Amsterdam is a city of contrasts - thought, art and romance

Hala Al-Khatib - Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a quadruple city, and when you visit you feel that you have moved to a planet of magic. It is the busy capital always, the city of lovers steeped in romantic colors, and the city of culture and art.

City of museums
It is the capital of the Netherlands, the Parliamentary Kingdom, with its lands half of which are below sea level. There are a number of museums, including the famous Van Gogh Painter Museum, which offers tourists a unique visual experience, as well as precious Gogh paintings. The Madame Tussauds Wax Museum of international personalities, where the tourist takes pictures with any character he chooses and looks true to the intensity of its accuracy.

As for the squares and markets, they are completely in harmony with its architecture with the enchanting atmosphere of the city, the most famous of which is Dam Square, which includes tourist attractions, commercial markets and various cultural activities. But the Amsterdam channels remain another story.

Channels with historical stories
Water canals were built in the 17th century, and they encircle the city and are used for transportation and trade, and it is considered a defensive method to absorb the floods that flood the country from time to time. In 2010 it was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In addition to its role in creating an atmosphere of calm and tranquility in the region.

Bridges covered with colorful flowers
The bridges over the canals are paved with a beautiful artistic style, covered with colorful flowers on the sides. On the banks of canals, lush trees, beautiful traditional buildings and memorials are dotted.

A journey through the water channels is a must to see the beautiful fall buildings in most of them, and you hear about the history of the building and the wars of the Netherlands, its kings and artists. From the tourist boat you see the city from different angles, and you can also drive the boat and move in Qunoot with the directions of its owner.

From water to land
Another way to get around in Amsterdam is by bicycle, so don't expect your car to have a place in the city. The hotel owner tells you that he put his name on the waiting list to bring his car into town, and he thinks he will likely wait a lot. The city has a limited number of cars, and the public transportation means inside it depend on an electric tram, and buses are intended for outside the city only.

Even roads near the canals appear to be not intended for cars. So the most beautiful and most beneficial experience is bicycles. Tourists are assigned color bicycles to distinguish them from those who may have been born on a bicycle. And you see them warn each other crying "tourist", as the tourists are not good at getting around their bikes and don't know the narrow roads like them. Nevertheless, the bicycle experience remains beautiful and refreshing.

The story of the attic
In addition to the floating houses on the banks of the canals, there are tall old Amsterdam buildings, which are similar in shape, and narrow in proportion to the old tax system, which increases as the interior size of the house grows. The last floor ends with a small attic giving the general character of the city.

The captain of the cruise boat says that the Dutch women would punish their husbands if they returned late in the evening by exile in the attic and sleeping there.

Some old hotels in Amsterdam increase the price of stay in it if the tourist chooses to rent the attic with its large window that overlooks the canal, where the view is charming, and the tourist can sit on the big threshold of the window overlooking for a closer and more beautiful view.

Souvenirs from Amsterdam
There are many souvenirs that can be taken from the quiet city, such as cheese with exotic and delicious food at the same time mixed with herbs, and its stores are basements where they are freed in different ways.

There is also a biscuit filled with honey, which is one of the most delicious desserts that can be bought as a gift.

From the beautiful floating flower market, the colorful pictures of small and large seed covers are lured to flowers, the most famous of which is the beautiful tulip flower with its wonderful combinations, so you cannot prevent yourself from buying a tulip onion bag for cultivation in your country.

Certainly there is the traditional wooden domes, which, despite not being used in practical life, remain a distinctive symbol of the Netherlands in general, and its manufacturing shops are spread and you find raw wood until it turns into a polished and colored domes in front of your eyes.