The I Amsterdam Sign in front of the Rijksmuseum
We landed at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport (AMS) just after 1pm on a rainy Sunday Afternoon. Schiphol is an attractive modern airport, clean and easy to navigate. Our party of six consisted of my wife and I, our two boys, ages 8 & 12, and my in-laws. We quickly collected our bags and breezed through passport control. We could have hopped on the train into Amsterdam, but a little research before hand had showed me that the closest train stop was several blocks from our hotel. If I had been alone, or just with my wife, I would have hopped on the train and enjoyed the walk from the station. But with two kids, two seniors (both of whom are quite fit by the way) and everyone’s’ luggage, a taxi seemed like a better plan. Besides, when 6 people are sharing a taxi van, it often ends up being cost competitive with the train fare.
Museum Suites Boutique Hotel
We checked into Museum Suites and the manager, Kim kindly gave us maps and info on the city as well as a quick tour of the little hotel that would be our home for the next 3 days. It’s a lovely little brick row house in the typical Amsterdam fashion, 4 stories high and beautifully detailed inside and out. The public rooms are gorgeous as befitted its earlier life as the home of the first director of the Rijksmuseum. It is located just a few blocks west of the Van Gogh Museum and the Rijksmuseum, and 1 block south of Vondelpark, in a quiet tree-lined neighborhood away from the hustle and bustle of the city’s more touristy areas. Excellent cafes and restaurants are just a few steps away, as are stylish local shops for clothing and home furnishings.
Prinsengracht Canal
Once we had stowed our luggage and splashed a little water on our faces, we decided a walk around town was in order. We headed off towards the old city center, strolling past the museums and stepping directly into that picture you have in your head of what Amsterdam looks like. Canals full of slowly moving boats and tall row houses with stylish facades, flower boxes and the occasional, faint scent of cannabis.
Keizersgracht Canal
Amsterdam really is a lovely town and I look forward to exploring it further. There are wonderful art galleries and antique shops, excellent cafes and restaurants around every corner, dozens of museums, a number of which are truly world class. It is an easy city to walk, but don’t miss the opportunity to cruise the canals. Better yet, if you get the chance, act like a local and borrow a bike. Everyone bikes here, and the city caters more to bike travel than it does to cars or pedestrians. You can’t miss the huge bicycle parking structure near the central train station where commuters park their bikes. Bikes have their own dedicated lanes everywhere, and they have right of way. Bicyclists in Amsterdam rarely wear helmets, and in my 3 days there I saw a few close calls, but never any collisions. Which, given the sheer number of them, is shocking.
Bicycle parking “flat” at the Amsterdam Central Train Station
The next day we had tickets to the Anne Frank House. We had booked this well in advance, and knowing we were coming here, the whole family had read Diary of Anne Frank. So we knew the history of the place, and why it was important. The museum is a somber place. There is no photography, and silence is encouraged. There is an excellent audio tour, which is well narrated and compounds the emotional investment and sympathy you already have for the plight of this beautiful and talented young girl who’s world was so tragically torn apart by the Nazi invasion. I feel trite and inadequate even describing the museum here in a travel blog. But if you can make it to this beautiful city, do yourself the favor of spending a couple of hours here at Anne Frank House. You and perhaps the world will be better off for it. I know thinking about it now; it make me want to be a better person, and to quote Anne, “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
Image courtesy of Nederlands Bureau voor Toerisme
A short walk across town brings you to another Museum devoted to yet another tragic figure that made the world a better place. The Van Gogh Museum is a startling revelation. We have all seen images of his paintings; I’ve seen a few in person, even 20 or so together at one time at a travelling exhibition that came to Los Angeles. But to see almost 200 of his paintings and sketches together, presented chronologically to show the development of his style and to tell the story of his life, is an incredible thing. Unlike any other museum I have visited. Photography is forbidden, but the audio tour is excellent.
No Photography is allowed in the Van Gogh museum, so this self-portrait is from the Rijksmuseum.
In order to avoid waiting in really long lines, you will want to book these two museums ahead of time. Both the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum, sell tickets for specific entry times starting 60 days out. We did this with Anne Frank House about 6 weeks ahead of our arrival and were glad we did, as these pre-sale tickets can sell out. For the Van Gogh Museum, we were able to buy 6 tickets for a time slot that worked for us just two days ahead of time. Obviously these things change somewhat depending on time of year and the number of tourists in town, and the Van Gogh Museum is capable of handling quite a few more guests at the same time. The Anne Frank House is obviously a much smaller facility, and they carefully control the number of people that are inside at any given time.
The Night Watch by Rembrandt – photo taken in the Rijksmuseum.
The other can’t-miss museum in Amsterdam is the Rijksmuseum. This is the national museum of art, and as such houses works by great Dutch artists from the Middle Ages to present day. It is potentially an all-day place. You could easily arrive at 9am when it opens and stay until closing at 5pm and not see it all. It is that big, and comprehensive, and full of wonderful things. I hope to come back and see the parts I missed. Photography without flash is permitted and the audio tour is worthwhile. Don’t miss the Van Gogh self-portrait, Rembrandt’s The Night Watch and The Draper’s Guild, Hals’ The Merry Drinker, Vermeer’s The Milkmaid, or about 1,000 other excellent and important works. It’s a truly fantastic museum.
