Today we went on a walking tour of Amsterdam, conducted by an American student living in Amsterdam. We had the opportunity to visit areas that we would certainly have otherwise missed, and our guide, Laura, was very knowledgeable and did an excellent job. The photos and details are (more or less) a chronological journal of the tour.
Views of the Red Light District
The oldest church (De Oude Kerk), the secret Catholic church of Ons’ Lieve Heer op Zolder, and a chinese temple
The secret catholic church, known as “Ons’ Lieve Heer op Zolder” (“Our dear Lord in the Attic”), was in the attic, behind the top 3 LHS curtained windows in the middle house in the middle photo.
A rebuilt street in the Jewish quarter and a view of the Weigh House (In De Waag)
This part of the Jewish quarter was rebuilt by a famous architect in the 1960s, following the devastation by the Nazis in World War II. It was in the 1960s that the city finally felt financially able to support its Jewish community by rebuilding the area for them. An idea that the rest of Amsterdam would be rebuilt in the same style was rejected by the Dutch community, with the result that the original Dutch architecture of the rest of the city must now by order be preserved.
Red light district railings, and a view of the Hemp Museum
These railings in the red light district do not leave anything to the imagination!
The Dutch East India Company, and a canal view
The Male Prison, and a cafe featured in Oceans 12
The male prison featured an underground cell which gradually filled with water. The water had to be manually pumped out by the inmate, or else he would eventually drown. The act of pumping out the water was deemed part of the punishment. However, one prisoner died when he did not believe that he would drown if he did not operate the pump! The resulting outcry amongst Amsterdam’s community about his death resulted in the closure of the prison.
The Royal Palace, Dam Square, and Amsterdam’s narrowest house
The narrowest house is the bright red brick building slightly to right of the centre of the photograph, sandwiched tightly between the 2 larger buildings either side. It is the width of one very narrow room, but is more spacious than it appears as it opens out more at the rear.
The Westerkerk (West Church), and a typical sloping house
Houses which slope outwards towards the top are standard in Amsterdam. Due to the limited access and steep narrow stairs in most of the houses, moving goods and furniture in and out of houses is a problem. This is solved by the use of a pulley system which is anchored to the hooks which may be seen protruding from the tops of all the houses. Moving house therefore involves hoisting your worldly goods up and down with a block and tackle! To facilitate this, the houses slope outwards towards the top so that the items being hoisted to not hit the house and cause damage.
