Sign in with Facebook"A short trip to a small country" Amsterdam by abi_maha
Amsterdam Travel Guide: 10,043 reviews and 20,824 photos
My husband had been posted on work in NL, so after listening to him rave about the beauty of this place for a month I decided to take a break and join him for a fortnight. having completed a week here now, I must say I am very glad I did that!!Day1:19th may 2008
Having taken Air France, I sat through a very uncomfortable flight with hardly any 'asian vegeterian' food that I was promised! Then followed the confusion of a flight that was delayed and a terminal change in CDG that almost ensured I missed my KLM to Amsterdam!
However it was all worth it to see my husband waiting at the lounge to pick me up at the amsterdam airport, and what an airport- one of the most organised one I have been to!
However my happiness was short lived as I learnt from him that the famous tulip gardens of Keukenhof closed on 18th may!! I had just missed it by a day!
We headed to our hotel- Blue Towers in Bossen Lommerplein , a nice place with a good view on the seventh floor Very courteous receptionists who spoke impeccable english!
The Amsterdam canal system is the result of conscious city planning. A comprehensive plan was developed that was based on four concentric half-circles of canals with their ends emerging at the IJ bay. Known as the Grachtengordel, three of the canals are mostly for residential development: Those are the Herengracht (Gentleman's Canal), Keizersgracht (Emperor's Canal), and Prinsengracht (Prince's Canal’). The fourth and outermost canal, the Singelgracht (not to be confused with the older Singel), served purposes of defense and water management. The defensive purpose was established by moat and earthen dikes, with gates at transit points, but otherwise no masonry superstructures.The map of Amsterdam thus looks very interesting with concentric canals and I had a fun time walking or cycling thru the city reading the same :)
Amsterdam is the capital of Netherlands and being famous for unique reasons such as the RLD, free unrestricted doping and the first nation to legalise homosexuality I cannot say I wasn't curious about this little country! It has all the advantages of a big city: culture, nightlife, international restaurants, good transport - but is quiet, and largely thanks to its canals, has a little road traffic. In Amsterdam your destination is never far away, but get a bike for most authentic experience.
- Pros:Tolerant, beautiful and quaint
- In a nutshell:High on life!
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Italian food and house wine
Restaurants
(2)
We were out to celebrate and wanted a restaurant within walking distance- hence Michelangelo. Lasagne- it just melts in... more travel advice
Muiderslot-A fairytale come true!
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(8)
Today was the day this entire trip revolved around....we were celebrating the first anniversary of a very special... more travel advice
Madurodam-Miniature Netherlands
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(8)
Madurodam was quaint, all the miniatures looked very pretty. I didn't know that it was a war memorial built by Mr Madur... more travel advice
Another guided trip to Delft
Things to Do
(8)
I set off on another linbergh tours in best of holland trips. this time to Delft, The hague and madurodam. This trip was... more travel advice
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Comments (5)
Lovely page Abi- the daytrip sounds excellent. And nice photos too. We are just back from our o/s trip- am struggling to settle down ...
You got to Muiderslot & I didn't! I also had trouble with transport getting there, and didn't make it. In Leiden, my Bus didn't turn up, there wasn't a strike though, just didn't come, so wasted a lot of time!
Hi Abi - Rijks was also under renovation when we visited. So sorry though that you missed VG museum - one of my favorites. Did you skip Rembrandthuis as well (also one of my favs)? I really love Amsterdam & hope to go back once again. Take care....Donna
Nice and beautiful Amsterdam. Schipol Int is one of the most organised airport in the world. It's nice to learn you never had any problem there. True ,after Louvre nothing will ever match.
enjoyed reading your netherland page.you have an excuse to go there again --- Tulips!! lol , vpa S