Amsterdam

I was lucky in that I won an all-expenses paid trip for two to a city I’ve always dreamed of visiting: Amsterdam. As a youth, I was mesmerized by ViewMaster 3-D photos of this city laced with canals and narrow gabled buildings. The actual experience of being there was far greater than anything I imagined. My wife, Donna, and I started our exploration of the city with a boat trip down the famed canals. The sight of the golden-age Dutch architecture mixed with the houseboats and distinctive bridges was breathtaking. Once we were back on land, we found that cycling is the preferred mode of transportation around Amsterdam. In fact, we saw parking lots filled with thousands of bikes. If you’re thirsty for a cup of Columbian brew, be wary that the coffeehouses are actually retailers for legal marijuana, perhaps even some from Columbia. A moving experience for us was visiting the Anne Frank House. We saw where Anne, her family and other Jews were living while they hid from the occupying Nazis. Anne’s original diary is part of the House’s permanent exhibit. Amsterdam is a city of art. Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Vermeer among other famous Dutch painters have a treasure trove of art displayed throughout the city. We toured the Rijks Museum, the home of Rembrandt’s most famous painting, The Night Watch. Beyond Amsterdam, we traveled to a few outside destinations to see villages filled with windmills and tradesmen’s workshops to get an impression of what Dutch life was like in the 17th and 18th centuries.

PICTURES:
-Scenic Brouwersgracht Canal
-Classic Dutch architecture
-Locals cycling in Amsterdam
-Donna with me on a canal bridge
-Amsterdam Coffeehouse
-Anne Frank’s diary
-Rijks Museum
-The Milkmaid, Vermeer painting
-The Night Watch, Rembrandt painting
-Windmill at Zaanse Schans
-Dutch Village of Marken
-Wooden clogs