The liberal laws on sex and drugs influence the heady atmosphere in Amsterdam. But the city has a lot more to offer on culture, art and cheese, says Karishma Kripalani
Are you serious, we are going to Amsterdam?” I was excited as my husband booked the flight tickets. This place had been on my list since forever. But I had waited for so long to ensure that I went there with the right company.
And there was a reason. As I walked through Dam Square, all I could smell was marijuana and cannabis in the air. The square is the main centre of the city, like those piazzas which are walking streets in any European city. The speciality here is popular cafes selling all the illegal stuff which is legal here. A person can smoke pot and even in the stores you will find lollipops, cookies, brownies, chocolates, teas, candles, energy drinks and a lot more laced with it. Every alternate stop is a shop or cafe to smoke up and get spaced out.
In the evening, we walked through the red light area, De Wallen, where sex workers had positioned themselves in glass windows and called out to tourists, for a sneak peek. In all the lanes there must be over hundreds of them. And extending the contours of sexuality where heterogeneous coupling is not the only normal, there were some lesbians as well. What a great city. I absolutely adored the liberty.
There was even an entire museum dedicated to it which made my heart melt and made me very emotional. The Red Light Secrets was once upon a time an actual brothel. It was in this place that a very famous sex worker Annie was murdered and till today her death is a mystery. There is a memorial to all like her who have worked here and gone to heaven. A line that took my respect for the profession, two notches higher was, “I am not a Prostitute, I am a Sex Therapist.” The peep sex show is great entertainment for all couples.
But that is not all that one can experience in the city. The next day promised to be spirited, practically, with a visit to the Heineken Experience. It is definitely considered one of the top beers in the world and Amsterdam is home to it. The museum offers a varied experience. While it contains all sorts of exhibits and history of the family, a visitor can even personalise one’s own bottle or get a three dimensional experience of how one feels inside the bubbles of a beer bottle. But those who love their beer need not be disappointed as it all culminated with some delicious tasting session.
Amongst my favourite things-to-do here was the Heineken beer pouring competition, where one needs to pour the drink into a glass in the correct manner, so that there is just the right amount of drink in proportion to the correct level of froth. After downing all these beers, I was slightly light-headed and I thought a bite would help. I had some poffertjes, the Dutch mini pancakes, a speciality dessert here. These fluffy bites just melt in the mouth. I personally feel they get even more tastier with Nutella and strawberries.
Amsterdam is the real city of canals, since there are over a hundred of them. What better way to soak in the city than by sitting in a boat, sipping some champagne and experiencing the local life and colourful narrow houses of Amsterdam through the waters? In most of the city, houses are very narrow as people are taxed on the basis of the width of the house and so you will see long houses which are very narrow. A bit of disproportion.
Another unique feature in the city is bicycles. The parking lots outside the canals are filled with them. The stands always make for a lovely picture, to post on social media. In a city with so many canals and narrow roads, most places become inaccessible by car. The ratio of car to bicycles is, for every one car owned there are four bicycles.
I’m sure most of you would have seen the “Iamstsrdam” sign. It’s quite famous. In fact, it is the first of place signs. Every other place has taken inspiration from it and has only recently started their local versions. But trust me, it’s much easier to find the sign on the web rather than when you are in the city. The city officials move the sign overnight. I actually experienced this. One day, I saw the sign across the river, while we were at Amsterdam Central, in an area called Noord. The next day, when we actually reached that place, the sign was missing. It was almost like a real treasure hunt to find it. Apparently the previous day, there was such a huge crowd which wanted to take pictures that it caused chaos. Overnight the city officials changed the location. Many locals too didn’t know where it was. We pretty much walked three km to find our treasure. Luckily because of the change, as there were lesser crowds, we were able to get some great pictures.
It was only when I visited the city that I realised how the Dutch have some amazing artists who have created some breathtaking pieces of work. The Rijks Museum is comparable to the Louvre. Actually, I would say, better. Besides the beautiful paintings, some of them very vibrant, my favourite sections were the libraries of books, tile art in blue and white and the dollhouse section. Even the dollhouses of the Dutch royalty bore the imprint of their grandeur. They are quite comparable to life-size houses.
Another museum, which cannot be missed, is Van Gogh. There is limited entry and thus needs to be booked about a week in advance over the web or depending on length of stay, at the tourist offices. The way the museum is made, I actually felt the artist come alive. His paintings are so real that I felt he’s right in front of me. The most touching part of the museum is the life of Theo and Vincent as well as the role of Johanna Gazina (Theo’s wife) who showcased her brother-in-law’s work to the outside world.
It’s only because of her that we all know of the genius artist.
However, I missed an important museum, that of Anne Frank House. Being a very old structure, and something that’s very difficult to maintain, only 1,000 people are allowed in a day, and tickets for this open online three months in advance which get sold out within 10-15 days of their opening.
No visit to Amsterdam is complete without visiting the Dutch countryside. I’m sure, most of us, including myself, have seen the very unique European windmill. To see these, drive about 45 miles to the village of Zaanse. I loved dancing in the wind and posing around these beautiful structures.
I am sure if any of your friends have visited Amsterdam, you would have seen a magnet, or a wall hanging of those wooden shoes. These are clogs, that are worn by the inhabitants of the Market Village even today. Due to technological advancements, crafting them has become easy. These make for the best souvenirs to take back in the form of a magnet or a hanging.
Holland and cheese are synonymous. Visit a factory in Voladem and try out over 50 flavours of this dairy product. I brought back home basil pesto and truffle. The best part is that way the cheese is packaged, until it is opened, it will stay fine at room temperature. So it makes sense to travel with it. The whole countryside, can be completed in a day. It is recommended to do this as a group tour.
Despite knowing what to expect, the city was out to surprise me. And that is what any traveller looks forward to.