Bustling Amsterdam
Amsterdam, The Netherlands is one of the most popular vacation destinations in all of Europe and is well worth it. My family and I took a 3 day trip to Amsterdam, where we enjoyed the museums, architecture, and the local food of Amsterdam. We started our trip getting off a train coming from Berlin. Before traveling to the Netherlands we vacationed in Germany for some time. We took a train from Berlin to Amsterdam, that takes roughly six hours. We arrived in Amsterdam’s main train station known as, Amsterdam Centraal.
From the moment you walk outside the station you are overwhelmed with the stunning architecture of the city. The station is located very close to the touristic areas, so once you arrive it is quite easy to walk to any location. We arrived around lunch time in Amsterdam and decided to take a relaxing day and just explore the canals. Since we were on a train for most of the morning we wanted to walk and stretch our legs, and believe me by the end of the trip we regret saying that. We just walked along the river Amstel. In terms of transportation, the main choices are to walk; which is what we did, to rent a bike, or to take a boat. Many people enjoy the boat tours and even stay in boats for the night (boathouses), but we chose not to do that.
One of the most famous things about Amsterdam is the Damrak narrow houses. They can be found almost anywhere in the city. They are tall houses all connected together along the river. We walked along the famous area of Jordan, which has so many beautiful houses, shops, and restaurants. It is a perfect opportunity to take photos and make memories.
In Jordan we walked past the Westerkerk bell tower, which is the biggest church in Amsterdam. It was built in the 1600s during the renaissance period. Additionally, in Jordan we tried the famous stroopwafel. The stroopwafel is a mix between a cookie and a waffle, and is most well known in Amsterdam. It was a delicious dessert that perfectly ended our first day in Amsterdam.
On our second day in Amsterdam we decided to visit the more touristy areas of the city. We first visited the huge, beautiful Dam Plaza. The Plaza is kinda hard to miss, it is always packed with people and has tons of museums, shops, and restaurants near it. I vividly remember there was a group of people dancing in the plaza and it was such a cool experience that showed how active the square was. Furthermore, on one side of the Plaza is the Madame Tussauds Wax museum and on the other is the National Monument on Dam Square. We did not go into the Wax museum, but one can see it from the outside in the Plaza.
We spent most of the day exploring the Plaza but we also visited the Rembrandt’s house museum. We walked there and admired the building from the outside. Rembrandt’s art is located inside the house. Speaking of museums, Amsterdam has many that are worth a visit. The following day we had tickets to go to the Van Gogh museum and Anne Frank’s House. Now for Anne Frank’s house tickets it is important that one buys them in advance before arriving there because there is a huge wait list that is almost impossible to get in during that time. We were given a time on our ticket for Anne Frank’s House, which was in the afternoon.
Since we had some time to wait, we visited the Museumplein around lunch time. In order to get there we passed through a path through the Rijksmuseum, which was a tunnel with many musicians playing beautiful music. We did not enter the Rijksmuseum, but we passed through the tunnel to get to the Museumplein. While there we walked around the public square and sat down on the large, grassy area. We enjoyed a snack, watched the locals on their afternoon walks, and even took a really good nap.
When three o'clock was nearing, we started walking to Anne Frank’s House. At our designated time we entered the House. The tour begins on the first floor and you go up the stairs of the house with an audio guide. After are impactful visit at Anne Frank’s house, We visited our last museum and destination in Amsterdam, the Van Gogh museum. We walked there, passing many beautiful bridges along the way. We also bought the tickets on line in advance. Once we entered we admired the four floors of Van Gogh’s art. Sadly no picture taking was allowed inside the museum, but at least the memory lives in our heads. We also ate and visited the beautiful Vondelpark.
That concluded our experience in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was a magical trip that will not soon be forgotten.
written by Isabella