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Amsterdam, Holland

May 22, 2017 John Laninga Leave a comment

Amsterdam is the capital of Holland, my birth country. The city originates back to the 12th century, and was the seat of the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century. It is built on wooden pillings along the many canals, which contain the many gabled houses of the rich of that era. Many buildings have a decided lean because of the settling soil and water table. Now, it still houses international corporations, and many wealthy individuals live alongside the canals— ans some in houseboats.

Famous Amsterdam residents include Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Spinoza and diarist Anne Frank. The city houses the world’s oldest stock market, has significant museums and cultural attractions, and a world famous concert hall. It is also well known for its red light district and cannabis coffee shops. It draws some 5 million visitors annualy.

We visited the the newly rebuilt Rijksmuseum, home of many famous paintings and artworks. We toured the streets in a hop on hop off bus, and the canals via boat. It’s a great place to visit, everything is accessible. But be prepared to share everything with huge crowds… the city is very popular.

Amsterdam’s central rail station, from here you can get anywhere

Getting ready to board one of the many canal tour boats

The Damskade, heavily populated by tourists

Some of the oldest buildings and church

Part of the original Amsterdam harbor

This tower was built in the 16th Century to protect the local banks and harbor.

Yes, this building is leaning

Bridges and houseboats

Church view over the canals

Another canal view

Old canals, old buildings

Bicycles and canals… how Dutch can you get?

More old gabled buildings

Some of the fancy gabled buildings along the Keizersgragt

One of the many churches

Varied building styles

Rijksmuseum, home of many Dutch Masters

The famous “Night Watch” by Rembrandt

Categories: Traveling Tags: Amsterdam, Anne Frank, canals, Holland, Nightwatch, REMBRANDT, Rijksmuseum, VAN GOGH

Amsterdam, 2015

September 8, 2015 John Laninga 1 comment

Instead of just walking around, this year we took a guided walking tour of Amsterdam. That worked well, we saw things we never saw on our own, and received a history lesson at the same time. The guide (Michael, of Free Walking Tours) did a great job, mixing facts and humor.

We started in the red light district (yes, girls were working at 3PM) followed by a visit to the Jewish neighborhood that was devastated in World War II. We reviewed the history of the Dutch East India Company (Holland was the most powerful and rich country in the world during the Golden Age), and how that influenced the building of canals.

We learned about drugs in general (the Dutch have the most liberal laws, yet have one of the lowest drug use rates in the world). We then traveled to the wealthy part of town, including a visit to one of the very expensive court yards. We also visited a traditional cheese house and tried some samples.

As you look at the pictures, note how many buildings are leaning. Amsterdam is on mainly reclaimed soil, which is unstable, and requires frequent maintenance. So we learned a lot and were entertained at the same time. A great afternoon!