MUSINGS FROM AMSTERDAM
November 2024 Edition
This is another of many reviews I call musings of trips since 2000 to Amsterdam, my favorite city on the planet. The last one was in April-May 2024 when Roelanda and I visited for a month. {Musings from Amsterdam 2024 Edition part 1 of 2}
This time I went solo as I did in 2023 and fulfilled my goal of visiting Amsterdam twice a year. Musings from Amsterdam May/June 2023 Edition
I had previously been to Amsterdam in November of 2019 and loved the relatively minimal tourist infiltration and the Christmas lights and decorations.
Also, the weather was not intolerable as it has been in years past with temperatures in the 40s and 50s, but there was a definite absence of the sun due to a continual cloud cover.
Those weather conditions were initially very much like what I’m found early on this time, but it changed and got really cold and it even snowed one day before it warmed up and rained for a week; on the positive side, there were lots of rainbows.
As for the Christmas decorations, it seems each major street artery had its own linear lighting arrangement for blocks on end as evidenced in some of these photos taken on 6 different streets in the centrum:
On my bucket list of things to do in the Netherlands, is to ice skate on a canal as most Dutch people have done since early childhood, but the overall weather change to warmer temps has negated any probability for that to happen in Amsterdam.
It takes about 5 whole days of subzero temperatures to form safe ice to walk and skate on — and that only applies to ponds or shallow lakes with no currents. Ideally, temperatures should drop to -5 degrees or lower at night and stay around 0 (or lower) during the day. For canals to freeze over, it generally takes about a week or 2 of below-freezing temperatures.
There are fake ice skating rinks around the country when the temp falls below freezing created by spraying thin layers of water on open fields, but I want to skate on the real thing on a real canal as Roelanda did as a child in her hometown.
My initial assumption about the tourist infiltration being less at this time of year was blown up when I went on my first Saturday to Dam Square to buy a Dutch children’s book to help in studying the language and the Square was wall to wall people as were the sidewalks that led to it from all directions. However, I’m thinking it is more of a weekend thing, than for weeks and weeks on end as the weekdays have seemed to be much less populated.
As I have done for the last 2 visits, I’m staying in an apartment complex, The Wittenberg Cove, located in the Plantage buurt {neighborhood} which is ideally situated on a canal and close to the center of the city {Centrum} and yet in a quiet, residential neighborhood that still has restaurants and grocery stores and canals passing through. {See the last 2 musings for photos and more in the links above}
I rarely ever watch TV when I’m here, but as an FYI for those who do, I did learn during my last 2 trips the TV in my apartment allows one to download almost all apps that you have already subscribed to as long as you have all of your information necessary to do so, especially log in info.
Since discovering it in 2000, I go to my stam cafe {neighborhood bar/ cafe} called de Engelbewaarder, which means The Guardian Angel, on the night of arrival and most nights thereafter during my stay. See previous musings for photos and details.
L-R: the owner, Guus, dear friend Peter, me and dear friend, Henny
taken at Henny’s counter space reserved daily for him from 5-8 pm
De Engel, as it is affectionally called by the locals, is simply the best in every way. It is owned by a dear sweet gentle giant of a man who is committed to taking care of his employees and providing a friendly place that welcomes any and all with promises for the best quality beer on tap and righteously good Dutch food priced extremely reasonable. Also, see more about de Engel in the 2 links above.
As it is with any place of business, it is only as good as the people who work there and this place has the best of the best who are family amongst themselves and treat others like and kind. Most are college grads, some with MAs and PHDs who have not found or are waiting to find their ideal position. The owner provides them with food and drink when they are not working and food and beverage breaks when they are. Most stay for years because it is that comfortable and a major positive part of their lives.
As with 90% of all Nederlanders, all who work there speak fluent English and unlike some other foreign countries I’ve visited, they do not put you down if you do not speak their language.
De Engelbewaarder is simply the best and I highly recommend anyone to visit it and take in the Dutch vibe as well as have a beer, eat a bite, listen to the recorded music, most of which is from the US, and feel the energy.
A few days after arriving, I was getting concerned texts about my safety from friends in the US who had heard there were riots going on involving reported anti-semitic attacks on Israeli voetbal {soccer} fans centered around a game against Amsterdam’s beloved team, Ajax {I yax}. There was damage to vehicles, buildings and a train, a few people were hospitalized, on and on and me being not one to watch TV news or read newspapers, I knew nothing about it even though I had walked throughout the city and even the main area where much of the violence took place.
