(1450), Muler organ(1724), and 15th-century choir stalls.
This was built in 1665. The Palace is still used for state functions.
It holds one of the world's largest collections of furniture and decorative art from the Napoleon Bonaparte's period 1800's.
Cathedral
Somehow the kids always get ice cream and it keeps them happy for about an hour!
------------------------------------------------------
Who wants to shop at this mall:)?
------------------------------------------------------
From the Dam it is a quick 15 minute walk to Centraal Station. In 1889, it was built on an artificial island. It truly is beautiful.
If you look closely you can see Centraal Station in the back.
I was told that this area is still popular to live. People have lived here for decades. It is very different once you cross the canal. The streets are still narrow, but you feel like you are in a neighborhood. The shops are lovely with character and the restaurants are really good.
Crossing the canal look up and you see industrial buildings, that is not the Jordaan area.
Flats in Jordaan
All the shops have a downstairs and upstairs
Man looking out his window
We always find a splash pad. In Arizona, they would never allow me to let the kids play in their underwear or nappies, but we are in Europe and they are a little more easy-going with that stuff.
We found a Lululemon!
Sad to say, but food was not our main attraction for this trip. We did stumble on a really good restaurant called Winkel. It is located in Noordermarket
They are known for their apple pie. It was really good. The crust was a combination of bread and pie crust. Very filling.
Monte Pelmo. Located on Tweede Anjeliers Dwarsstraat, this was a very good Mom & Pop shop for Ice Cream!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From this area, if you walk towards the Western Canal, you will find a Cathedral and the Anne Frank house
Between Jordaan and Western Canals there are 3 streets where you will find a few Mom & Pop Shops. It would be easy to loose track of time exploring this area.
Our Hotel Area
We stayed in the Industrial part of town that is home to the Football Stadium and Heineken Music Hall. It was only 15 minutes on the train from the airport. You get off at Bijlmer Arena. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Amsterdam-Arena Towers. It was really nice and clean. The breakfast had a lot of selection, with really good Starbucks French Press Coffee.
I had to go get John Luke his Almond Milk and there was an outdoor mall right across from the train station.
I wish people did not litter!
Football Stadium
We found a really good Japanese restaurant and ended up eating there two nights in a row. LOVED it!!!
-------------------------------------------------------
Ava has grown up so much and loves traveling. She enjoys listening to all the different languages. She decided she wanted a doll, which she named Hopie(after her cousin) and loves playing mommy.
Ava also got a guitar and thinks she is cool playing like all the street performers.
When I had Ava, I said I would never feed her McDonalds. That would be true if we still lived in the States, but we live and travel in places that the only "fast food" is McDonalds, Burger King or KFC. Sadly, I don't have the energy to sit with my kids for 2 hours waiting for food, so fast food it is!
-----------------------------------------------------
I am always looking for a fun cooking gadget that is native to that country. I stopped by a cute shop in Jordaan called Deksels and got a stroopwafel maker. I was so excited to find it! I can also make waffle cones with it!
We have an induction stove here and there are some pots that do not activate. I found this to help and it actually works!
When we were in Poland, my mom found this shampoo. It has become our favorite, but you can only get it at a Douglas store which is only in Europe:( Thank God I was looking around and saw they had a couple stores in Amsterdam.
Trains
Amsterdam is very easy to get around. I loved this train we took from the airport to our hotel. The train station is right in the airport... no need to get a taxi. It cost only 4 Euros.
The Dutch don't believe in Credit Cards. Most places take them but there were a few locations we needed cash. For example, at the train station by our hotel - we couldn't pay with a credit card and it would only take coins. No paper bills.
Airport
I did not take a picture of the airport. I should have! It is huge, so make sure you give yourself time. I am not one for sitting at airports but I was glad we got there two hours before. KLM line to get tags was really long. There are signs throughout the airport saying how long it will take for you to get to your gate. If you are heading out of the EU, there is actually a security check right before you board your plane. Whoever thought of the airport was way before anyones time.
I loved Amsterdam and would definitely go back to see more of the city. It would be worth another trip just for the shopping...the clothes are beautiful! As you can imagine, we were all exhausted when we got home. Time to rest and plan the next adventure...
