AMSTERDAM SERVES UP EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT - STUNNING CANALS AND CANNABIS

I’ve met several Europeans along my trip who either spent a few years living in Amsterdam or hope to. The appeal is quite obvious once you’re there. The city is one of the most multinational in the world and locals seem to speak English just as well as they do Dutch. Its canal rings are beautiful and charming, rendering most downtown walks into something mesmerizing. It’s also rarely overwhelming - with many of the neighborhooods feeling very residential, quiet, and accessible to walker and bikers.

But when it’s overwhelming, it’s a lot. From many of the quaintest sections of downtown, you don’t have to walk far to get into one of the tourist traps. Think strings of bars/clubs, fast casual food, cannabis and magic mushroom souvenir shops and the red light district. I found these sections overbearing - heavily catering to the most hedonistic edges of tourism. To be sure, many of the people I met in the hostel got the most out of these areas and it’s one of the draws of visiting Amsterdam if it’s what you’re looking for. And for the locals, especially the young ones, it gives the city some of the most famous clubs in the world, leaving it capable of catering to the spectrum of lifestyles. There truly is something for everyone in Amsterdam.

STROLL THE CANALS, PARTICULARLY JORDAAN

Amsterdam is sometimes called the Venice of the North because of its canal rings - which are a UNESCO site. I found Venice’s canals prettier - but they’re overridden with tourists and businesses catering to them. Amsterdam offers some quiet, residential, picture-perfect canal neighborhoods that, in my mind, are the only must do thing in Amsterdam. In particular, I enjoyed wandering around Jordaan, one of the more popular residential districts. These are the sections that will likely leave you thinking “I could live here,” or at least “It would be nice to live along the water.”

EXPERIENCE THE MORE HEDONISTIC DISTRICTS

Even if you’re not visiting Amsterdam for the parties, drugs, or sex work, I still think it’s quite something to see. I wandered through the Red Light District at 11AM - and even then there were women tapping on the windows; I didn’t quite have it in me to return late at night. While I’m sex-work positive, the women in shop windows thing makes me pretty uncomfortable. I did wander through some the party districts late at night and found them lively and exciting - even though I didn’t join in. I do think a trip to Amsterdam would feel incomplete without seeing its seedier, more hedonistic side.

OTHER THINGS TO DO

I was only in Amsterdam for two nights, so the canals offered me plenty to do. Here are some of the other common things to do:

• Van Gogh Museum: This museum has over 700 pieces by Van Gough and artists who inspired him.

• Rijksmuseum: This musuem is most well known for its pieces by Rembrandt but also houses works by other masters from the Dutch golden age.

• Anne Frank House: This canal row home turned museum offers a tribute to Anne Frank and the impact of her diary.

• Vondelpark: The largest park in central Amsterdam, it offers a quiet reprieve from the bustle that can characterize downtown. I stayed right next to Vondelpark and found it quiet but unremarkable.