Rembrandts right in front of our eyes and other Amsterdam, Netherlands Things to Do Tips

Rijksmuseum entrance

Keep in mind when reading this that by nature I'm not a big museum fancier, but the Rijksmuseum was one of the highlights of our visit for me. To stand in front of Rembrandt's magnificent The Night Watch, awestruck is the only word that comes to mind. The size of it alone is staggering. And actually in the city where the man lived and painted. Incredible. The Vermeers and other great works are also impossible to describe in words. Unfortunately, only one wing was open during our visit due to massive interior building renovations, and that was a heartbreaker, but it still was an amazing thing. Note that the taking of pictures with a camera inside the museum is allowed, but using a flash is prohibited. With our Canon digital, the lighting allowed for good shots without the flash turned on!

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Phone: +31-20-6747047
Address: Stadhouderskade 42
Directions: Museum area, easily accessible from Dam Square by tram, with a stop literally right in front of it.
Website: http://www.rijksmuseum.nl

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Anne Frank House: A potent reminder of the Nazi atrocities

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Written by jss1018

on Dec 28, 2004

This one was hard to take, but I would highly recommend it to anyone who has a shred of a conscience or compassion for other human beings. I was fighting back tears through much of this tour, and I don't cry easily. To actually see the interior of the house where Anne Frank, her sister Margot, and the others were hidden was a sobering experience, to say the least. To see actual photographs of Nazis in the streets just outside this building rounding up Jews to be taken to the death camps, then looking out the windows and imagining what it must have been like to have lived in utter terror at every vehicle sound and voice from the street, was something I'll never forget. To view the examples of others that have this same mentality of hatred and cruelty, from past events and people to current ones, that is available near the exit made me madder than I can put into words. And there are actually people who say the Holocaust never happened.

3 out of 4 Dutch Jews were killed by the Nazis.

Over 1 million Jews were murdered at the Auschwitz death camp alone, 6 million altogether.

Anne and her sister Margot both died of Typhus at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, just a few weeks before it was liberated.

Anne and Margot's mother, Edith, died at Auschwitz. Their father, Otto, survived Auschwitz, and returned to Amsterdam after it was liberated by the Russian army.

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Phone: +31-20-5567100
Address: Prinsengracht 267
Website: http://www.annefrank.nl
Other Contact: http://www.annefrank.com

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Maritime/Scheepvaart museum: A legacy of Dutch sea power

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Written by jss1018

on Dec 28, 2004

Maritime Museum

The Maritime Museum is an incredible facility to visit, both for the structure itself and the contents within. Housed in the National Naval Depot, the former arsenal of the Dutch Navy and over 300 years old, it's a fine collection of ship models and artifacts attesting to the might and history of the Dutch during their height of world power. Housed within is the actual Royal Barge once used by Dutch royalty, and outside on the water is a full-scale replica of the Dutch East Indiaman Amsterdam ship that you can tour. The actual one sank off the coast of England on its maiden voyage.

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Phone: +31-20-5232222
Address: Kattenburgerplein 1
Website: http://www.scheepvaartmuseum.nl

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Canal Boat Tours: A fantastic way to really see Amsterdam

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Updated by jss1018

on Dec 29, 2004

View from a canal boat

Another big highlight of our visit was taking a canal boat tour. After all the hustle and bustle of walking (and trying not to get run down by people, bikes, or trams), this was a wonderfully leisure and comfortable way to see Amsterdam and take pictures. These boats are totally enclosed during cold weather, and heated. Seating is comfy, with tables, and large windows on the sides that can be opened for photography along with glass panels on the tops make it easy to really take in the sights from a unique perspective.

The boat captains really know their stuff, and it's cool to watch how they turn these suckers when changing canal directions. It's also neat to see all the houseboats that people live on moored along the canals, complete with electricity, running water, and city sewerage connections.

