If It's Friday We Must Be In Amsterdam

We flew out of Prague early Friday morning and arrived in Amsterdam, cool and rainy.  It was a relief from the hot and muggy weather we had experienced for the previous 11 days.  After storing our luggage in our hotel in central Amsterdam, near the Rembrandt Square, we were taken on a walking tour by our tour guide, Norbert.

Lesley and Gus write about what we saw:

hook at top of building 

Norbert pointed out the historical features of the city: the different clock towers, the Rembrandt house, old buildings, and we noticed a feature of the many old houses in the city: a large hook protrudes from atop the highest window of the house.  He explained this is because the staircases are so narrow that the only way to get furniture to the upper floors is to lift it up to one of the large windows by rope (think of the old comedy gag of a piano being precariously lifted).

Another interesting site we came upon was a collection of buildings that directly border the canal, meaning that if one of the residents opened their front door and took one step forward, they would find themselves immersed in water; no sidewalk or porch separated building from water.

We passed through the flower market on our way to visit the Portuguese synagogue.  It is located in the section of the city where the Jews settled at the start of the 1500s.  The Jews arrived in the Netherlands after the monarchs made an edict that they would have to leave unless they converted to Catholicism.  Most left for Turkey, but some went to the Netherlands, and over the next century some of the ancestors of the Jews who had converted to Catholicism in order to remain in those countries, began to depart for the Netherlands also, where they could live openly as Jews.

The synagogue’s design was very modest compared to other synagogues (particularly the Spanish synagogue) we visited back in Prague.  The Dutch word for it is Esnoga (sounds like synagogue?).  It is the largest synagogue building in Europe, reflecting the size and the wealth of the community at the time.  The building was started in April 1671 and was completed in August 1675, and it took so long to build because there were a limited amount of available supplies.

  At the front of the synagogue’s interior was a plaque written in Portuguese giving credit to the builders.

Norbert told us some of the history of the Jewish community in Amsterdam.  There were more than 60,000 living in Amsterdam before the German Nazi invasion of the Netherlands.  A very high number of them perished.



We also heard about some current political issues.  Unlike Poland and the Czech Republic, the Netherlands is not being ruled by a right-wing politician.  Jessica writes:

The current prime minister of the Netherlands is Mark Rutte, who has been in power since 2010. His political party is known as the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy. For the most part, he has a positive approval rating by the Dutch people especially since being sworn in 2010, Rutte became the first liberal prime minister in 92 years.  According to the official Government page of the
Netherlands, the King and the Prime Minister make up the government of the Netherlands under a constitutional monarchy.  Although there is a presence of a monarchy, the power of the king is very limited and kept mainly as a political symbol of national identity.  When parliament introduces a bill, in order for it to be to be official, the Royal House must sign it.

your bad deeds will
come back to haunt you

The Netherlands has a parliamentary system, and one feature of it I found very interesting and different than the U.S.  The executive members of the government and individual ministers must enjoy the confidence of parliament. Parliament can withdraw this confidence by passing a motion of no confidence. If an individual minister, or the government as a whole, does not enjoy the confidence of a majority in parliament, they have to resign.





Norbert brought us to a historic building that was once used as a weighing house, in the middle of a square.  It had an important function back then, but it is now a restaurant/bar/coffee house, and we all cared far more about the caffeine than its value to the past local economy.  Just before going back to the hotel, we set off to the bicycle rental shop to pick up the bikes to ride through Amsterdam. Five people originally opted not to rent one, and one more—after seeing first-hand the way people bike in the city—decided it was not worth the risk.

stop light
for bikes

Something very noticeable about Amsterdam is that about half its population uses bicycles to get around. There were bikes everywhere: parked in racks, chained to bridge rails, and many on the move. Bikers speeded around, and they seem to have the right of way.  Bicycles are such a staple of life in Amsterdam that there are even traffic lights specifically for bike riders.

Jordyn writes:
Bike riding in Amsterdam is the most common form of transportation. Our guide explained it is due to the frugal nature of the Dutch people.  Bikes are cheap, far cheaper than cars, and the terrain is flat.  Those who do own cars in Amsterdam are known to only drive them on the weekend and ride bikes throughout the week, rain or shine.  Our tour guide warned us to be very careful locking our bikes.  He informed us that in his twenty-five years of riding bikes he has had twelve bikes stolen.

Once we had our bikes, helmets, and lock and chain, we returned to the hotel and dressed for our Friday night dinner and speaker.