A 'Taste' of Amsterdam

Amsterdam's tourist slogan should be 'Food, Glorious Food'. The traditional Dutch food isn't that great but all the other cusines that they offer (which is pretty much everything from around the world) is amazing! I'd come back just for the food :)

So after our tour, on our way to lunch, we passed one of my favourite shops in Amsterdam... a cupcake/deli shop :)


On one half they had cupcakes galore from little, big and cake size cupcakes ranging from various flavours including coconut, banana, vanilla, mocha, strawberry and cream etc. You could even watch the baker making them on the spot! :) The other half was the deli where you could buy meats, sandwiches, salads. Definitely recommend going there if you're in Amsterdam.

We dined at a Dutch pub for lunch.

Tradition Dutch Food
Stampot: mashed potato/sauerkraut and chorizo sausage.
Wouldn't say I'm a fan of it :P)

This on the other hand - Poffertjes (small fluffy pancakes) - I love :)

The Sutch seem big on their patisseries and cafes. Around every corner you would find a place filled with muffins, pastries, cakes and other little sweets that looked delicious. We found this place along one of the main shopping streets. They're not big muffins, or large... they're extra extra large! :D

Colourful clogs :)

Cheese, cheese, cheese.

Look, I found Australia! :)

Was an ice cream palour that sold ice cream and...

...Australian chocolate?

We lined up at the Van Gogh Museum not knowing how long we would have to wait but surprisingly it moved quickly. Maybe because we went there late afternoon.

My favourite painting...

Almond Blossom :
One day I will buy a copy to hang on the wall of my future house.

Dinner was at a place called Kantjil, Indonesion cuisine.

The best Indonesian food I've ever had! (Sorry Hendry! :P)

We met up with Daniel and Lydia for 'dessert' and went to a place called Jolly Joker.

We shared a 'muffin'.

Ok, so when I say we, I didn't have any. I just couldn't do it. Maybe next time.

Dam Tour

Our first full day in Amsterdam started off with a Sandeman New Europe Free walking tour. These tours are also available in a few cities which I recommend you take as not only is it a 'free' tour (you give a donation at the end) but it's a great way to find out about the history and famous attractions around without you having to do the research.

The tour started at Central Station. I forgot to take a photo of the station as I was distracted by the amount of bikes across from us.

Our tour guide - can't remember her name but she was extremely bubbly and full of eneregy for the whole 3 hour tour! Kum and I thought she could have been on something... after all, we were in Amsterdam :P

The canals that lined the beautiful city.

Hooks that hung on all the houses.
They were used like cranes to lift furniture to the upper levels as the houses are too narrow to carry furniture up the stairs.

Kum demonstrating that if you decided to pee on the side streets...

... you would have it sprayed back at you thanks to this device!

Along the walls near the Historical Museum are 47 plaques have been preserved into a brickwall. These plaques were what people in the medival times used to identify which house you lived in by either your name or profession. It didn't matter if you couldn't read, the plaques were designed using symbols and pictures. It wasn't until Napolean came that Amsterdam used numbers for identifying the houses.



Begijnhof is a amzingly beautiful enclosed courtyard dating back to the 14th century. Originally built as a sanctury for a Catholic sisterhood acting like nuns, these houses are still occupied by single women. I would love to live in a place like this... except not as a single woman! :P

It is also the place where you can find...

... Het Houton Huis - the oldest house in Amsterdam.

Standing since 1420, it is one of two wooden-front houses.

We passed by a bookshop that a whole window display of things to do with cupcakes! :D I was so excited! Did I tell you I love Amsterdam? :D

At Singel number 7, you'll find the narrowest house in Amsterdam.

It is one meter wide.

The Dam

Kum and I took advantaged of the long Easter weekend and booked flights to Amsterdam and Milan. When I hear Amsterdam, I think of the Red Light District, the legalized drug use in coffeeshops and lots of bikes. And that's exactly what I got... and more! So much more! I didn't think I would enjoy Amsterdam but it just shows that you have to actually visit the city and experience the culture before you make up your mind. I loved Amsterdam! It is definitely on the top of my list of places I highly recommend to go!

So the journey began when we touched down in Amsterdam and had to catch the train from the Airport to our hotel. As soon as you come out of the terminals, people queue up to purchse their tickets from these ticket machines.

Kum attempting to buy tickets.

For some reason, we couldn't figure out how it worked and after trying a few times, we gave up on technology and went to find the information counter with someone we could talk to. Everyone in Amsterdam speaks very good English which made it a lot easier to get around.

On the train to Amsterdam!

In London they have double decker buses. In Amsterdam they have double decker trains :)


Bikes, bikes and more bikes!
First thing you'll notice in Amsterdam are the amount of bikes. They are everywhere! And we're not just talking about a handful of bikes parked on the street or around poles. We're talking about hundreds of bikes parked everywhere! And lots of shops, like this one, where you can hire bikes. It's so popular that places actually run out of bikes to hire!

Bikes again!

I find it interesting how different cities have different pedestrian buttons and instructions. Obviously in Amsterdam, pictures speak louder than words :)

Our hotel. Was a small but cosy room. The staff were very friendly and helpful.

Our first meal in Amsterdam. We stumbled across a lane of restaurants and the main food that stood out was Argentinian steak. As we walked past the tables, the food did look pretty good so we gave it a try.

I ordered ribs - it was huge serving! And very delicious!

Found this amusing as a restaurant name.

Dam Square by night.

We wondered around to walk off our big dinner (and funnily came across a lot of Argentinian Steak places) and ended up at the Dam Square, the heart of Amsterdam.

All Grown Up

I've been so busy organising catch ups here and there. I'm thinking I came over to London at the wrong time as everyone seems to be coming this year! I'm slightly sad that I'll be leaving when everyone is just settling :(

This catch up was with two of my childhood friends (and their partners) who I've known for a very long time. We're not the closest and back home in Melbourne we didn't see each other that often, but these friends are the type of people who, when you do catch up, you feel like no time has passed between you.

Travis and Daniel - how we've all grown up :)

I made reservations at Sushi Hiroba for our dinner for two reasons: both of them missed out on coming to my birthday dinner and two, I had wanted to go back and experience the restaurant part. I'm glad I did go back... it definitely kept up its reputation :)

We decided to choose our foods from the conveyor belt instead of ordering individual dishes. It was so much fun being able to just sit at the table and have our food instantly appear in front of us :) Not having to deal with wait staff was actually really good. The only time we talked to the staff was when we ordered drinks and paid the bill :) Though the staff here are super friendly. Maybe they too enjoy having minimal contact with customers :)

Around and around they go. We did talk about what happens at the end of the night when the food would just keep going around. Do they discount the food? Can you tell which foods have been there for a while? We started to look for signs and did see a few plates of raw salmon slowly getting cooked from the heat of the lights! :S That's when you know it's getting late!

The plates were colour coded to catergorise them into the different prices. Green was the cheapest, gold was the most expensive.

Lydia overwhelmed by the choices.

Sandy's first pick! :D

Slowly our plate tower grew...

Some of the foods we ate:
(half the time I didn't really know what we were eating but everything tasted really good! Even the raw salmon that I don't usually eat!)

And it grew...

Mochi with ice cream inside! It was much better than the ones you get back home at yumcha except they were smaller.

Sandy and Travis

Daniel and Lydia

And it grew :D

Group shot :)

The night was filled with conversations about work, family, travels, food and lots of laughter. Thank you for a great night. I'll be seeing you all sooner than expected! :D