With the holiday of Succos in full swing, we are spending time with friends and family in the Succah, so this week I'll be posting photos of my latest adventures in The Netherlands and Spain! When I moved to Israel fifteen years ago life was so different that I never thought I'd have the desire to travel, but recently, after a few years of blogging and exposure to so many things around the world, I slowly felt a little wanderlust creeping upon me. And very fortunately for me, an old friend of my husband's who lives in Amsterdam with his family showed up at our house last year, along with an invitation to visit any time! Lucky lucky me......and since one visit to my now beloved Amsterdam just wasn't enough, exactly one year later I made a return visit with my daughter in tow, for some new European adventures, for which we are so very grateful.
I LOVE Amsterdam because of the clean streets and amazing aesthetics which include an effortless mix of old and new, for example these fabulous red awnings.
I LOVE Amsterdam because when you look up there are these interesting steel beams with hooks that are used for moving furniture into the apartments through the windows. The entrance stairs tend to be very very steep with stair treads that are about half the depth of standard U.S. code, so movers would have a difficult time using the stairs!
I LOVE Amsterdam because there is a general love for beauty and those with ground floor windows tend to fill them with flowers and symmetric arrangements like this one, for the benefit of those passing by. Oh, and of course there are orchids everywhere, and in many cases small gardens and benches, which may or may not be for sitting, but sure look great and lend a homey feel to the concrete sidewalks.
I LOVE Amsterdam, because the Amstel River is gorgeous, and the Amstel Hotel is a stunning example of architecture. I was just trying to find a date for it's construction (around 1865) and learned that the hotel was orchestrated by Samuel Sarphati, who was of Jewish Sephardic Portuguese decent and also happened to be a physician who played a major role in helping improve sanitation in Amsterdam in the mid 1800's.
I LOVE Amsterdam because it has some amazing museums, including The Hermitage Museum, which is a branch of the original in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Amsterdam Hermitage is located in a building built in 1681, that was originally an old age home for women. (Don't miss the exhibit in the basement which recreated the kitchen from the old age home!) Today's museum is a brilliant blend of old and new, with a meticulously designed modern interior.
I LOVE Amsterdam because there are canals everywhere, and some even give the impression of being out in the country, like this tranquil spot in the De Pijp neighborhood.
I LOVE Amsterdam because even these tiny balconies are treated with the utmost care.
I LOVE Amsterdam because I just can't get enough of house boats which line the canals.
I LOVE Amsterdam because fresh flowers are a part of everyday life, and the floral arrangements are so very creative, like this one at the Hermitage Museum. And of course the flowers sold at the flower stands are so very beautiful, not a carnation in sight! No offense to carnations, but you know what I mean, right?
I LOVE Amsterdam because the row houses just go on and on and on.
I LOVE Amsterdam because there is a very impressive respect for old buildings, which are meticulously preserved by the city. Many of the building are falling over, either to the side or even forward, and yet they are stabilized and left intact, as with this example which is leaning to the right so much that the concrete wedge between the two buildings is infact triangular!
That's it for my little slice of Amsterdam, for more photos see my posts from last year here and here and here, and stay tuned more photos of our travels!
