EXPLORING AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

in #travel6 years ago (edited)

1487435_10153699942988266_1627176455563500243_n.jpg

Each time I had a stopover in Amsterdam I was either too tired or in a rush to jump into another airplane. I never had the time to visit the city.

I must have been passing through this airport at least twelve times until I decided it was time to spend some time outside, go explore the city.

What was different this time?

We had a way longer layover between the flights.

DSC_0290.JPG

We landed at Schiphol around 6 am after a six hours long flight.

DSC_0293.JPG

We had six hours to kill before our flight back home.

DSC_0291.JPG

Thus I told myself it was time to do some exploring.

DSC_0292.JPG

Amsterdam is only 17 km away from the airport.

DSC_0294.JPG

The railway station was right in the airport, at a lower level.

DSC_0295.JPG

It took us about 15 minutes to get to the centre of the city.

DSC_0296.JPG

I can't remember exactly the price of the ticket. It must have been around 4 or 5 euros, not more.

DSC_0297.JPG

We got of at Amsterdam Central station and walked around, enjoying the view.

DSC_0298.JPG

Given that it was February, the air was a bit brisk, but bearable.

DSC_0299.JPG

What I neglected to mention was that we got there on a Sunday morning. Way too early, if you ask me. As most of the cafes and shops were closed at that time.

DSC_0300.jpg

Also there were not a lot of people on the streets at that time, as if the city was deserted.

DSC_0301.jpg

On some narrow cobbled streets, we saw the aftermath of the parties that took place the previous night and just ended a few hours back.

DSC_0302.JPG

Despite the cold and the piles of garbage back waiting to be picked up, we loved it. Or at least I did.

DSC_0307.JPG

My son was anxious to have a hot chocolate somewhere inside.

DSC_0303.JPG

While we were strolling down the streets, I told myself that Amsterdam was a place where I would have liked to stay at least two or three days, during summer with my friends.

DSC_0305.JPG

Later on when the cafes started to open, we stopped and had a nice breakfast, then we walked a bit more.

DSC_0311.JPG

We loved getting a tiny vibe of what it meant to be there.

DSC_0313.JPG

My son was fascinated by the boats and the amount of bicycles on the streets.

DSC_0312.JPG

When he heard that people actually live on those boats, he said he wanted to move to Amsterdam.

DSC_0314.JPG

I agreed with him because I would not mind living there a few months.

DSC_0315.JPG

This was the smallest car I have ever seen.

I imagine you can't have a problem with finding parking for this one, given its size.

Did I mention it was an electric car? Yup! I loved it!

Here are other travel related posts:

MACKINAC BRIDGE, MICHIGAN, USA

CHASED BY TORNADOS IN MINNESOTA

MINNEHAHA FALLS REGIONAL PARK, A GEM IN BETWEEN THE TWIN CITIES

BANFF, A RESORT TOWN INSIDE THE BANFF NATIONAL PARK, ALBERTA, CANADA

OLD PORT OF CONSTANTA, ROMANIA

TEN FACTS OR MORE ABOUT BOQUETE, PANAMA

ENISALA FORTRESS, ROMANIA

MORAINE LAKE, A SURREAL BEAUTY IN ALEBERTA, CANADA

TIPS ON HOW TO MAKE A LIVING WHILE TRAVELLING THE WORLD

FEELING UNINSPIRED? VISIT A WELSH RETREAT: GLADSTONE’S RESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

TURDA’S 400 FEET UNDERGROUND AMUSEMENT PARK, A HIDDEN GEM OF TRANSYLVANIA, ROMANIA

MEMORIES FROM CANCUN, MEXICO

CARIBBEAN PARADISE: BOCAS DEL TORO

TOURING MONTREAL CITY, CANADA

BOQUETE’S FLOWERS AND COFFEE FESTIVAL, PANAMA

VISIT TO SAINT-JOSEPH’S ORATORY IN MONTREAL, CANADA

Unless stated otherwise, all photos used in this posts are taken and owned by myself. If you wish to use any of my images, please contact me!

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave your feedback in the comments, I would love to hear your thoughts!

@2018 LaviPicu aka The Lyme Poet. All rights reserved.

Sort:  

Hi @lymepoet! You have received 0.1 SBD tip from @dreemsteem!

Earn daily income on steem: @tipU distributes 100% profit + 60% curation rewards to all investors.

This is very nice. Thanks for sharing @lymepoet
Upvoted.

You're welcome! ;0)

I love Amsterdam, these pictures really reminded me of my past visits, Thanks for sharing. I visited twice when I was younger, once at the age of 17 and later when I was 22. It looks like you had an awesome time :-)

We did have a nice time in there despite the cold and early hour. ;0)

Its been a long time since I visited (2004 I think), but your pictures bring back some memories. Lots of bicycles springs to mind!

Glad you enjoyed seeing them. We did count plenty of bicycles in there.

Its such a beautiful country and city thanks for sharing it brought back nice memories of my visit there

Beautiful indeed! Can't wait to go back!

Wow amazing pictures. One of my office colleague lives there. I have heard a lot about the city from him. He used to show me and explain few things through Google maps. Your pictures are amazing. Nice post.

Your colleague is a lucky person to live in such a cool place. Thanks for stopping by!

I just love looking at the pictures of your travels!!! LOVE IT!

what an absolutely gorgeous location!!! I'm glad that you were able to get out there and explore!

but...

I'm here on official Welcome Wagon business ;)

THANK YOU for entering the @welcomewagon contest for helping us choose our comment banners! @tipu send tip, please! :)

(You didn't win - but I hate not sending a little something to everyone ;) enjoy the tip!!! (the tips seem to be coming slowly but they will arrive!)

Thank you! Love having you here ;0)

Congratulations, Your Post Has Been Added To The Steemit Worldmap!
Author link: http://steemitworldmap.com?author=lymepoet
Post link: http://steemitworldmap.com?post=exploring-amsterdam-netherlands


Want to have your post on the map too?

  • Go to Steemitworldmap
  • Click the code slider at the bottom
  • Click on the map where your post should be (zoom in if needed)
  • Copy and paste the generated code in your post
  • Congrats, your post is now on the map!

I love visiting amsterdam, I must have visited half a dozen times now, but like you say february and 6am might not be the best time. There is so much to see, the reason why many of the houses are so tall and narrow is they used to charge a tax on the width but not the height so the houses are taller than they are width. Great post.

I imagined there was a reason behind it for the tall buildings. Thanks for explaining that to me.

Amsterdam looks like such a beautiful city. I would love to spend a couple days there exploring the city. Thanks for sharing

Glad you enjoyed it! I am looking forward to going back there for a few days as well.

Coin Marketplace

STEEM 0.20
TRX 0.19
JST 0.034
BTC 88638.48
ETH 3290.10
USDT 1.00
SBD 3.05