The Draper’s Guild by Rembrandt – photo taken in the Rijksmuseum.
All of these museums have terrific gift shops, and my wife can’t help but buy a small token to remember our visit. Usually a refrigerator magnet, but even the 8-year-old got in on the act this time, buying a poster at the Van Gogh museum. When the kid wants a famous painting to hang in his room, who am I to argue? But for serious shopping, you had better head to The Nine Streets, a famous neighborhood, not far from the Anne Frank House, with some of the coolest and most stylish shops in the city. As a designer, I’m more interested in furnishings than fashion and I found a particularly cool spot in The Frozen Fountain. Full of beautifully designed furniture and accessories from the cool and chic to the wild and whimsical, any design aficionado will find this shop and it’s unique collection appealing.
Image courtesy of Tours & Tickets
On our final night in Amsterdam, as a prelude to embarking upon our river cruise, we took a canal boat tour. We had been watching the various canal tours float by as we walked the city streets. You are never far from the water in this beautiful city, and there is always a boat floating past, even on the smaller canals. There is every conceivable option, from giant flat bottom boats, larger than city buses and carrying more people, to tiny two-person pedal boats, and everything in between. Throughout our stay, I had been especially drawn to the vintage wood boats with glass cabins or covered rear seating areas. These beautiful old boats made of golden oak and shiny brass looked so inviting, with their perfectly happy and relaxed champagne sipping passengers looked more appealing to me than the boisterous hop-on-hop-off cattle cars filled with tourists. Unfortunately, I waited too long and was unable to book one at the last minute. However, we were able to get the next best thing, and at a fraction of the price of one of the private vintage canal boats. Tours & Tickets offers what they call a Dutch Authentic Boat Cruise on a converted old trash hauler. Romantic, right? Actually it is. It’s a lovely old ship, well provisioned with cheese, salami, beer and wine, and a charming crew eager to share their love and knowledge of their city.
This kid enjoys his cheese. Reypenaer has a nice little shop on the corner of Singel Street and Torensluis.
We had some wonderful meals in Amsterdam. Breakfast every day at the hotel was excellent. In typical Dutch fashion, there were cold cuts and local cheese, excellent fresh bread, butter and preserves, plus peanut butter and chocolate sprinkles. There were bowls of fresh fruit, yogurt, cereals and muesli, plus, coffee, tea and juices and fresh hardboiled eggs. All served in a beautiful dining room full of books and art. It was an excellent way to start every day. Such a large breakfast meant we could get away with a light snack for lunch, often sharing an open face sandwich or bitterballen at a side walk café, the food at Café Gruter, nearby our hotel was particularly excellent. We also enjoyed a surprisingly good hot dog from a street vendor in the stalls along Paulus Potterstraat between the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum. And on another day, we had excellent sandwiches and pastries from Stef’s Bakery on Nieuwe Spiegelstraat. One dinner we enjoyed cheese and crackers and wine on a canal cruise and another we had a terrific meal at Restaurant Classico, an excellent Italian spot right next to the hotel. Kim was helpful with many suggestions for places to eat, but I’m afraid our jetlag meant for early evenings and light meals and we missed out on the opportunity to try some of the local dinner spots I had been looking forward to. Yet another reason to go back!
I know what you’re thinking… what about the windmills?!?! For the most part, you’ll have to go outside the city to see a windmill. In fact, there’s only one left in the city, but it’s certainly worth the trip to visit it. Why? Because it’s right next-door to an excellent micro-brewery, Brouwerij ‘t IJ. Two of Amsterdam cultural institutions in one spot, the last remaining windmill within city limits and Amsterdam’s best micro-brewery. If that’s not good for your soul, well, at least it’s an excellent excuse to stop in for a drink.
Image courtesy of Brouweri j ‘t IJ.
Good For Your Soul – Amsterdam:
Van Gogh Museum – get tickets on-line ahead of time.
Anne Frank House – get tickets on-line ahead of time – they go on sale 60 days out.
Canal Tour – there are a lot of tour boat companies – we chose a smaller, historic boat.
The Nine Streets – stylish shopping district great for window shopping and cool gifts.
Cheese – little cheese shops can be found throughout the city – stop in for a free taste, its real Gouda! We had a nice experience at Reypenaer.
Chocolate – dutch chocolate is apparently a thing. My wife is a big fan of Puccini.
Bitterballen – these deep-fried little beef meatballs are best enjoyed with mustard, and a tall frosty glass of local beer, preferably one from Brouwerij ‘t IJ.
Dutch Apple Pie – enjoy a slice with a cup of coffee or fresh mint tea at one of the little sidewalk cafes. American’s will find this local treat less sweet than they are used to, which I think makes it even more delicious.
