Amsterdam...more than just a Red Light Special!

In the last week of January, I took a trip to Amsterdam, on my way to Abuja, Nigeria for a wedding. It was a four-day trip I had pre-planned with my friend Enni, who lives in Aalsmeer, Netherlands, a small town about 30 minutes outside Amsterdam, in northern Holland. Enni and her husband were about two months away from expecting their first child when I visited so they weren't able to accompany me on any of my trips around the city, but they were the loveliest hosts in their amazing house. My 15-minute walks to the bus stop outside their suburb, where I caught the bus into Amsterdam Central, was serenity at its finest! Never have I felt safer walking around a city I knew nothing about, than in Amsterdam. As my friend said to me during one of our talks, prisons in the Netherlands are being used to house the homeless and destitute because there are no criminals to occupy them. As I walked around the city at night, and even back to my friends late at night, I thought disappointedly about how unsafe I feel back home in the U.S.

 

Now, let's get to the fun part! If you know anything about Amsterdam, you'd know it is the capital of bicycles. There were bikes EVERYWHERE! I shot so much footage and took so many pictures that I planned to write a separate entry on Bikemania--locals estimate that there are about 600,000 bikes in the city alone. But I may have corrupted my video files so the only videos I have are from my cell phone. I didn't ride any bikes on this trip, but it inspired me to come back home and pick up biking again. In the absence of bikes, I opted to walk everywhere. Something to note: I was able to do everything in two days! There are obviously a lot more places you can go to, but most of the famous places to visit or things to do in Amsterdam can be done in two days.

Bikes are everywhere!

My first stop on Sunday was the Van Gogh Museum, which is located in Amsterdam's Museum Square. I suggest going in the morning as the crowd starts building by midday. The admission fee is €17.50 and it definitely paid to invest in the €5 for the audio guide, which I credit for my spending three hours at the museum, and which I recommend for non-art connoisseurs like me. The audio guide helps depict the moods, periods, inspirations and conflicts that helped shape the artist's individual artworks. Even with little knowledge about art, you'll come to appreciate Van Gogh's craftsmanship. You can opt for a 45-minute guide if you would rather speed through the museum, but I think you would love the organization at this museum that you'll want to stick around to hear all the stories.

Tip: No pictures are allowed around the art (though you can get away with it if you really want one,) so you don't need a camera if you're not heading to other tourist sites. You can't take a bag in, but can check it in with your coat for free. There is a small café inside the museum for some snacks and hot drinks.

Outside Van Gogh Museum

One of many self portraits of Vincent van Gogh

Since I had such a good time getting to know van Gogh, I decided to give the Rijks Museum a try as well (OK, I'll admit that I had already planned my itinerary before starting my day.) Since the famous Iamsterdam slogan is situated between Van Gogh and Rijks, I was able to stop there for a brief photo-op without sacrificing much time. You can't come to Amsterdam and not take a picture by one of these slogans. There is another one right outside Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, and a third one changes locations at any given time. Basically, you have more than enough opportunities to take a picture by the famous slogan. Be aware that it is almost impossible to end up with a solo picture of the whole thing as thousands of tourists crowd around it every day.

The popular slogan in the foreground of the Rijks Museum

I continued on to Rijks, which is the Dutch National Museum and is dedicated to the arts and history of Amsterdam. With so much to learn, I was disappointed in the touring experience. The entry fee is also €17.50 and the website advertises downloading an app for a free audio guide, but I didn't find it helpful. Perhaps I didn't know how to use it. I chose not to buy the audio guide and it may have contributed to a less than enjoyable experience compared to van Gogh's. The only advantage to this place was the freedom to take pictures. It was somewhat confusing following the different periods especially as some of the stairs didn't lead to all floors. I used the map provided to focus on all the highlighted work, but pretty much went through the motions for much of the tour.








The main highlight of this museum is the Rembrandt painting of The Night Watch; Rembrandt van Rijn's most famous painting and one of the most recognized artworks in the world. The original painting was so large that in 1715, it was cut off on all sides to get into the city's town hall. So what we now view as the original is the altered version. This was the only painting to have guards permanently posted by each side, which was not surprising. And to the right of the painting is a smaller replica of what the original painting looked like. We were allowed to take pictures even though the informational cards highlight how much deterioration the painting has suffered over the years, including scratches. Speaking of the guides, I found them to be extremely useful in giving more detail to specific parts of the painting. One example is the suggestion that Rembrandt painted himself into the artwork. These cards were available at the more famous artworks like the second most visited painting at the museum: Lucas van Leyden's The Last Judgement. I tried hard to enjoy this museum, but struggled. If you had to pick one, I would say head to the Van Gogh Museum.

Tip: You can also store your bag and coats at this museum. It also has a small café toward the back entrance of the museum.

