Amsterdam

One of the things we quickly learned while researching trips to Europe, Was that the rail system is a fast, affordable and super convenient way to travel within European countries. Once we decided to make Paris our home base for our European trip, we decided to book tickets for the Thalys (high speed train) to Amsterdam. The trip was fairly short, only a little over 3 hours including a few stops along the way in places such as Brussels and Rotterdam. Tickets become available 3 months prior to your desired departure date, and the sooner you buy them, the more affordable they will be. We booked exactly 3 months prior- the day they went on sale, and paid $80 each for return tickets.
Arriving in Amsterdam we stepped out of the train station and were a short 5 minute walk to our hotel. We stayed at the "Hotel CC" and this was a great choice for us, as the location was excellent and the room was by far the largest we stayed in while in Europe, with a  view of the canal outside. The hotel was fairly modern and although we arrived a few hours prior to check in, they were able to store our luggage so we could start exploring the city.

View from our room

Amsterdam was a much cooler temperature than Paris was, which was a welcome relief. It made walking around the City very enjoyable, and I suggest walking here, don't bother with a car rental. Most of the streets are geared towards pedestrians and of course, bikes. Bikes are everywhere here, so watch out for them. Another way to explore the city is to hop on one of the "hop on hop off" tour boats. Exploring the city from the canals was a fun way to see the sights, and stops include most of the popular attractions. The first stop for us was in an area that put us within walking distance to the Heineken brewery, which was something I had purchased tickets for ahead of time. This isn't like some other brewery tours we have done, this one was different because once you are in, you explore at your own leisure. You aren't part of a group, and you don't have a guide. This may be a negative to some, but for us it was a nice change. There was quite a bit to see once you were in the brewery and we were given tokens for free beer as well. Free beer is always a bonus.

We returned to the hop on hop off boat, and stayed on until we were back in the Red Light District (where our hotel was located). We found a restaurant with a patio overlooking a canal, and decided it was a good spot to stop for lunch and a few drinks. The food in Amsterdam was OK, about what I was expecting based on research. We tried the bitterballen (deep fried mixture of beef, butter and spices), kroket (again, deep fried roll with meat inside), and patat, which are fries, often topped with mayonnaise, peanut sauce and raw onion- may not sound great, but these were actually really good. Amsterdam also is known for having some of the best Indonesian food around, which we tried, and loved. Of course, you also have to try the waffles. There are tons of little shops that sell everything from pizza, to waffles covered in icing, berries and chocolate. The waffles are much different than North American waffles, and they really as a "must try" item.

Our next stop was the Amsterdam Ice Bar. We did not make a reservation for this, and waited no more than 5 minutes to enter. We arrived and were given drink tokens- two for inside the icebar, and one for the bar in the main area where you wait. We were brought into the icebar in a small group, and were given coats and mittens to wear. Once inside, you can choose from either beer, or flavored vodka (regular, whipped cream and another) that you can mix with orange juice. Everything inside is made of ice, including the glasses you drink from. We stayed long enough to enjoy our included drinks, and take a few pictures. It's more of a tourist trap than anything else, but it was something different to try, and the staff there really get into character to make the experience fun.

Of course no trip to Amsterdam is complete without checking out the sights in the Red Light District, browsing the coffeeshops, and being in the middle of all of the action. Amsterdam is alive at night, with tons of tourists in the streets. The unfortunate part of this, is the amount of litter on the streets because of how busy it gets. We actually had to kick our way through all of the trash on the streets, which also was floating through the canals. I had never heard Amsterdam was like this, so I was surprised. It is not every area though, just the main tourist areas. There were many streets in Amsterdam which were clean and beautiful, so don't get the wrong impression.

Amsterdam really is a unique destination in Europe, and I am very glad we went and were able to experience it. It is a very interesting location unlike any other we have been to, with gorgeous buildings, some great museums, lots of history, friendly people, and so much to see. With tree lined streets, more places to grab a cold Heineken than I can count (I googled it and found out there are 1,515 bars in Amsterdam!), and 165 canals to see (that's more than you will find in Venice) the city really does have a lot to offer to a range of travellers. If Amsterdam isn't on your "places in Europe to visit" list, you should add it, especially given its proximity to other popular destinations.