Continuing to post about our recent travels, today we look back at our day in Amsterdam.
Amsterdam is one of the most unique cities we've seen. A series of canals, built in the 1600s, form concentric rings around the main downtown area; intersecting canals enable navigation between them and create the overhead appearance of an aquatic spiderweb. We took a canal boat tour; lasting about one hour, it's a great way to see one of the rings and enjoy the more open waters of the harbor.
After the boat tour, we went on foot to enjoy the scenery and ambiance from another angle. The tranquility of the area was disturbed only by the hordes of aggressive bicyclists. The city boasts over 800,000 bikes; most of them are on your particular street at any given moment. That aside, we gazed in wonder at the narrow buildings, leaning structures, and unique architecture. And, most importantly, we had some amazing ice cream. I had rhubarb and black currant scoops . . . amazing.
We ended our stroll in front of the Anne Frank house. We had been before, so we didn't go in. We couldn't have if we wanted to; tickets are sold exclusively online, often selling out ~6 weeks in advance. I think they hold 20% of the tickets for same-day sales, but they're probably gone within minutes of opening.
Afterwards, we found a game store (it was a good one!), walked back to our car (parked in a lot near the Rijksmuseum). Amsterdam is meant for bikes; parking spaces for cars are few and expensive (we paid ~40 Euro for a half-day). That inconvenience aside, this is a lovely town well worth a day or two.
Amsterdam is one of the most unique cities we've seen. A series of canals, built in the 1600s, form concentric rings around the main downtown area; intersecting canals enable navigation between them and create the overhead appearance of an aquatic spiderweb. We took a canal boat tour; lasting about one hour, it's a great way to see one of the rings and enjoy the more open waters of the harbor.
After the boat tour, we went on foot to enjoy the scenery and ambiance from another angle. The tranquility of the area was disturbed only by the hordes of aggressive bicyclists. The city boasts over 800,000 bikes; most of them are on your particular street at any given moment. That aside, we gazed in wonder at the narrow buildings, leaning structures, and unique architecture. And, most importantly, we had some amazing ice cream. I had rhubarb and black currant scoops . . . amazing.
We ended our stroll in front of the Anne Frank house. We had been before, so we didn't go in. We couldn't have if we wanted to; tickets are sold exclusively online, often selling out ~6 weeks in advance. I think they hold 20% of the tickets for same-day sales, but they're probably gone within minutes of opening.
Afterwards, we found a game store (it was a good one!), walked back to our car (parked in a lot near the Rijksmuseum). Amsterdam is meant for bikes; parking spaces for cars are few and expensive (we paid ~40 Euro for a half-day). That inconvenience aside, this is a lovely town well worth a day or two.
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