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Published May 21, 2006 in The Philadelphia Inquirer AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS – It felt like I was gliding on air, whooshing smoothly through the streets of Amsterdam, past the Royal Palace and over canal bridges, as Heineken beer signs became a green blur. Suddenly, I lurched forward as the gliding abruptly stopped. “Prinsengracht,” said the tram conductor in a crisp, Dutch accent. A few blocks away was the Anne Frank House, one of the city’s most world-renowned sites. Amsterdam is famous for a lot of things, not the least of which are its collection of more than two dozen world-class museums. A house-sitting gig meant I had a month to tour museums, try the cafes, peek at the Red Light District and most importantly, attempt to live as if I were a local – the way I always prefer to experience unexplored territory, vs. eight cities in 10 day-tours. Your best bet for exploring this compact city is on foot, bicycle or tram. Bicycles far outnumber the automobiles, and it’s easy to see why. Virtually every major street is lined with red and generously wide bike lanes, and motorists and pedestrians alike graciously cede to their right of way. In fact, when crossing the street, the bike lane is the first thing you’ll step onto, and it’s a good idea to make sure the coast is clear before you do. Rather than cement buildings stacked with layers of parked cars, you’ll see bike garages chock-a-block with bicycles used by commuters. Windmills, tulips and wooden clogs are the images that usually spring to mind when people think of Holland. But the Dutch have gone down in history for something else: an open-armed, non-judgmental collective mindset. “Our philosophy is ‘who am I to judge?’” said Elly, a schoolteacher from Rotterdam whom I met during my month long stay. “We prefer to live and let live.” The ‘live and let live’ atmosphere was evidenced on my first walk into the tourist haven known as Leidseplein, where an ambitious and uninhibited street artist wearing only a thong performed high-wire acrobatics over a sea of crowded tables at an outdoor café. It’s a city where the Bible Museum, the Red Light District, botanical gardens, historic churches and beer factories all co-exist peacefully. The Gay Pride parade, which takes place in August on the Prinsengracht, one of the main canals, is Amsterdam’s Thanksgiving Parade. Seniors sit front row with their grandchildren, laughing with delight and waving at the passing barges loaded with confetti-throwing drag queens and scantily clad gladiators. You’ll find the consonant-heavy Dutch language spoken all around you, both in speaking and signage, but just about everyone under the age of 70 speaks English fluently and sans Parisian-style resentment. I had the luxury of an entire month in Amsterdam. But a great deal can be packed into even a weeklong visit, starting with the city’s namesake. Not far from the Amstel River is Dam Square, a conglomeration of sites including the New Church (Nieuwekirk), where the crown prince was married; the Bijenkorf (a Macy’s-like department store with a fabulous and inexpensive cafeteria), Amsterdam’s stock exchange center known as the Berlage Bourse and the shopping complex known as Magna Plaza. Since the 1960s, the square has also been a favorite gathering place for political demonstrations. The Dam’s crown jewel is the Royal Palace. Queen Beatrix and her family live in Den Haag. The Queen pops into town on official visits only, but visitors could spend an afternoon at the palace, browsing its three floors of fine art. The Dutch openly adore their Queen, who, by all accounts, is infinitely warmer and more accessible to her subjects than her British counterpart. And the city of Amsterdam virtually comes to a halt on April 30, Queen’s Day, when her birthday is celebrated with street fairs and citywide revelry. From the Van Gogh Museum to the Hermitage, there’s no shortage of museums in the city. At the extensively curated Historical Museum, I learned how the city was founded as a fishing village during the 13th century. The population grew and fanned out from a dam along the Amstel River; hence the city’s name. The Van Gogh Museum was predictably the most crowded, with rows of people sometimes three-deep lined up and viewing the heavily guarded masterpieces. Only a portion of the unfathomably vast Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam’s largest treasure trove of art, was open due to renovation, which is scheduled for completion in 2008. A fraction of the Rijksmuseum turned out to be 400 paintings, and it still took hours to view. The Anne Frank House was by far the most fascinating of the museums. A haunting step back in time, the family’s annex of cramped rooms are kept as they were during their nearly two years of hiding. Eventually, I reached a saturation point with museums, so I decided to tour Amsterdam via their famous network of linked canals. The best way to tour the city by canal boat is to pick one that provides a day pass so you can choose to ride uninterrupted, or disembark at various stops to explore the city. Aside from The International Herald Tribune, most newsstands carry periodicals in Dutch only. The American Book Center at 185 Kalverstraat carries an array of books, newspapers and magazines in English. With much fanfare, I had been informed of the wild and crazy times to be had in Amsterdam: the coffee houses that sell marijuana and space cakes; the Red Light District; pubs that stay open all night and draw planeloads of Brits for Saturday night revelry. A friend told me about a frightening experience with space cakes. They may look like innocent little sweets, but these babies are hallucinogenic (think LSD and the ‘60s) so I decided to pass. However, if you do decide to partake in some of the more exotic offerings of the city, proceed with caution. A tourist book I read recommended that space cakes be eaten by the uninitiated very slowly, in small portions and with plenty of warm liquids. But my wild days must be officially behind me because it was Holland’s incomparable dairy products that left me raving. It may be a little-known fact, but some of the best cheese, milk and yogurt can be found in the supermarkets of Amsterdam...and if you’re a yogurt lover, you’ll want to apply for a visa. Aside from their superior dairy products, the Dutch are not renowned for their cuisine, but I recommend trying a Dutch restaurant for the experience. Their food tends to be meat-and-potato-based heavy. And speaking of potatoes, any French-fry lover like me will be in 7th Heaven with the city’s abundance of fritte stands. The crisp, elongated potato strips are served in paper cones with a variety of mayonnaise-based sauces, or my all-time favorite – a showering of salt. One of the most multi-cultural places on earth also means no shortage of ethnic cuisine. Surinamese restaurants abound, as do Indian, Thai, Indonesian and the occasional Italian restaurants Don’t miss out on the experience of a sumptuous four-course Rijstaffel (rice buffet), at an Indonesian restaurant. The one I tried was elegant, affordable (not cheap) and offered an array of meats, vegetables and rices prepared in colorful sauces that ran the gamut of spicy, sour, sweet and bitter. Of course, no visit to any European city would be complete without lounging for an afternoon at an open-air café. My favorite was the Toussaint, a quiet neighborhood café at 26 Bosboom Tousaintstraat that served homemade desserts, robust lattes and delectable hot chocolate with a tower of real whipped cream. It’s an unspoken rule that once you’re settled at a café table, it’s yours for as long as you want it. The waitress may check on you now and again, but it’s your little corner of the world to enjoy. As I made my way through the delightfully rich whipped cream, I had to remind myself where I was and that there was no need to hurry. The museums, canals, churches and street acrobats – they would still be there in two hours – Amsterdam’s not going anywhere.
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