Keeping up with the Joneses: Amsterdam

We recently went on a short weekend trip to Holland. We spent most of our time in Amsterdam, but we also visited the famous Keukenhof Gardens and the windmill village called Zaanse Schans.

It was a fun but crazy trip. We thought it would be a good idea to bring our own bikes since Amsterdam is one of the #1 cycling cities in the world. And I'm glad we did because the city was fairly spread out. However... it was a little bit stressful. I think if you were a resident of Amsterdam and familiar with the roads, it might be easier. But as tourists, we found it a little tricky. You're trying to keep up with the flow of traffic (people don't just leisurely ride through the city), while trying to dodge other cyclists, pedestrians, streetcars and automobiles. There are also pedestrian-only zones that aren't always obvious, so we were stopped by a police officer when we inadvertently rode our bikes through one of those areas.

Then there's the bike theft issue. Many people in Amsterdam ride very basic, inexpensive bikes. If you have a nice bike, it's going to get attention and will be at higher risk of being stolen. We brought fairly nice mountain bikes and a small bike lock. Shane asked one of the locals if our bikes would be okay locked up to a tree in front of our hotel, and he advised against it. He said they would most likely be gone in the morning. The local people use huge chains to lock up their bikes. The chain we had was so thin, it could easily be cut and our bikes stolen. So, we were in a predicament. We were staying in a typical Amsterdam house that was VERY narrow and had incredibly steep stairs. But we didn't really have a choice. So Shane took both of our bikes up two flights of stairs to our hotel room, and we kept them in our room at night. It was a tiny room so we had to rearrange some furniture to get the bikes to fit. It was quite an ordeal.

Amsterdam itself is a neat city. The canals are beautiful, and I fell in love with the architectural style of the narrow gabled canal houses. It seems like a fast-paced city, but maybe that's because of how we toured it (on bicycle).

Overall it was a great trip, and I'm glad we experienced it on bikes. Even though it was stressful and our butts were sore by the end, I felt more like a local cruising around the canal streets on bikes. I'd definitely go back, but maybe try the streetcars next time! :)

Here are a few pictures from our trip: