Going Dutch - Day 1

Where do I begin?  This day has been a long one, for sure.  Mom dropped me off at Binghamton airport Tuesday for a flight at noon.  I made the connection with just enough buffer time for lunch in Detroit, then off to Amsterdam.  The flight to Amsterdam was about 8 hours long and was very smooth.  I watched Hugo and In Time on the plane, both of which were entertaining and helped the time pass.  I think I got a few minutes of sleep, but airplanes are really not conducive to that sort of thing.  I was actually seated next to a girl in her sophomore year of college who was traveling to Vienna for an art class.  I think she said she was from Hope College, and she was an art/French major. 

The flight landed in Schiphol around 5:30.  It was a relatively (surprisingly) painless process of going through passport control and baggage.  It was also a relatively easy process to purchase the OV chipkaart from the bookstore, which is the Dutch version of a Charlie-card (Boston) and can be used on the train, metro, and tram.  The only small hassle was when the yellow train-ticket machines wouldn't accept my debit card, so I bought my train ticket at the counter - headed to Amsterdam Centraal (the main train station in Amsterdam proper).  Not much of a wait, and the train itself was quite clean and fast - a 15min trip at most.  The station itself is a major work of architecture, designed by P.J.H. Cuypers in 1889.  With all of my luggage, I did not want to linger too long, so I will have to revisit.  Which is unavoidable, actually, as I will be taking trains from here to other cities in the NL.  Anyway, as I left the station, it was quite easy to find the tram I needed, and it was a nice little ride to the Keizersgracht stop, not far from my hotel on Reguliersgracht (the hotel is located between these 2 picturesque canals or 'grachten').  I checked in, no problem, and was shown my room.  The proprietor, an old Dutch man, spoke wonderful English and he was very friendly.  The interior of the room is so charming, very traditional Dutch décor.  It is almost a little suite, with a foyer, living area with TV and a desk, a bathroom, and even a kitchenette with a fridge, microwave, and coffee/tea maker with utensils and dishware!  But it gets better: I am also spoiled to have a full view of the canal.  Absolutely stunning.  Once I checked into the hotel, it was about 8am NL time, but to me it felt like 2am...and with such a journey behind me, I needed a rest.

A four hour nap commenced (memory foam mattress and pillow...yeah, no problem there) and I was up and ready to explore, albeit a little groggy with the jet-lag.  I set out to get my bearings, and to check a few buildings off my to-see list.  Turns out navigating the canal-city is indeed tricky, but less so than I imagined it would be, especially after visiting Venice two years ago and finding that nearly impossible.  To be fair, I was not well-equipped with map and plans in Venice as I am now.  There is often talk of Amsterdam being the "Venice of the North" and while the similarities are obvious in their canal systems, that's just about where the similarities end.  The feel of this city is completely different.  For one, there are more bikes than people.  I mean this literally, as you may be able to see in various pictures.  There are designated bike lanes in the road, and most sidewalks, however the bike lanes are big and the sidewalks for pedestrians are very tiny in comparison.  That generally means you can get away with walking in the bike lane.  But sometimes the distinction is unclear, and other times bikers will ride on the pedestrian sidewalks.  I quickly learned that the biggest hazard while walking the streets is not cars, but bikes.  You hear the cars coming.  But even if you look and look again to make sure there are no bikes near you, BAM they pop out of nowhere.  And they go fast.  And if you are in their path, they may possibly ding their little bell to signal they are behind you, but they will under no circumstances slow down or adjust their path.  Yes, they will run you over.  Now I am constantly looking behind me as I walk, and I feel the need to invest in a rearview mirror or eyes in the back of my head. 

Anyway, I began my venture through the nearby Rembrandtsplein, a mid-sized public square, and then out to the Nieuwmarkt area.  This is the area where the Rembrandthuis is located (where Rembrandt lived in the mid 1600s), and also the Pentagon housing (pictured above) of 1983 designed by Theo Bosch with urban plan by Aldo van Eyck done in the 70s.  Then I cut across to the west out by Dam Square, to see the Oude Kerk (Old Church), and the Beurs van Berlage.  The latter is one of the most canonical modern architecture projects, designed by H.P. Berlage in 1903, this building was the Amsterdam Stock Exchange for decades.  Now it's just a cultural building with a café inside.  It's hard to get into the main space, and I think it's still under construction/renovation now.  I passed through the Waterlooplein flea market, which looks like it warrants another visit at some point.  Grabbed a water and for food a "small" cone of frites with mayo and ketchup.  That hit the spot.  Then I happened to see the Nieuw Kerke and De Bijenkorf store.  Then I headed back east to the Scheepvaarthuis (1916 by van der Mey), an amazing example of the Amsterdam School detail in brickwork, wood, stone, and wrought iron coming together.  There is something very early-Gaudi-esque to this, which I will have to look into more.  It was a housing project, now a five star hotel.  After this I went across to the Public Library designed by Jo Conan in 2004.  It's a great contemporary building, clean lines and good articulation of material.  I was impressed by the interior as well, 6 floors and some great overlapping views.  Next door is the Conservatory, which was pretty cool to see all of the systems exposed in the curtain wall.  Wandered out then to NEMO, a Renzo Piano building.  He uses the same weathered concrete, which to me is overdone and actually really bad for the environment.  But the public roofscape is a nice component.  Then across the way is the ARCAM building, a small little glass building which houses the Architecture Center of Amsterdam.  I didn't get to go inside because it had already closed, but perhaps later.  

On my way home I made a detour to see 2 other housing projects.  One is a row-house social housing unit by Claus en Kaan Architecten, the other an apartment building by di Architecten Cie.  Ironic juxtaposition, one being in a very quiet neighborhood, the other upscale with bustling with activity.  Passed by another van Eyck building - the Huberthuis, also the Botanic Garden, Scheepvaart Museum (ships), and the Hermitage Museum on the way home as well, each of which warrant further exploration.  I was so exhausted from walking at this point, and decided to head in to the hotel.  I almost fell asleep right away, but wanted to reset my internal clock, so I made some tea and decided to type this up.  Right now it's 9:45pm and the sun hasn't fully set yet.  This is very confusing to me at the moment, but I guess it means I can stay out later longer.  All in all, a great first day!  Things I want to do soon: get a Museumkaart and visit the museums, try more Dutch food, drink Dutch beer, buy some wine to have with the wine glasses in my hotel "suite" or at the Vondelpaark. And of course see more of the sights, and visit more of my research-related buildings!  Doei!