Above is the replica of the original. Below is the original today

I took a day trip to Brussels, Belgium on Monday morning, and resumed my tour of Amsterdam on Tuesday morning with a visit to the Anne Frank House. Gosh! Talk about an emotionally gut-wrenching site to visit. Hardly anyone who is aware of the existence of the Holocaust can say they've never heard of the story of Anne Frank, the teenage Jewish girl whose diary about the time she and seven others spent hiding in the annex of an office during the Holocaust became a worldwide bestseller. Visiting this house was the highlight of my tour in this city (besides seeing my friends of course.) Scoring tickets for this tour, which is €9, can be tricky as a major ongoing renovation means you can only buy tickets online. I bought mine two days before my visit, so don't believe the reviews out there that suggest buying months in advance. Unless you're absolutely sure about going, I wouldn't advise anyone to buy months in advance.

Outside the Anne Frank House

The house is on Prinsengracht Canal street in Central Amsterdam, and you are only allowed to get in line 15 minutes before your scheduled block start. The museum says you must show up during your 15-minute window of entry or forfeit your ticket. I'm not sure how strict they are in enforcing this, but I didn't want to find out. You definitely understand why it isn't open entry once you begin the tour. It is a narrow house with only few people able to access some areas at the same time. It is a place of retrospective history and I was very appreciative of how everyone respected the mood. Only hush whispers between people. Not a single phone rang even with no signs cautioning against use of phones. No photos are allowed, but one girl in front of me couldn't resist taking a picture of the cupboard hiding the doorway into the office annex.








I took some pictures at the end of the tour where you can listen to a collection of stories or comments about Anne Frank by some who knew her, including her father, Otto Frank, the lone survivor of all the occupants of the house. Famous people like Nelson Mandela and Whoopi Goldberg also spoke about the bravery of Anne. You can also leave some words and donations at the end. The audio guides are free (a major plus to experiencing this tour as is truly intended,) and don't require earphones. Starting at the bottom and heading upstairs through sometimes steep and narrow steps, you listen to an audio retelling of her words from her diary and sometimes get to see video footage of her dad or fellow friends in captivity.

Was a somber feeling touring this museum

This helps to provide crowd control because it would be a nightmare standing on the steep and narrow steps waiting to climb. You may have to wait for some videos to restart when you walk into a new room, but none of the videos are more than five minutes so you never have to wait too long. If you're expecting stories from other Jews held in captivity during that period, save yourself the trip. This is specifically about Anne Frank, her family and the other occupants of the house, and rightfully so. In South Africa, there are tons of museums dedicated to various perspectives of the apartheid experience. I must've visited at least seven of them and each one left an indelible mark because they told a different story. I say it was perfect as is. Anne's words, coming from the life of such a young girl reverberated around the world in a way that deserves to be commemorated by itself.

Tip: Free entry with Dutch Museum Card, but still requires scheduling a time slot on the website.






About 50 feet from the Anne Frank House is Westerkerk. Also known as the West Church, it was famously written about in Anne's diary, in which she wrote about listening to the chiming of the church bells while she hid in the annex. Built in 1620, this church should serve as a must-stop for an education in Amsterdam's history, but it pains me to stay I was underwhelmed. It is definitely recognized as a tourist attraction because there's all the trappings you'd come to expect: postcards, fridge magnets and an in-house artist painting and selling his art. But it didn't feel like a church or sacred place to me. It merely offered me the perfect place to rest my feet after a long tour. The most spectacular thing about this church is its large organ above its entrance. Some may talk about the view from the top (which you have to pay to see,) but it would be no different from any other tall building in the area. But that organ? Tell me a place you can find another like it, and I'll call you a fibber. What isn't heavily promoted is that this is the final resting place of Rembrandt, Netherland's most famed artist. There's a headstone with his name on it, but it doesn't attract many people to the church. In fact it was virtually empty when I visited.

Tip: There's an Anne Frank statue to the right of the church, marking its connection to her story.

Westerkerk Church was built in 1620

After grabbing lunch at an Argentinean Steakhouse close to the church, I took the Blue Boat Canal Cruise around the city. It was about 75 minutes long and cost €18, but it never really stopped long enough for great pictures at the various spots pointed out by the audio or tour guide. It was a waste of my money. After the cruise I closed out my trip with a quick stop at Red Light District, which wasn't much of an attraction to me. I spent 20 minutes walking around quickly just to take in whatever it is that draws people here. If you are not seeking 'excitement' from the window displays or businesses in this area, then you won't enjoy this place much. Just be careful/discreet if you choose to take pictures as you might be 'approached' by some of the men standing outside these businesses. I walked by Dam Square on my way to the RLD. I don't think I had a good opportunity to truly appreciate it for two reasons. It was dark and there was a protest against Iran going on, so it was filled with people and police. I found it weirdly refreshing when I asked a cop what was going on and he started with "we are protesting..." It wasn't about him letting me know if he sided with the protesters. It was about how free he felt to voice his opinion openly without fear of reprisal or doubts about his ability to do his job in spite of it.

Observing a protest at Dam Square

Amsterdam is no doubt a worthwhile city to pass through while traveling through Europe. I'd like to think of it as an understated tourist-attractive city. It may not get the buzz cities like Paris and Rome draw, but I recommend making a stop for a couple of days I guarantee you won't live disappointed.