A rainy day in Amsterdam

Emily

As we’ve got some time off work and having recently bought a Harley Davidson, we decided we’d ride to Amsterdam. From Bristol, it takes just over eight hours. We were going to break this up into two, but as rain was forecast all day on Wednesday, we rode all the way there. I’m glad we did as it did rain THE WHOLE DAY, but by the end of the ride, I felt like my bum was going to fall off. Riding in the rain is crap, walking around in it is still crap but at least you can duck in and out of cafes/shops to stay dry.

Laughing through the pain of having just rode through 5 degrees in the fog

We stayed in an Air bnb just outside of the centre of Amsterdam. It was so peaceful and overall a really lovely area. Whenever we ride anywhere there’s always a niggle in the back of your mind whether the bike will still be there in the morning. The thought didn’t even cross my mind here.

To get to Amsterdam centre, it was an eight minute tram ride and the stop was only a two minute walk away, so it was very convenient for us. We left our apartment at 11:00am to “have a look around” and didn’t return until 11:30pm.

Desperate for some food, we made a bee line for the Pancake Bakery. There was a little wait to get in and we had to share our table with a couple of girls, but all of these inconveniences are good signs. If it’s popular, it’s popular for a reason! Mitch had a bacon, cheese and mushroom pancake and I had an Indonesian. Chicken with beansprouts and peanut sauce with a side salad and crackers, I didn’t manage the whole thing but I gave it a good go. It was delicious even as I’m writing this my mouth is watering.

After, we went for a wander to find Amsterdam’s oldest church, The Oude which dates all the way back to 1213. It’s also home to Belle, the statue mounted in 2000 to support sex workers safety in the Netherlands. Across from Belle is a boob in the floor, which if I didn’t know was there, I definitely would of stubbed my toe on.

By this time the rain started getting heavier so we dashed to Primark to buy a cheap umbrella. On our way there we walked through the De Beaurspassage which was inspired by the waterways of Amsterdam.

The last time I came to Amsterdam I’d visited the Sex museum so we opted for the Sex Workers museum… Still going with the same theme! We visited for the novelty but honestly it was very educational on the sex industry of Amsterdam. I learned a few things such as sex workers must register but do not need to have a licence, girls can earn up to £1000 per day, the average customer spends 6 minutes there and that the police work closely with the girls, so it is a lot safer than what it would of been years ago.

It’s quite funny being the girlfriend trailing behind, because you see the women in the window smiling and waving at your bf then see you and quickly look away.

Clogs, clogs and more clogs
Mint tea, I highly recommend!
The best company
A condomerie with 1000s of different designs, whether they work is questionable…

Mitch and I spent the rest of the day looking through the shops, drinking tea and basically trying to stay dry until it was an exceptable time to start drinking something stronger.

Teaching Mitch how to play

Then it was onto the night life of Amsterdam… which I think I’ll keep off my blog! ha ha 🙂

Published by Emily

A strong love and passion for travel, dogs, coffee, dogs and motorbikes. Yes, I did say dogs twice.

29 Comments

  1. Hi Emily,
    Great to see you back. Sounds like some fun adventures to be had. Be safe riding. We have such an issue with drivers and bikers. I will end with our hiking club’s motto: Adventure is just one step away!
    Gary
    On Thu, Sep 12, 2019 at 1:15 PM The Blog of Travel wrote:
    > Emily posted: “As we’ve got some time off work and having recently bought > a Harley Davidson, we decided we’d ride to Amsterdam. From Bristol, it > takes just over eight hours. We were going to break this up into two, but > as rain was forecast all day on Wednesday, we rode ” >

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  3. Visited Amsterdam last May for the first time. What a wonderfully unique city, for its history, canals, red-light district, and multiple cultures. Need to go back and spend more time there. Thanks for the overview of the “sex” side – we somehow missed that aspect (or more likely, my wife made sure we missed it).

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  4. Hi

    I read of your experience in Amsterdam with interest as my wife and I will be travelling there in May next year. I am surprised how expensive accomodation is there and wondered if the B&b you stayed at was a closely held secret or something you would share?

    Enjoyed the blog.
    Yours in Blogging
    Glendon Young (Brisbane Australia)

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    1. Unfortunately accommodation is pricey every where in Amsterdam, for two nights we paid £260 and this was a last minute booking. It was on Air Bnb so worth keeping an eye on what’s about on there to get a good price because I’m sure you could get cheaper 🙂

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      1. Yes very pricey. As I stay at the same hotel everytime which is 2 mins from Dam square, I wake up having a coffee & smoke on the balcany looking at the palce 🙂 My hotel charge 150-200 a night but as I am a reg & stay there eveytime I now get it for 80-100 a night. They are more like friends now. I just whatsapp the owber & sorted. This was by pure look I found this hotel on bookings. Its home from home now. I feel I have my second bedroom there as I always get the same good room but tbh it is a brilliant hotel and you couldnt get a better location.

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  5. Incredible to realise that “…we’d ride to Amsterdam. From Bristol, it takes just over eight hours” and you are in another country. In Australia, if we travelled eight hours we’d probably never see another human, leave alone another country. You are so lucky!

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  8. This is such a good post. Looks like you had an amazing time. I go to Amsterdam 3-5 times a year depending on wages lol. I have just got back (12th sept) After reading this I think I may do a post myself about Amsterdam. I love this blog 🙂 & if anybody wants to know anything about the best coffeeshops & cheapest bars feel free to ask. Also ask anything about good things to do in the amazing city.

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  9. Such a great city. I’m pretty sure it always rains in Amsterdam though. It’s one of Europe’s wettest cities I believe.
    Glad you enjoyed your short trip 🙂

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      1. Haha absolutely. It has rained both times I’ve been too. I think it gets more days a year of rain than the UK so just as well we’re prepared!

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  10. that pancake looked soooo good… i should really add pics but i’m too lazy. I feel like I did a really crummy job on my visit to Amsterdam as I’ve seen basically NOTHING of which you write about!

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    1. Thank you 😳😊 Atlas of the obscure and trip advisor are my go tos. I always make a long list of places I want to go and it drives my partner mad so it’s nice it’s appreciated ha ha!

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  12. We are headed to Amsterdam at the end of this month and this post has made me even more excited if that was possible!!! The pancake bakery looked amazing and I must have!!!

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  13. Thoroughly enjoyed and loved going through this adventurous ride of yours to one of my Favorite city Amsterdam!!
    it Just reminded me if our trip to the city which just was for a day but with lots of fun and things to do and see 🙂

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    1. It was only 8 minutes on the tram, not 100% on the area sorry. Amsterdam is amazing but the accommodation is crazy expensive. Check out some hostels or look on air bnb further from the centre 😀

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