Naughty & nice in historic Amsterdam
Richard Pennick revisits some old haunts and finds some new ones.
To satisfy our curiosity, we risked the perils of the Red Light District and ventured into what we were advised were its “naughtiest” streets. Scantily dressed young women disported themselves in dimly lit windows. There were hilarious verbal exchanges between them and “browsers” on the streets.
We were back in Amsterdam. Arriving earlier in the week — and not wanting to surrender to jet lag — we’d dropped our bags at the hotel, walked along the waterfront to Central Station and picked up our I amsterdam cards at the Amsterdam Tourist Office.
We then caught the tram (using our new cards) from Central Station to the Rembrandt House Museum. This beautifully appointed historic townhouse of tall fireplaces, oak and marble floors, and leaded windows graces Jodenbreestraat near the Town Hall. Rembrandt lived and worked here with his family for 19 years from 1639.
The interior is furnished as in Rembrandt’s time with period fixtures, paintings by his contemporaries, weapons and armour, “his and hers” chamber pots and a bed-warming pan. An extensive collection of his etchings are preserved here; many are on display. We climbed the spiral wooden stairs to Rembrandt’s studio on the sunlit top floor, complete with easel, paint pots, sketches, sculptures and eclectic memorabilia.
On our previous stopover in Amsterdam we had made priority visits to the wonderful Van Gogh Museum, the classic Rijksmuseum (to see Rembrandt’s The Night Watch), the evocative Anne Frank House and delightful Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder (The Our Lord in the Attic) church.
Central Station in Amsterdam. Picture: Richard Pennick
Walking to reacquaint ourselves with this fascinating city, we dropped by the outdoor food market on Nieuwmarkt to buy sourdough rolls and a large ripe tomato. We added gouda from the Willig cheesery on Nieuwendijk and a pack of stroopwafles (caramel syrup wafers), then found a sunny canal wall for a picnic lunch.
Curiously satisfied after our evening visit to the Red Light District, we walked across town into another world: the fashionable and genteel Jordaan district. We wandered the canals beneath a brilliant spring green canopy, admired the old houses and crossed the cyclepaths with care.
Crowded tables still lined the canal wall when we revisited Cafe de Vergulde Gaper on Prinsenstraat. Recognising the waiter who had served us last year, we ordered our beers and the same organic cheese bacon burger with fries. It was as good as we remembered.
Staying at the Moevenpick Hotel on the cruise-ship quay, we had views out into the shipping seaway across to Java Island, a quiet new residential and recreational canal area.
On day two, after an outstanding buffet breakfast, we hopped on the train — one stop — to Central Station and caught the bus around the old harbour to the National Maritime Museum.
Built in 1656, the huge building once served as a supply depot for the Dutch Navy. Five hundred years of maritime history is preserved here.
We were engrossed in collections of maritime documents, maps, navigational instruments and ships’ figureheads. Of particular interest were intricately detailed model sailing ships and a gallery of absorbing maritime paintings.
The replica of Amsterdam at the National Maritime Museum. Picture: Richard Pennick
A replica of the Dutch East India Company’s three-masted ship Amsterdam is berthed at the museum’s quay. The gun deck and cannons are ever-popular and the cargo holds are surprisingly large, although the quarters for 350 officers and crew were cramped. The original Amsterdam sank in the English Channel on its maiden voyage in 1749.
Later that afternoon, we caught the tram from Central Station to the excellent Dutch Resistance Museum. Once a synagogue, the Star of David is inset above the facade. Inside, we learnt of clever Dutch non-violent resistance (as well as overt sabotage) that baffled and frustrated the nazi occupation.
The audio guide led us around a recreation of the streets and residences of Amsterdam during the occupation. There are stories of hardship and heroism, of kindness and of hope. Exhibits include secret radios, forged documents, photographs, recorded personal accounts and old movie clips. Many brave Dutch concealed Jews from the nazis and, if caught, faced possible execution. Liberation in May 1945 is celebrated annually.
On day three, after another “challenging” breakfast at the Moevenpick, we got the tram to the Stedelijk Museum and were soon among the Picassos, Matisses, Cezannes and Dutch modernists. We were intrigued by a collection of 20th century furniture, with originals of Bauhaus chairs from the 1920s and 30s including designs that are still popular today.
That evening, we took a canal cruise from the basin opposite Central Station. The bicycle traffic had slowed and people were out walking the canal walls, sitting on their houseboat decks or returning our waves from townhouse balconies.
A windmill near Volendam. Picture: Richard Pennick
On our final day, for something entirely different, we took an excursion to the quaint little fishing village of Volendam on Lake IJssel, 35 minutes north of Amsterdam. On the way, we stopped at an old working windmill, where we found out how floodwater is pumped up through the dyke into the lake.
Volendam is a lively place. Much of it is below sea level and its narrow main street is on the dyke. The picturesque setting, colourful houses, shops and seafood restaurants are most appealing.
A small harbour berths fishing boats, vintage barges and other sailing craft. We watched as old barges cruised the lake, gracefully tacking under enormous sails.
They sell clogs here, too.
FACT FILE
For more on visiting Amsterdam, see iamsterdam.com.
