Amsterdam Trip — Blogish

We started our morning with a canal cruise with Captain Dave. The early morning streets were quiet. We had left with enough ice to enjoy our walk to the pickup location. We explored Dam Square, the Red Light District, and then some more of the Canal Belts.

Areas Visited

Dam Square, Red Light District

Coffee

• Morning Coffee: After a tasty coffee on our boat ride, we grabbed another coffee to go from Koffie Spot.

• Afternoon Coffee: Surprisingly, no coffee in the afternoon. I just had to triple-check my memory because this seemed so unlikely. It seems we stayed busy and simply missed having a mid-day caffeine boost.

Food & Drink

• Fou Fow Ramen. For lunch, we stopped for a much-needed hot bowl of ramen. Other than the unfortunate experience of a wasp dive-bombing into my soup to its death, it was a lovely lunch. Hot and spicy was precisely what was needed in the cool, early afternoon. This place was busy as soon as it opened; we were lucky to grab an outdoor table.

• Stroopwafels. Finally tried our first of the infamous Stroofwafel. We got a little fancy at Van Holland Stroopwafels. I had caramel bits for a topping, while my husband had Oreo. This may be the explanation for our lack of afternoon coffee, as the sugar rush definitely carried us through a few hours.

• FEBO. We tried out a FEBO vending machine! We purchased some type of spicy croquette which was fine. This was more about the novel experience.

• Three Sisters Pub. We stopped in for a quick beer in Rembrandt Square, and it couldn’t have been better timing as it started to rain shortly after we ordered.

• De Baron. We returned to the café around the corner for an evening beer. It was a lovely evening just to sit outside sipping La Chouffe.

Highlights

• Captain Dave’s Canal Tour. We had such a fantastic time on this tour. This 90-minute tour only takes 12 people, so it felt like a friendlier and more comfortable experience. We were lucky to snag the outside seats and were able to take lots of photos. Captain Dave was a fantastic host. Having grown up in Amsterdam, he provided local history with a personal touch. His boat, The Jonckvrouw, is a saloon boat built in 1928 and commissioned by the Municipal Port of Amsterdam and used for Presidents, Mayors, and the Royal Dutch family from 1928 to 2015.

• De Zuiderkerkstoren. We came across this historical tour entirely by chance as we explored some side streets of the city centre. For just 9 € each, we got a 30-minute historical tour of the tower and a visit to the top for 360º views of the city. We were blown away by this hidden gem.

• The narrow house! From what I understand, this is one of the narrowest houses in Amsterdam (at least on the facade.) It was pointed out on our canal tour, and we tracked it down again for some photos.