Any city is at its best when unexpected weather graces your travels. Amsterdam shined throughout a long weekend in February with sun and spring like temperatures. We found the “Venice of the North” warmer and more welcoming than we expected!
After we made a spur of the moment decision to meet in Amsterdam for Valentine’s Day, with one of us traveling for work in Europe, quick planning was needed. Traveling to Amsterdam was an easy direct flight, arriving early morning on Valentine’s Day. We arrived at our base for our long Dutch weekend at Hotel Sebastian’s, which is located on the outer portions of the Jordaan neighborhood, on Keizersgracht canal.
This chic boutique hotel is just the style we prefer: intimate, classy and quirky, and full of upscale service. While Hotel Sebastian has many canal facing rooms, we chose to stay in one of their rooms facing the gardens, which we read had a larger bathroom. Our idea was, knowing that the hotel had a lovely lounge area facing the canal, we could save some money with a garden facing room but with the bigger bath, and to enjoy the canal, we only had to have a beer in the lounge. Our room had a good-sized double bed, nice lighting, a table and chairs, a Nespresso machine and large windows overlooking the gardens. The bathroom was indeed just the right size, with a tub/shower, but I would not call it large. The room itself was rather small, even by European standards.
Our first plan upon arriving, was our cheese tasting at the famous cheese shop, Reypenaer. The Dutch eat 50 pounds of cheese per person each year! The family owned cheese shop is famous in Amsterdam and has been making cheese for over 100 years. In the basement of the store, is a large sunny room with desks, chairs and cheese guillotines! We tasted six different cheeses ranging in age from 4 months to 3 years. We were asked to describe the color of the cheese, smell, taste, consistency and our overall impressions of the cheese. The longer the cheese is aged, the crunchier the consistency becomes due to crystalized pockets of air. Two of the cheeses were goat cheese, while the remaining ones were cow based gouda cheese. We were served different types of wine with the cheese to change the taste. We were even given a taste of Jeneva, which is a Dutch type of gin, to taste with one of the cheeses. It was a great way to introduce ourselves to Dutch cheese.
We later went on a canal boat tour that showed us the varied architecture and landscape of Amsterdam. We strolled along the canals inspecting shops, cafes and restaurants for the remainder of the day. It was a beautifully sunny and warm afternoon and a wonderful way to spend Valentine’s Day.
The next morning, the February rare sun was still shining on Amsterdam. After a typical European breakfast at Hotel Sebastian’s, we made the 10 minute walk to the Anne Frank House. Advance tickets are required for the tour as it is one of Amsterdam’s most popular sights. The museum was recently renovated and I am told, has become more somber and meaningful. The audio tour is very helpful, and once you reach the annex where Anne and her family hid, you continue through the rooms in silence. The tour is a sobering and necessary lesson, especially in today’s day of intolerance, what can happen when we sit back in silence.
From there, we made our way to the start of our food tour through the Jordaan neighborhood. Eating Europe offered the 3.5 hour walking and eating tour of Amsterdam. We met our Dutch guide, Rene, at the historic 400 year old Café Papeneiland and sampled apple pie with whipped cream, all homemade.
Our tour group of 7 was compromised of 6 Americans and an Irish woman. Rene, who is also a chef, coupled his food knowledge with the history and culture of the Jordaan neighborhood as well as Amsterdam as a whole. Along the way, we sampled cheese, sausage from a local butchery, kibbeling(which is cod) and raw herring with onions and pickles from the fishmonger, Indonesian satay, the Dutch biscuit called Stroopwafels, and ended with beer with Dutch pub food of sausage and stamppot, which is like mashed potatoes. I can not recommend the tour enough! With the weather so nice, we sat canal side enjoying several beers watching Dutch life go by!
Our last full day in Amsterdam was meant to be our “Museum Day”. The day before, the Rijksmuseum had open its newest exhibit, All The Rembrandts. In celebration of 350th anniversary of Rembrandt’s death, the Rijksmuseum assembled all of their Rembrandts in one collection. We had advanced tickets, and were lucky enough to see the exhibit on its second day! We marveled at the artwork, along with all the other locals and tourists!
After visiting the Rijksmuseum, we had tickets for the neighboring Van Gogh Museum. This museum was even more crowded and full of school groups. Saturdays are not ideal days to visit the Amsterdam museums, but we made our way enjoying the art, the museums, and again, stunning weather.
After our museum visits, the bartender at Hotel, after noticing we enjoyed craft beer, suggested a neighboring bar which had 50 Dutch beer on tap. Arendsnest is an elegant dark wood bar crammed with knowledgeable beer drinkers. We had six different beers, all Dutch, ranging from a session, to a porter, a stout, and several IPAs. They are served in unique glasses to the beer, in differing amounts so that you can responsibly try a varied amount. The Dutch have a unique way of serving draft beer: they rinse the glass in a sink of running water, and then add the draft beer. This is done to remove any friction on the glass, resulting in a clean pour and a fragrant head.
Amsterdam is a lovely long weekend city. It’s easy to walk everywhere, the language is a nonissue as everyone speaks fluent English, the people are extremely helpful and friendly (while we were consulting a map, a shopkeeper came out to make sure we were not lost), the food is European fun (not to mention the Dutch beer), and the opportunity explore a city steeped in culture and history, is immeasurable. And the canals…… Ahh, Amsterdam, we will be back!!
