Amsterdam has something for everyone. There’re world-class museums, cafes selling marijuana, boat rides on the famous canals, the infamous red-light district, windmills and picturesque little Dutch villages in addition to the distinctive architecture that instantly says ‘you have landed in Europe’s sin city’.
I only spent three full days in the city and had a humongous pre-planned list of things that I had to tick off. That is my problem, I am always trying to stuff months into a few days when visiting a new place. Surprisingly, I managed to do a lot of ‘not so’ culturally enlightening things!
Accommodation
I stayed at Clinknoord Amsterdam, this hostel is modern and very well located. I thoroughly enjoyed my stay. From behind the central station, you hop on a free ferry that works 24/7 straight to the island. I loved the fact that I had peace and quiet at night. I stayed in a four-bed mixed dorm and all my roommates were really nice and considerate, no in-room partying or disturbances but it was not a granny outfit! It was full of young people, got a free shot when checked it, nice bar and kitchen area. Beautiful surroundings for a quiet stroll at night after spending time being young, wild and carefree in central Amsterdam.
Food
Maybe it was just me not knowing the right places but I found eating out at ordinary, roadside restaurants in the city to be expensive and there wasn’t much in terms of variety or taste. On my last day, I located a gem, the Argentine Steak House, there’re several outlets and you get a nice, filling meal. I believe they run a daily lunch special, if I had known about this place earlier I would have taken most of my brunch/lunch there. Not only steak but other meat were available so some variety and the wine was good and affordable.
Museums
Wanted to find the world-famous Rijksmuseum but kept literally walking in circles! Then I asked a guy with a map for directions and he was lost also so I just gave up the search and went instead to Body Worlds which was way easier to find. This place was on my list, years earlier I was a Medical student and have always been in love with science so instead of being turned off I was curious and enthralled. Real people donated their bodies and through them, others can learn about and appreciate the complexity and beauty of the human form.
After my very interesting stop, I ended up in the Sex Museum, a real eye-opener that is right next to Body Worlds. It was interesting and funny without being perverted (at least for me), even educative. There were many photographs showing the evolution of sex in society from being tamed and tabooed to going mainstream and common.
Entertainment
With my limited time, I didn’t do much in terms of entertainment especially the cultural night thing. I live in a conservative society so I wanted something different, bold, and new. With a guy from the hostel as my guide, we strolled down the Red light district. It was interesting, I support the women who are doing this of their own free will. However, many think it is exploitative and I believe that any person who forces others to engage in sexual activity against their will is a criminal and should be prosecuted but there is nothing wrong with adult women who freely do this sort of activity ( my liberal views).
We also managed to catch two peep shows, 2 euros for 2 minutes… there were live sex shows too, something I have never seen before and having an insatiably curious mind I wanted to see but due to Amsterdam being the last stop on my tour I was almost broke by then.
Cafes and Canals
For about €10 I took a boat ride on the canal, this is a must-do item…who doesn’t do the canal thing in Amsterdam? But the café thing depends on the person. I believe I ended up in a British café in the Netherlands. Why? The people inside were all sipping tea and smoking joints…I don’t know if that is the right way to do it but I wondered why no beer or something else instead and right in front of me was a huge box of different flavoured teas with lumps of sugar. When I asked for a beer the bartender recommended a tea with two lumps of sugar and not wanting to be the banana among oranges I took the tea.
Windmills
So before going on any trip which is a big deal for me I do extensive research on all the tourist sites in the countries I have my heart set on. With the Netherlands, I had to visit windmills and luckily some were nearby in Zaanse Schans. (pics below). This place is so cute, quaint and different to the city and there are even some pot-bellied, sweet sheep (the ones in my neighbourhood are like the ugly stepsisters compared to these) lying about and lovely, little green wooden houses.
I wanted to visit Volendam too but didn’t have the time. Gosh, I wanted to do everything! You can find so many things to do and places to visit even if you are the laid-back, no partying type.
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