arrival in Amsterdam

The Netherlands are like nowhere I've been before. You couldn't get a more different reception at Schiphol, Amsterdam than Heathrow, London. The immigration officer took one look at my passport, wished me a happy birthday for yesterday and gave me a stamp. Not a hint of a neo-Spanish inquisition! No searching questions about reasons, money or ancestry. I think at that point I became disposed to like Holland. I wandered leisurely out of the airport (in direct contrast to the flustered way I had just barged into the previous airport!), got a few euros out of the bank, and a drink and sat down to wait for Glen.

Amsterdam is beautiful. The houses are all so different from each other and there are canals everywhere. Apparently there are over 1300 bridges in Amsterdam alone. You sometimes get a sense of deja vu when you cross one. There are bicycles everywhere you look and they all seem to be coming from the wrong direction because they drive on the right hand side of the road. It's terribly confusing to get to a roundabout and give way to the left - it feels slightly reckless and wrong somehow.

Amsterdam canal houses

We went first to the Anne Frank huis. It was very strange to walk the same rooms that they lived in for 2 years. It's a sort of surreal feeling. I was quite surprised at actually how much space there was.

The Rijksmuseum was next. It took me about three days to work out how to say that but it's actually quite simple. I can see why I had difficulty when I looked at the way I wrote it in my diary from memory. I've got 'Reichtmuseum'. I wonder what that means. hehe. Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this museum. There were the most amazing Rembrandt paintings. My favourite was a self-portrait in which Rembrandt is dressed up as St Paul. The use of light is excellent. It doesn't matter where you look on the painting, your eye is continually drawn to his face - almost involuntarily.

Gateway to the Rijksmuseum

We also went on a very cool tour of the canals. It worked out really well because we started when it was still daylight and finished when it was dark so I got to see Amsterdam in the light and then with the lights. It is quite a different perspective from the canals.

Anyway, will write some more soon. Have recently returned to England so need to do a bit of 'catch-up'.

written by

Abby Benton on February 8, 2008 from Amsterdam, Netherlands

from the travel blog: UK

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