Following on from our first two days in the Dutch Capital, where much of it was spent drinking, we ploughed on into the final two days and immersed ourselves in all the culture this fabulous city has to offer.
Day three saw myself and Nichola take a bus journey to the picturesque village of Zaanse Schans, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Netherlands. Situated in Zaandam, about forty minutes drive north of Amsterdam, Zaanse Schans has a collection of historic windmills and houses dotted along the river Zaan. From the bus depot, directly outside Amsterdam Central Station, take the 391 which departs every half hour. Ticket prices are around €5 return and the bus will drop you off directly outside this riverside spectacle.
If you’re expecting anything more exciting than windmills and a bit of history well, tough, as that’s basically what Zaanse Schans is. Don’t let that put you off though and by no means does this mean it’s not worth the trip, as while visiting Zaanse Schans you can join in with live crafts demonstrations, see how a working mill operates, enjoy a bite to eat in the many cafes and pancake restaurants, stroll through mini-museums in the village where you can watch clogs being made and even see how the cheesing process works; if none of that takes your fancy, for a small price (approx €3) you can take a boat trip across the river and meander through the beautiful village of Zaandijk before crossing the extension bridge and making your way back to the bus stop. Entrance to Zaanse Schans is free but small costs may apply for entering some of the windmills.
Due to being on a pretty tight budget and a tight time schedule, (translate as tight-fisted and wanting to get back for more drinking), we opted to skip entering the windmills and just took lots of pictures instead, LOTS of pictures…and drank hot chocolate…and looked at windmill related paraphernalia….it’s actually surprising how many magnet variations one tourist attraction can produce: a magnet collectors paradise!
Arriving back in Amsterdam late on into the afternoon, our next move was to visit the Anne Frank House (remember, she had nothing to do with the Red Light District, she wasn’t a dirty ho, and she definitely didn’t smoke pot) which is situated on Prinsengracht, opposite the Tulip Museum and just down the road from the Pancake Bakery (which has the best pancakes in town, apparently).
In case you’ve been hiding under a rock since your high-school history lessons began, and have rejected to find out ANYTHING about the mass genocide of millions of Jews throughout World War II then let me educate you: Anne Frank was a young Jewish girl who, during the Second World War, had to go into hiding along with her family in order to escape capture by the Nazi’s. During this time spent living in silence and fear, Anne wrote in her diary, documenting her thoughts, dreams and outlooks on life. She also wrote short stories and hoped that one day her diary would be published. However, she and her family were arrested and captured before she could complete her work.
Following the liberation of Auschwitz, Anne’s father (the only survivor in the family) returned to Amsterdam and decided to publish her diary, which has been read by millions of people worldwide and has also been adapted for stage and screen.
The Anne Frank House is a MUST visit if you are planning on going to Amsterdam for any length of time. The story of this remarkable young girl and the history surrounding her family and their capture is fascinating and helps bring home some of the reality of what happened during WWII. The museum is open from 9am-7pm daily, and until 9pm from April through to October. Entrance for adults is €9 and children €4.50, children under nine go free.
Now, a trip to one of the most visited cities in Europe would not be complete without taking in some of its world famous Kunst Museums, yeah that’s right, KUNST Museums, not that other word you were thinking of that begins with a C and ends with a TS; it is actually the Dutch word for ‘art’, so get your minds out of the gutter and concentrate! Amsterdam is home to the Van Gough, The Rembrandt, The Stedelijk, and The Rijks Museum, as well as over 40 more for your perusing pleasure, including the NEMO Science Museum and of course, you wouldn’t be in Amsterdam if you didn’t happen to stumble across the Hash, Sex or Torture museums, but for now, we’ll give those a miss…
On our final day we opted to visit two of these before heading to the airport to make our way back to the UK. First up was the impressive Rijks Museum, which means ‘State Museum’ in English. Situated next to the Vondelpark (you really can’t miss it) on Stadhouderskade (or Museumstraat 1), this 19th Century building has been designed in the Dutch neo-Renaissance style with elements of its decoration in the neo-Gothic style. It houses a vast collection of Dutch and world art masterpieces as well an antiques, prints, drawings and photography.
If you only visit one art museum whilst in The Netherlands then I would advise that you make it the Rijks Museum. It is fascinating, contains important works to educate about Dutch history and makes for a great day out. If you’re lucky with the weather you can also wander through the gardens at the rear of the museum or have a bite to eat in the many cafes strewn about this museum precinct.
Entrance to the Rijks Museum is €15 for adults and free for children under 18. The museum is open daily from 9am-5pm.
Upon leaving the Rijks via the rear exit, we took the short walk around the gardens and headed in the direction of the Van Gough museum which houses the world’s largest collection of Van Gough art. The museum is so easy to find as it is literally behind the Rijks and before you reach the Stedelijk, but for all of you guide-book nerds and map-reading geeks out there the address Paulus Potterstraat 7.
Compared to the Rijks Museum, Van Gough is pretty small, with art work spaced out over three floors. An audio tour is available but for those who like to peruse at their own leisure, simply walking around the museum, reading the descriptions and taking a look at some of the interactive exhibitions is more than enough. I was surprised at how little I knew about Van Gough before visiting this museum (apart from the fact he severed his own ear off), for instance, he was largely self-taught when it came to painting and was only actually active as an artist for ten years, from 1880 until his death in 1890.
Entrance to the museum costs €15 for adults and is free for children. It is open daily from 9am until 6pm (5pm from Sept-Dec) and on Friday nights the museum is transformed into a relaxed meeting place with live music, a bar, DJs and much more…no need to go wild down Leidseplein they, ey?
Amsterdam is a magnificent gem of culture, history and unadulterated pleasure. Its quaint little cobbled streets and array of canals, boutique shops and dutch style eateries are enough to touch and warm the heart of even the most hardened of traveller. Personally I feel that the reputation of capital of the Netherlands has been tainted slightly by the ever-popular tourist trap that is relaxed drug laws and relaxed prostitution laws. The sex and drug trade bring in a lot of business for Amsterdam and no doubt benefits the economy to some degree, however, with its abundance of museums, buzzing nightlife, friendly locals and choice of events for all the family (not just stag and hen parties), it’s easy to imagine that this wonderful city could get by just fine without the seediness it is unfortunately so famed for.
Flights from Manchester to Amsterdam, flying with EasyJet cost from as little as £60 return, depending on the time of year you want to travel. For more information visit easyjet.co.uk
Chasing Amy-Lou 
