Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder

One of my favourite museums that I visited in Amsterdam was Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder or in English, Our Lord in the Attic, a 17th century canal house that has a hidden church built into the top three floors. The Catholic Church was built during the 1660s when Catholics were unable to worship in public so held services in this hidden church. I found the audioguide that was free with admission to be very interesting.

The museum is open seven days a week but I suggest checking their website here to check for hours if you intend to visit. It costs €9.00 for adults but is free with the I amsterdam card if you do end up getting it.

You also get to wear these super fun slippers over your shoes to walk on the straw mats. 

Dining with the Tsars at the Hermitage

Dining with the Tsars at the Hermitage Museum in Amsterdam was an exciting event to attend. It's running from the 6 September 2014 to 1 March 2015. The exhibit costs €15 but with the I amsterdam card I think I had to pay an additional €3.50 to enter.  

The exhibition displays eight maginificent porcelain and creamware services from the collection of the Hermitage in St Petersburg. I enjoyed the rules of etiquette displayed upon one of the walls as you wandered through the exhibit.  The exhibit shows how lavish the banqueting culture used to be under the reigns of different Tsar's. The detailed dishes carefully placed on display so beautiful and unique to each different place setting. It was very interesting to visit and see. I did not mind paying the extra euros to enter the exhibit.

Hortus Botanicus: Amongst the Plants

After I left Holland Schouwburg with my head full of contemplation I stopped in the Hortus Bontanicus . Originally founded in 1638 to serve as a herb garden for the city’s doctors and pharmacists, it’s one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world.  It contains more than six thousand tropical and indigenous trees and plants. The monumental Palm House dates from 1912 and is renowned for its collection of cycads.

Unfortunately for me the weather had taken a turn for a worse but I still enjoyed wandering the gardens with my umbrella. What I also found fun was that the garden had theme routes to follow such as trees or the evolution route.

The fee to enter the garden is €8.00 for adults and I recommend checking the website here for their opening hours.

Hollandsche Schouwburg

Hollandsche Schouwburg was my third stop on my extreme I amsterdam tour of Amsterdam. My first stop was at the zoo highlighted in this post. My second stop was the Verzetmuseum which is the Dutch resistance museum. The museum tells the story of the Dutch people in World War II from 14 May 1940 to 5 May 1945 when the Netherlands were occupied by Nazi Germany. The Verzetmuseum is included in the I amsterdam card and is located very close to the zoo. I did not take any photos of the museum but it is recommended as one of the best historical museums of the Netherlands. I think it does an amazing job at highlighting what was happening in the Netherlands during the war. 

The Hollandsche Schouwburg was a popular theatre putting on many well-known Dutch plays until 1940 when the Nazi occupiers changed the theatre's name into Joodsche Schouwburg, or Jewish Theatre and only allowed Jewish actors to perform there. The audience was also strictly Jewish. Over the years the function of the theatre changed drastically. Between 1942 and 1943 Jews from Amsterdam and surrounding districts were obliged to report to the Hollandsche Schouwburg before being deported. 

Now the Hollandsche Schouburg is a memorial centre in the very building that was used to transport between 60,000 to 80,000 Jews to the Westbork transit camp. The building houses an education exhibition and a memorial centre listing the names of the dead, and an eternal flame burns to honour the 104,000 Dutch Jews who were exterminated in World War II.

The admission to the memorial is €12.00 but this price includes the visit to the Jewish Historical Museum, JHM Children's Museum, and the Portuguese Synagogue. If you are buying the ticket at full price it is valid for one month so you do not need to visit all of the included museums and synagogue in one day.

Amsterdam in Black and White

To Magere Bridge

I did a lot of walking when I was in Amsterdam. Though there is a tram network and bus routes in certain area of the city I found it easiest to get around on foot. Of course, you can always rent a bicycle and ride around like a local. At the same time, trying not to get run over by a local. I chose to walk as it gave me the freedom to stop and take photos and not worry about anyone behind me flying into a canal to avoid me. I left Katten Kabinet and set off walking to check out Magere Bridge or as it's known locally Magere Brug which translates as Skinny Bridge. I passed the Nationale Opera & Ballet which offers free lunchtime concerts on Tuesdays.

The Magere Bridge crosses the Amstel River and is a drawbridge to let boats through. It is closed to cars so only pedestrians and cyclists are allowed to cross it.

I wandered around after leaving the bridge I enjoyed a delicious salad from a small deli that had an amazing selection of salads and other things. I could have gotten all of it, it looked so good.  I stopped to check out the Fo Guang Han He Hua Temple before heading to Central Station and taking a free ferry across the river to the EYE Film Institute to check out the free area in its basement. The EYE Film Institute is free with the I Amsterdam card but I never made it back when I had the card to check out the other sections of it.