1000 Places to See Before You Die 13 - Canal Tours and Tulips, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands, but the parliament and government is actually situated in the third largest city, The Haag. The city of Amsterdam is amongst other things known for The Van Gogh Museum, The Rijksmuseum, Anna Frank’s House, canals, flowers and bicycles. 

This post will deal with the canals and tulips, and a general introduction to the city. 

History

Amsterdam can trace its history back to the 13th century, when it was a small fishing community along the banks of the river Amstel. It slowly grew and in 1275 it was awarded privileges to trade. The traders worked in the Baltic Sea, trading with the cities of the Hanseatic League. The city prospered and in the late 16th century it grew rapidly, almost doubling its population. This was the beginning of the Golden Age of Amsterdam. In the late 18th and early 19th century there was a decline, but in 1815 The Netherlands was established as an independent state and the second golden age of Amsterdam started. 

The country was neutral in the First World War, but in the Second World War it was invaded by the Germans on May 10th 1940. The Nazis set about persecuting the Jews, leading some people to help the Jews either conceal themselves or escape. Anna Frank was one of the many Jews deported to a concentration camp, and the house in which she was concealed with her family prior to their discovery is now a museum.  

After WWII the city was rebuilt. In the 1960s and 1970s the city became a “magical center” of Europe due to the fact that “soft” drugs, like marijuana were tolerated. These days Amsterdam is a social and cultural melting pot, with up to 45% of its inhabitants descended form non-dutch parents. The city of Amsterdam is working hard to promote tolerance in the face of rising discrimination and segregation of religious and social groups. 

The canals 

The current primary canals are concentric and enclose the old town centre. This layout was the result of successful city planning. In the early 1700s 4 primary canals shaped as concentric semicircles and ending in the IJ lake were planned. The space enclosed by these canals were meant for residential areas. The outer canal was built for defense and to control the level of water. The eastern part of the canals were never finished and this area was subsequently used for parks, theaters, nursing homes and other public institutions. 

A boating tour of the canals might seem touristy, but it will give you a completely different perspective of the city, and I think it is well worth the money to go for a ride around the canals. You can see the facades of the tall, slim buildings built in the 1600s, when property was expensive and the property taxes high. This was combated by building 4 or 5 floors to a slim house, giving you many square meters for less money. The city of Amsterdam has conserved a big part of its many well-kept brick houses and a lot of them are lit up at night. The city’s 1281 bridges are also lit up, and makes for a romantic trip down the canals at night. If you are not into the romance and prefer to see things by the light of day, daytime tours are also available. 

The tulips

If you are into flowers, Amsterdam is the place to go. The Netherlands is famous for its tulips and in and around Amsterdam there are plenty of opportunities to stop and smell the…tulips. You can board a 3-7 day canal boat trip that takes you past a myriad of flowing fields and parks, the auction house at Aalsmeer where 17 million flowers are auctioned off daily and the Keukenhof, a former royal park with over 6 million tulips, hyacinths and other flowers covering the ground. 

If you don’t feel like joining a cruise you can follow the Flower Route (Bloemen Route) starting in Amsterdam and experience the flowering country for yourself. 

Timing

There are a lot of people in the spring who come to see the flowers. If you want to avoid the masses, you will also miss the flowers. However, I think it is worth a visit even of you can’t time it to the budding flowers. Amsterdam has a lot to offer besides the flowers and even out of season it is possible to find a flower market to get a glimpse of the many colors and fill your nostrils with the scent of fresh tulips.  

My trip

I was in Amsterdam in 2005 with a friend of mine and I have to confess, we mainly spent our days lounging about and finding a hair dresser that could make dreadlocks for my friends. However, we did mange to go on a canal tour and we really enjoyed it. We went in the summer and so missed the flowers, but as mentioned above, we did manage to find some flower markets around the city to give us the feel of it. 

A lot of people in Amsterdam are foreign, so if you speak English you should be well helped. I must say, however, that whenever we asked directions, people were completely lost. Nobody knew where anything was, so be sure to equip yourself with a good map and stick to that. Also, keep an eye out for trams and bicycles as both of these are quite silent and can sneak up on you unawares. If you don’t get out of the way you will be rewarded with a ring of the bell or a honk of the horn, in the case of trams. Just keep your eyes open and consult your map, and you will have a splendid time! 

You can fly to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport which is situated just outside of Amsterdam. 

All facts are from Wikipedia and "1000 Places to See Before You Die" by Patricia Schultz.