Holiday Guide: Amsterdam

Arguably, the top stop for tulips and titty bars, Amsterdam is keen to throw off its sex industry shackles and become a City of Culture.  But has it got more to offer than cheap thrills? And will its clean up mark the beginning of the end for the ‘Dam as we know it?  No stranger to the darker side of life, myself and partner in crime David Morgan had a poke around the Nether’ regions recently to find out more…

Amsterdam is one of those cities that everyone has an opinion about – whether they have ever been or not.  From the pills to the ping-pongs, the spliff to the sideshows it’s long been one of ‘those’ places where you go for a guaranteed good time.  But if a city is to be considered Cultural, it needs to inspire in daylight as much as it does after-dark.

ut I think Amsterdam has an ace or three up it’s (wizard’s) sleeve: it’s brimming with magnificent museums detailing Netherland’s past coupled with up-to-the second contemporary art.  And experiencing them is as easy as pie.

Using our Iamsterdam cards (a must, as they offer free tram travel and discounts for lots of museums, restaurants, shops etc) we wandered around the many museums, houses and attractions included in the pass. It allowed us to see things we may not have tried otherwise. A proper cultural eye opener!

You can order your card online at www.traveldna.ne they range in price from €38 – €58 depending on how many days you would like to use your card for.

Our first stop was the Van Gogh Museum; it’s a little way out of the centre of the city, so our tram passes were most welcome. The permanent collection takes the visitor on a journey through Van Gogh’s progression of his now iconic work. I’ll warn you; this part of the museum gets very busy, so get there early or all you’ll be seeing is the back of people’s heads. Call me a philistine, but I didn’t feel very inspired by Van Gogh. Years of seeing his work on textbooks, postcards, etc has desensitised me to his greatness.  (The same thing happened to me in Florence – Ed) But for the less blasé, it’s a definite must-do on your cultural checklist.

Luckily, like us Brits, the Dutch went on a rampage in their deep, dark history and started stealing from other countries. The result is the Rijksmuseum. This is an incredibly beautiful (and ever so slightly creepy) building filled to the brim with (half inched) historical artefacts. It’s the only place to see Rembrandt’s ‘The Night Watchmen’ in all its wall-filling glory (well partially; apparently huge chunks were taken off the sides at some point – hey, look at us learning things!)

But it’s not all about the past, skip the centuries and head to the future at the NEMO centre – a rather amazing landmark building with an equally amazing interactive exhibition inside. This included a surprisingly (read ‘saucy’) graphic video on the stages of puberty.  *Snigger*.  Despite being aimed at the younger generation, it kept us two twenty-somethings entertained for a good couple of hours. (Hmmm – Ed) We also learned how to make rain; that we’re feeble and unable to lift our own body weight without the help of pullies (wimps); and that the Bjork robot (from her ‘All Is Full Of Love’ video) is very clever indeed and teaches the history of her robot-kind to us philistines. There was also a 15ft tall robot girl with multi coloured hair who looked fab, but we’re unsure as to her raison d’etre.  Admittedly, that’s probably more down to our inherent lack of understanding of girls full-stop, rather than the museum’s fault.

This was only the tip of the cultural iceberg. My greatest Amsterdam hint is to get lost.  Seriously.  Whilst the public transport system is a speedy way to get from A to B (and a god-send if you’ve been on your feet all day), Amsterdam has so many hidden treats it’s worth taking a walk off the beaten track. A wrong turn can lead to a giant glass tree or an exhibition of the city’s bike stands (oddly beautiful, trust me.)

If winter travelling is not your thing, Amsterdam seems to have a constant rotation of festivals and events to offer all year round. The most impressive of these is the Holland Festival, which runs throughout June. Before you go to Amsterdam, check out iamsterdam.com – it’s updated with the best events and things to do in Amsterdam.

Whichever ‘weg’ you find yourself on, one thing you can guarantee is that it will be flanked by the most gorgeous townhouses, many of which have open views over the canals for which Amsterdam is so famous. It’s worth making a special note about Amsterdam’s architecture: it’s a marvel.  Buildings lean in to each other on the street in a Tim Burton-esque way. That’s definitely Amsterdam hint two, keep your eyes up and open, there’s so much to see just above street level.

What you might not know is that many of these houses are open to the public – for historical purposes you understand and not just to indulge your inner voyeur.  It’s definitely worth having a nosy in one or two to see how the other half lived a few hundred years ago.  Sadly for winter travellers these houses are only open during the summer months.

Even the infamous red light district has a cultural twist (and we’re not talking about the more supple of the ‘ladies’ either).  Pick up a ‘red light art’ booklet (available from numerous venues in the red light district) and wander the area. We found the most interesting and arresting installations, but the one that sticks out was where one lady of the night’s pleasure palace had been transformed into a filthy doctor’s surgery. A comment on the health care system or maybe a nod to how she soothes ailments in a dirty manner? Who knows, but this was a wonderful way to bring art out of the museum and into the masses. I wish I could tell you where to find this display but it was during one of our intentional ‘getting lost’ sessions, sorry.

You want more? No problem.  Foam is a beautiful photography space; the Anne Frank house is an emotional and harrowing journey through WWII suffering; and the Homo Monument is the only space of its kind in the world that commemorates all gay men and lesbians that have been subjected to persecution.

With so much to see and do in the ‘dam, it’s worth finding a central hotel.  We stayed in the lovely ‘Dikker En Thijs’ Hotel (no sniggering). A huge bedroom, bathroom to equal it and the friendliest staff I have encountered in a hotel made this the perfect resting place. But to be honest there is so much to do you will only need your hotel as a space to rest your head.

So, is Amsterdam on a hiding to nothing in deflecting attention away from it’s naughty nocturnals, or does it have the power behind the proposed Cultural punch?  Is it a city worthy of comparison to Vienna, Barcelona, Paris even?  I say, wholeheartedly, yes.  It’s got culture galore, but also a very honest and upfront dark side too.  One without the other is like bread without butter.  And if the city can embrace its past and future, its daytime and darkness it won’t have any problems, er…rising to the occasion.

BMI Baby fly from Manchester to Amsterdam 11 times per week. Flights are just over an hour making it an easy and stress-free destination for long weekends.

Bmibaby.com