A Stroll Around Amsterdam

I had one full day to spend in Amsterdam, with no set itinerary, except for a canal cruise that I had signed up for later that afternoon.  I arrived into Amsterdam Central Station and took a leisurely stroll for about 20 minutes before I reached Dam Square.  Although it was a bit chilly, it was a beautiful morning and the square was filled with people just enjoying the morning.

I walked into De Nieuwe Kerk, but decided to save myself the €10 admission fee, as I had read some negative reviews about this place.  Instead, I continued walking around and reached the Tassen Museum by early afternoon.  I had been looking forward to seeing this place as it was a museum of purses!  What girl wouldn’t like this?  Unfortunately, photos were not allowed inside but I still saw a lot of people snapping away.  It turns out the museum was opened by a couple of handbag collectors who would attend auctions to try and win bags.  They also had a big section devoted to the history of bags which was quite interesting.  They were quite strict though and made you check all your bags and jackets into lockers before proceeding up to the gallery.

After visiting the Tassen Museum, I set out to find the Blue Boat Company, as I had signed up for a canal cruise with them for 2:30pm.  Along the way, I came across some traffic lights that I thought were pretty cool.  There were 3 sets of pedestrian lights to cross one road.  Just because the previous one was green doesn’t mean the next one is.  I guess it was just cool to see the city incorporate this for all the cyclists, motorists and pedestrians to ensure everyone has their own time to cross the hectic roads.

I stumbled upon the Amsterdam Canal company first which is a sister company of Blue Boat Cruises.  I decided to step in to see if the check in place was the same for both companies, but when I told them that I had a reservation at 2:30pm with the Blue Boat Company, the lady at the Amsterdam Canal desk said that I could go on their tour if I’d prefer and wouldn’t have to wait for 2:30.  The trouble is, I had paid more for the Blue Boat Company tour, so I decided to just wait and take the 2:30 cruise instead.  The cruise lasted an hour and 15 minutes long and turned out to be one of the most boring things I did all trip.  Perhaps it was because the weather had taken a turn for the worse at this point and the skies were all grey, but after about 20 minutes on the cruise, I was about to fall asleep and thought it felt more like an hour!

After the cruise, I spent some time just strolling along the canals and then visiting the Cheese Factory and sampling some of Amsterdam’s famous foods before calling it a day.