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Hotels in Amsterdam
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Amsterdam
Amsterdam is a beautiful city in the Netherlands with impressive
architecture, lovely canals that criss-cross the city, great shopping,
and friendly people. There is something for every traveller's taste
here, whether you prefer culture and history, serious partying, or just
the relaxing charm of an old European city.
Orientation
The 'Amsterdam' that most people know is the city centre, the semicircle
with Central Station at its centre. It corresponds to the old city, as
it was around 1850: its boundary is the Singelgracht canal, the old city
moat. Three other major canals ring the old city; the Herengracht, the
Keizersgracht, and the Prinsengracht, the latter of which runs alongside
the roads Nassaukade, Stadhouderskade, and Mauritskade. These form the
outer ring road around the old city canal system. Almost everything
outside this line was built after 1870. The semicircle is on the south
side of the IJ, which is called a river, but is more exactly an estuary.
Going east from central station, the railway passes the artificial
islands of the redeveloped Eastern Docklands. North of the IJ is mainly
housing, although a major dockland redevelopment has started there too.
The river Amstel flows into the city from the south. Originally, it
flowed along the line Rokin-Damrak. The dam in the Amstel, which gives
the city its name, was located under the present Bijenkorf department
store. The original settlement was on the right bank of the Amstel, on
the present Warmoesstraat: it is therefore the oldest street in the
city. The city has expanded in all directions, except to the north of
the ring motorway. The region there, Waterland, is a heavily protected
rural landscape.
The radius of the semicircle is 2 km. All major tourist destinations,
and most hotels, are located inside it or just outside it. As a result,
much of Amsterdam is never visited by tourists: at least 90% of the
population lives outside this area. Most economic activity in Amsterdam
-- the offices of the service sector, and the port -- is located on or
outside the ring motorway, which is four to five kilometers from the
centre.
Attitudes
Quite a few travellers visit Amsterdam to enjoy its famously tolerant
attitude. Prostitution is fully legalized and licensed, and the sale,
possession, and consumption of small quantities of cannabis, while
illegal, is ignored by authorities under a policy of gedogen
(tolerance). Unfortunately, some travellers take this to mean that one
can pretty much get away with anything in Amsterdam, much to the
detriment of the locals and fellow tourists. The city has made great
strides, especially in the last few years, in preventing such abuses
while maintaining its easy-going atmosphere.
Note the important distinction between the expressions "Coffee Shop" and
"Café". The former is a place where there is a pot menu, and sometimes
drinks. The latter is a place to have a coffee or a glass of wine or
beer. Coffee shops generally do not sell alcoholic beverages. Cafés do,
but they do not allow the use of drugs, even marijuana and hashish.
When to come
The best time of year to visit Amsterdam is surely springtime. April is
best, since all the tulips will be in bloom. A daytrip to the Keukenhof
and its surroundings in the west of the country is easy to do and a
great way of seeing some more of the country. Every year on April 30 the
Dutch celebrate Queensday (Koninginnedag), the birthday of the reigning
monarch. The current Queen Beatrix chose to continue the festivities on
April 30, in honor of her mother, Queen Juliana. The color of Queensday
is orange, symbolizing national and royal pride, stemming from the royal
family name - The Family Nassau, House of Orange. On Queensday, the
streets are filled with orange-clad revellers and locals selling items
cleaned out from their homes, flea market style, taking advantage of the
VAT tax holiday that the Queen gives the people for the one day (which
actually just applies to the flea market).
Newspapers
Amsterdam Weekly is an English-language free weekly published every
Wednesday. It provides coverage of Amsterdam city life and an arts and
entertainment calendar. http://www.amsterdamweekly.nl/
(contact
information is online, not content)
Get in Amsterdam
Get around Amsterdam
History of Amsterdam
Wikipedia.org
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