Amsterdam Grachten

No city in the world has more waterways, let alone bridges. Along those canals houses have been built right next to each other with no space left in between, but at no good. The housing space is still not sufficient to satisfy demand. So the Dutch have come up with a unique solution: The permanent houseboat – it serves as an apartment floating on the water with all amenities such as electricity, running water and gas supply.

Permanent residence on water

The city is also famous for its liberal stance towards certain kinds of stimulants compared to other European capitals. Hence, the consequence can be seen everywhere. It not only is home to the only Hasch and Marihuana Museum that I know so far, but has also developed a new kind of hangout – the coffee shops. Here you can legally certain soft drugse. g. cannabis and consume it right awaythere  together with a strong cup of coffee. There are now an estimated 500 coffee shops all over town.

Museum of "Drugs"

Coffee Shop

And for those of you who are more on the gardening side, there is an interesting tool kit you should absolutely try out.

For adults only

But what is Amsterdam best known for? Yes, you are right. It is the city of bicycles. For the roughly 750.000 inhabitants of the city there are an estimated 500.000 bikes on the street. This also includes thousands of bikes for rent – one I will try out tomorrow.

City of bikes