Landing in Amsterdam was a dream. It was one place that has been on my bucket list for years, so it felt surreal to actually be there. Travel was seamless, we flew on Friday night and took the train into the heart of the city. Our hotel was only a five minute walk from the station which made lugging our bags though brick streets much more bearable. We stayed at Hotel France, the room was nice but nothing special. The location could not be more ideal though, it’s in a great area. Starved from travel, we walked around the city and found a cute Italian restaurant for dinner. I ate a spinach ravioli dish that was to die for which it made the hours of hunger worth the wait. Absolutely stuffed, we obviously had to head to a desert spot for chocolate drizzled waffles. We spent the rest of Friday night walking around the Red Light District and bar hoping. We met some English people at Excalibur, a medieval themed metal bar. It’s fun chatting with English people about London because I’m able to participate in conversation without sounding like I don’t know what I’m talkin about. Friday night was incredibly fun and only made me more excited for the rest of the weekend.
We woke up early Saturday to get in line for famous Dutch pancakes at PANCAKES Amsterdam. These pancakes were legendary. You’re able to customize your pancake with an unbelievable list of toppings. My pancake had ham and spinach and was topped with whipped cream – it was sensational.
Following breakfast, we walked 30 minutes through the city to the Heineken Experience. The weather was gorgeous. We stopped for canal photoshoots along the way and forced our dear friend Hunter to be our cameraman. Once we got to the Heineken Experience, we were ushered into a line where we were given a quick introduction of the company and its founder. It was incredible to hear how far the brand has come. The rest of the tour was very interactive. Free beer, bright lights, impressive demonstrations and fun games throughout. My favorite section was the advertising display room. With Heineken having been around for so long, it was interesting getting to see how their advertisements transformed as technology advanced. I loved the experience and would recommend it to anyone that visits. I was told before going that it was similar to Disney’s Epcot for adults, I’m not sure how exactly I would describe the tour but that’s a good way to put it – the rest is up to your imagination.
Right around the corner from the Heineken Experience was a street full of bright boutiques and unique home shops. I could have spent hours shopping around in Amsterdam. The style reflects a soft edge, it’s very fashion forward, but in a more comfortable, chic way. I loved the Dutch aesthetic. One of the shops had the most unique, custom made tea sets. Since being in London and I’ve turned into a little tea enthusiast and have mentioned wanting to have a tea set from my time abroad. I bought the cutest four piece, colorful set to bring home with me. We shopped around for an hour or two before heading for lunch off of the canal.
We ate at one of the street cafes with boat seating. The toasties were mediocre but the views and atmosphere were unbelievable. Sippin’ cider on the canal made for the perfect lunch.
After lunch, we headed to the Red Light Secrets Museum. The museum takes you through the history of prostitution in Amsterdam. It was an unusual yet compelling experience. It’s hard to think of something like the Red Light District being legal when so many horror stories have come out of it. What really caught my attention were the stories from the sex workers. Many of the women were using it as an opportunity to get back up on their feet while others enjoyed their career and did it for themselves. The museum took you through the process of prostitution on the Red Light District, the walls had celebrity names, business men and sporting stars that have participated. At the end, there was an opportunity for guests to write their dirty secrets to be displayed on the wall of confessions. Some of the stories were hilarious – it was a nice comedic relief after a museum as heavy as that of prostitution.
Luckily for us, there was a dessert shop next to the museum so we shared stroopwafels and ate by the canal before our next venture. We walked towards the Anne Frank house and got on a canal boat for a tour of the city. The tour came with dutch cheese and bottomless drinks. Boating through the canal was such a fun experience, the city’s architecture is so unique and beautiful that every turn was photo worthy. With Amsterdam being an expensive city, we took advantage of the bottomless hour and drank rose like it was water. We didn’t realize it until we got off the boat but wow did we have fun!!
After a long day of exploring, we bar hopped around the city and met Amsterdam locals to drink with. We ended our night with late night chinese food and wild stories to bring home.
Sunday was a dream. I have talked about wanting to go to the Tulip Festival in Amsterdam for years. Waking up early Sunday was not ideal after our Saturday night adventures, but the weather was impeccable and we had the most perfect day ahead of us. We hopped on our bus to Keukenhof Tulip Gardens and made it there by about 9:30am. The gardens were unreal. Vibrant shades, endless rows of radiant fields – it was a dream. We spent hours walking around the gardens, taking photos of the views and soaking up every piece of the beauty.
We headed back to Amsterdam and grabbed dinner at a local canal restaurant. We ate, laughed and enjoyed our last hour or so in the city before heading back to the airport for our Sunday night flight back to London.
I loved everything about Amsterdam. It has been my favorite city thus far, behind London of course. The city is simplistically romantic with gorgeous canals and tons to do. I would love the opportunity to go back one day. It’s a trip I will never forget.
Places I would have gone if I had more time: Anne Frank House (sold out months in advance, book tickets asap once you know you’ll be traveling), The Van Gogh Museum and Pluk Amsterdam.
Paige Marie 