There are numerous companies and locations for taking a tour, with some being at the Central Station tourist information office area and just down the Damrak (street leading to Dam Square) from there. Also some down the street from the Rijksmuseum, turn right immediately when exiting it and you'll find them. A fair walk for these from the museum, but not too bad, and when we were there a lot of street construction going on in the area. The third or fourth one you come to is one that's free if you have the 72-hour Amsterdam Pass card, but be sure to also have the Pass booklet; it may be needed for verification.

There's also a Museum Boat that makes 6 or 7 stops in the main museum areas, but be forewarned: If you don't time your museum exit with the return of the canal boat, you'll be waiting a long time for it to come back around!

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Dam Square - Madame Tussaud: Bit of an over-priced disappointment

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Written by jss1018

on Dec 28, 2004

Madame Tussauds Wax Museum

We went here because it's located right on Dam Square where we stayed, plus we had never been to one of the Tussauds museums before. It was the only thing from the entire trip we were disappointed with. And naturally the only thing totally made for tourists that has virtually nothing to do with the beauty and history of the city.

Over-priced, and not nearly as extensive a collection of figures as we had imagined or that one would think judging from the size of the building. Although a few of the wax figures were startlingly realistic, far too many were comically off the mark on their appearance.

I wouldn't really recommend it unless you just want to have the experience of going to a Madame Tussauds. After all, there aren't very many of them in the world.

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Phone: +31-20-5230623
Address: Dam 20
Website: http://www.madametussauds.nl

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Old Church / Oude Kerk: An awe-inspiring church

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Updated by jss1018

on Mar 3, 2007

Old Church (Oude Kerk), exterior

by jss1018 , 2 more photos

The Old Church ("De Oude Kerk" in Dutch) was another of my favorites from the places we visited. Although there are certainly some gigantic and beautiful churches and cathedrals in the U.S., how can you find one there with this much history? It's original structure dates back to the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries from what I've read, almost 400 years longer than we've even been a country. Amazing.

It was a humbling experience, to say the least, when walking into this facility for the first time. Kinda puts a different perpective on your place in the cosmos. A cavernous main area, and the the "Great Organ" and stained glass windows are incredible. If you go there, look down at the floor and you'll realize you're walking on very large tombstones, with over 10,000 people having been buried there from around 1300 to 1865, including Rembrandt's wife.

I would very much like to re-visit this, since we went there as one of our first places to see, and were a little out of it from the fatigue of the trip over, adjusting to the new surroundings, and it being rather cold that day for walking. It's a very short walk from Dam Square, and located right at the Red Light District. Don't let that put you off for visiting, though, you probably wouldn't know it unless you had already researched the area and were pretty observant when walking about.

It's impossible to describe everything about this place here, best to check out the Website for it. Definitely on our must-visit list.

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Phone: +31-20-6258284
Address: Oudekerksplein 23
Website: http://www.oudekerk.nl

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Leidseplein: A popular area for lodging, shopping, & nightlife

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Written by jss1018

on Dec 30, 2004

American Hotel, Leidseplein

The Leidseplein ("plein" meaning plaza, or place) is, along with Dam Square, another central, hub type area of the city. There's a beautiful hotel there (no idea what the inside is like) named the Crowne Plaza Amsterdam American that's rated a 5-star and takes up a sizable area of the square, with several other hotels in the immediate area. Clubs, shops, and restaurants galore. I've read that it's a very active area during the peak summer months. Lots of people here even in December, a very exciting, lively place.

There's a restaurant there, the Three Sisters Amsterdam, that we ate lunch at one day. Very nice decor, ambience, and friendly service, with delicious Tostis (grilled sandwiches).

Probably not a good area for lodging if you're looking for total peace and quiet, but that would also apply to Dam Square area hotels. From everything I've read, though, that depends a lot on where a particular room in a hotel is located as far as street noise, etc.

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Address: Leidseplein

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Central Station Area/St Nicolaas Kerk: Huge train station, beautiful exterior

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Updated by jss1018

on Mar 3, 2007

Amsterdam Central Station Area/St Nicolaas Kerk

Centraal Station, from distance

down Damrak

by jss1018 , 2 more photos