Amsterdam

29 June 2025

We arrived in Amsterdam on a sunny afternoon, the first stop of our Europe trip, and a chance to reunite with family. Elyse, Alex, and the kids—Pip and Cyrus—met us outside the station, and together we set off to explore. We wandered bustling streets, sampled a lemon tart before dropping it on the ground, and took to the canals in a small boat.

Day 1

We arrived in Amsterdam at 1:00 pm. We took a train into town, and the first thing we saw when we exited the station was some kind of protest with people loudly chanting on a loudspeaker and waving some Middle Eastern flags.

Elyse, Alex, and the kids, Pip, and Cyrus met up with us outside the train station. Together we walked down some touristy streets. We got frites right away, which were very good. Next, we bought a lemon tart, which fell on the ground after Indi and I each had one bite.

Alex booked a boat rental. We bought some snacks at nearby stores to eat while on the boat. We walked to the corresponding dock and got a quick instructional lesson on how to operate the boat and where to go. It was a lot of fun! I captained for a while, then switched with Elyse. It ended up being a bad time as it was more crowded, and maybe because she was going in cold, she had some trouble maneuvering past other boaters. We lightly rammed another boat, making them spill their hummus, then made another aggressive captain angry by driving too slowly and bumping into another boat and not giving him room to pass. Alex took over after that. We ate our snacks and chatted while cruising. We finished the loop and had a great time.

Amsterdam’s residential buildings make me ashamed of America’s soulless, slate grey townhome tracks. I think Americans need to be protesting how anti-human our neighborhoods are.

Day 2

Zaanse Schans

Zaanse Schans, just outside Amsterdam, is a charming open-air museum that recreates an 18th and 19th-century Dutch village, complete with working windmills, wooden houses, and craft workshops. It was a tourist trap, but we both enjoyed it. I saw a quick demo on how they make wooden clogs and had some of the best cheese of my life in the gift shop – a jalapeño gouda. While it does feel touristy, it made for an easy and picturesque half-day trip from the city.

Albert Cuypstraat Market

We took a bus, which turned out to be the long way back to central Amsterdam, but I didn’t mind. We visited a massive street market that featured a wide variety of items. The Albert Cuyp Market in Amsterdam’s De Pijp neighborhood is the city’s largest and most famous street market, stretching along Albert Cuypstraat since 1905. Open Monday through Saturday. We tried a couple of different snacks, including the famous pickled herring. I love herring, but I couldn’t handle the dish. I ate a couple of chunks and then threw it away. We also tried pork bao and stroopwafel.

Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum is Amsterdam’s temple of art and history. Its vast galleries feature works by Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Van Gogh. Beyond paintings, you can explore sculpture, period rooms, ship models, and even a weapons collection. We didn’t have time to see absolutely everything, but we did cover most of the museum. I liked the self-portrait by Van Gogh, a landscape by Rembrandt, and the weapons exhibit best.