Once I investigated it more and as usual, the locals and the media had various versions of what had happened and who instigated and perpetuated the riots, but most made out of it what they wanted to.
I rarely make plans to connect with others when I travel to Amsterdam, but on this occasion, I reached out to some in advance to be sure to set that up.
One of those was with a new found friend who I met on WineBerserker, my favorite wine related website of all, who had read previous musings and suggested we meet and share an evening of nice food and wine together when I next visit which was in 2023. That happened at a unique restaurant, Avalon, and it was a wonderful night and the initiation of a good friendship and during this visit, he set up another superb evening with another local wine lover/ importer who we met at that dinner in 2023. Here’s the link for the wine notes on that fabulous evening:
Our venue this time was Rijsel, the Flemish name for the industrial city that the French refer to as “Lille”. The owner was a good friend of the owner of Avalon who suddenly passed away earlier this year and also well known by our 3rd member who arranged the reservation.
As a result of the connection between the 2 restaurant owners, our wine theme was for each of us to bring a bottle to celebrate him. Having the option to select a wine from their wine list, I chose to do so as it was very globally expansive with lots for quality options that were very reasonably priced and had selections that I could not otherwise have been able to acquire in wine shops.
I made the 25 minute walk from my apartment and arrived before the others. I was warmly greeted at the front door by who I learned later was the owner and taken to our table where I was immediately poured a glass of champagne. That immediately confirmed to me, we were in for an extra special evening. Here’s a link to the my review of the dinner and wines: A fabulous dinner in Amsterdam with 2 local wine guys with champagne and wines from 1934, 1966, a white and red Burgundy and a Barolo
As stated above, I’ve only been to Amsterdam in the winter once before which was in November 2023 and the weather was not really all that cold and inclement, but these last few days have turned dramatically to cold, windy, and when I woke up this morning after hearing a substantial electrical storm during the night, snow. Fortunately, I came prepared with layered clothing including ski gloves, ski hat, scarves, long johns and a hooded 3/4 rain jacket.
both taken from my apartment’s window
During my stay, I enjoyed times with many dear friends, some who drove from Den Haag {The Hague}and relatives of Roelanda, who drove from their home in ’s-Hertogenbosch {Den Bosch}, both an hour away.
The Dutch have perfected the practice of doing nothing, aka “niksen” so well that they are some of the happiest people on Earth. It is said, doing nothing, but with a purpose to do nothing or no purpose at all, may help to decrease anxiety, bring creativity to the surface, and boost productivity. I am still struggling learning the language, but I am getting really good at niksen.
As I wind down my visit, I find I’m reflecting on some of the highlights of any and all visits to Amsterdam and the one thing that stands out is how genuine the close bond of friendship is with the Dutch. I have been befriended by some who I now consider “family” and I treasure these relationships.
When I first came to Amsterdam in 1996, it was for a professional seminar that was held in the more industrial/ business center south part of the city, but my hotel was in the centrum and when I walked around and just felt out the energy, there was a distinct feeling of freedom that seemed to pervade throughout. When I say freedom, I mean the freedom to express oneself, the freedom to be who you are as long as it does not result in any harm or violate laws.
An inside joke that Roelanda and I have shared over the years is that one could walk down the streets in their pajamas and no local would care or even give it a second thought if they even noticed it.
I’ve felt that sense of freedom ever since and many years ago, I realized this was not just my own perception when we walked into the Amsterdam Museum {which I highly recommend visiting} and a banner above the inside entrance displayed- Amsterdam, the City of Freedom.
When one learns about the rich history here and in the Netherlands, this vibe of freedom was expressed in the 17th century by Rembrandt in his artistic expressions. It even carried over into trade, religion and science, the latter being evidenced in the 18th century when the Dutch legalized the dissection of human corpses in the light of scientific discovery which was illegal and even blasphemous in all other parts of Europe.
In conclusion, here’s an interesting and impressive condensed version of Amsterdam from the beginning in the late 1100s entitled “The Rich History of Amsterdam: A Timeline of Freedom and Innovation”: https://www.sapiens-travel.com/post/the-rich-history-of-amsterdam-a-timeline-of-freedom-and-innovation
Need say no more until the next musings.
In de geest van vrijheid, {in the spirit of freedom]
Blake
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