CAG on travel: Amsterdam

Apple, bacon and butter pannekoek

There isn’t much I can say about Amsterdam that everyone doesn’t know already… because it is amazing! Key points: Lovely Dutch people, amazing museums, cheese, pancakes and waffles, Indonesian food, and beer

Beautiful cheese wheels

This is probably just a tourist’s point of view, but a few weekends ago I partook in a little snippet of what a more normal Dutch life would be like if I lived in Amsterdam. I left for the weekend and stayed a little further out from the center in an area called De Pijp. Recently named one of the coolest neighborhoods in the world by Stylist magazine (a renowned and reliable source), and I believe this is true.

De Albert Cuypmarkt

De Albert Cuypmarkt

De Pijp is amazing. It has De Albert Cuypmarkt, which has delicious Dutch treats, which is a perfect place to do some people watching and is only about a 25 minute walk to the center. I heard accents from all over the world.

Herring, onions, pickle

Then off to the Rijksmuseum which hasn’t been open any time I’ve visited Amsterdam since I moved to Europe. I also previewed the famous Rembrandt ‘The Night Watch’ painting before I visited by watching the flashmob staged by the museum on youtube to mark its re-opening. It is really fun to watch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6W2ZMpsxhg).

Henry Moore sculptures in garden

Stained glass window in the Rijksmuseum Great Hall

The museum was really beautiful. Both the architecture and the artworks were really engaging, and I haven’t been in a museum as busy since I went to the Louvre in Paris years ago. Not really worth fighting the crowds to take a photo of ‘The Night Watch’ when there were some much more serene galleries to take in the art and ambiance.

Sculpture gallery in Rijksmuseum

The rest of the trip focused on taking in the scenery around the edges of Old Amsterdam in Spui, eating, and drinking.

Spui

Indonesian feast

And then on to another night out in De Pijp, with all the other cool Dutch people. Most of the bars are all located within a few minutes walk of each other, but they all have very different feels, and most importantly different Belgian beers. It’s really lucky that England is so close to such a fun and beautiful city.