Taking pictures in bad weather and other Amsterdam, Netherlands General Tips

Favorite Thing: Taking pictures in bad weather can be time-consuming and nerve-wrecking. Have a look at the picture of my friend. This is the third time I tried and failed.


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Favorite Thing: Even in the bleakest weather you are bound to find some bright spots. Here's a fruit stand which caught my eye.


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Favorite Thing: I'm sure that everybody who visits old Amsterdam falls in love with its architecture. I loved those blocks of houses aligned along canals, supporting each other like people standing shoulder to shoulder. Some were so old that they seemed on the verge of crumbling. It made me sad at times. Our tourgide said at some point that she couldn't understand why the prices of real estate in that area were so high and still growing. The houses were built a few hundred years ago on something like wooden logs driven into wet ground for stability. Now living in the houses becomes more and more dangerous. If nothing is done, she said, they still have about a hundred years or so before they go down. Is that true?


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Favorite Thing: Three things that make Amsterdam's old houses special:
Firstly, those decorative tops of the houses (I'm sure there is some formal name for it, can someone give me a hint?), each house having its own pattern.
Secondly, some houses are so incredibly narrow that it's hard to imagine that you can actually live in it (See that picture I took in Begijnhof!)
Finally, most buildings have a facade which is actually leaning forward and a big hook attached at the top. Why? Because all the furniture you want to move in- or out of the house has to be lifted through the windows, the staircases are far too narrow and too steep to allow any manoeuvres (even with a suitcase!). The hook at the top is for the rope on which the furniture is lifted and the leaning front helps you move things up. (Begijnhof once again provided a perfect example. Plus it's about the only sunny picture I have from Amsterdam :)


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