Gone Dutch

:: Monkeying In the Cruise ::

:: The '7 Arches' Canal::

::Skinny Bridge::
you can hardly see it here but tt just goes to show how well it lives up to its name

Early evening, we took the Canal Cruise at Central Station. The Cruise was €9 per pax and it lasted for an hour. Evening is, in my personal opinion, the best time to take the cruise because you can watch the waters scintillate in the evening sun, or the soft waning of the crescent moon hung atop the bare, naked trees that stuck their arms out in an awkward but beautiful fashion.
Honestly, just makes one wistful.

There are a few interesting things I had gathered from the cruise. To name a few, the famous 'Skinny Bridge', the River Mansions along the shorelines and the 'Seven arches canal'. Amsterdam is a city of water and, it follows, of bridges. The city has more canals than Venice and more bridges than Paris. Of all the bridges, the Skinny Bridge is probably the best known. In the past, the Skinny Bridge could be opened manually but this aint feasible anymore.
To reside in the River Mansions is a mark of wealth and status in the Dutch society. The river mansions are beautiful for they still retain the decor of the 17th Century. The ornate friezes on the ceilings bears testimony to that. Much of the style were inspired by the formal French Baroque. Today, these exorbitant houses no longer belonged to merely individuals but are now business premises and venues for parties.
At night, the bridges of the canals illuminate, apt for picturesque photo-taking time!:)
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If you're more adventurous than I, which I think there is a possibility, at TAFT, you can find the funkiest array of boots. Although I think these flaming orange fire-patterned boots are befitting for only a full-bodied tattooed geezer on a Harley-Davidson.

TAFT is located on Nieuwendijk Street.

Try imagining Nieuwendijk; a labyrinth of shopping streets that somehow ends up in one singular concentric circle. The nearest station to Nieuwendijk is Central Station. In fact, it is just beside Central Station, the latter a highly recognisable landmark with buttresses, towers, friezes and colours that remind me of a medieval town.

In dire need of a pair of winter boots, I scoured the streets of the shopping district Nieuwendijk and boy, not only was I not disappointed, I was pleasantly surprised. There were countless number of shops selling a gamut of highly fashionable winter clothes, boots, shoes, souvenirs...the list goes on. If you;re on a shoestring like me, I would recommend two famous factory outlets here- C & A and H& M. In C & A, I caught sight of a pair of lovely velvet black boots that was too good a buy to miss. It costs €29 which is approximately S$61. Considering the fact that a pair of boots in Far East Shopping Centre back at home costs S$70-100 on average, my boots are a steal! :)

New Yorker is a good alternative to C&A and H&M. Its fashion is top-notch and its prices ranges from as low as €2.95 to as exorbitant as €100. It is amazing that a pair of hand-painted ballet inspired shoes only costs €2.95! It definitely made me go berserk !
New Yorker is located on Nieuwendijk Street as well.

We don't have to look too far in search of food fuel to satiate our hunger pangs from all the walking and shopping. At every half a kilometre, you will find fast food joints, cafes, brasseries and candy stores all evenly interspersed along the streets. I was more than thrilled to find Jamin, a candy store that sells jelly beans and psychedelic lollipops. Singapore has long stopped importing these. It was like a rekindling of childhood memories , when I used to pop jelly beans while sitting on the playground swing. It felt like I was one of Willy Wonka's selected children, privileged to relish in his creations; the burst of different flavours on my tastebuds was almost unforgettable. Bubble gum, watermelon and popcorn flavours were and still are, my favourite three.

For lunch, we stopped over at an incredibly cosy cafe 'Le Pot Au Feu'. In summer, you could see grey-haired folks, young couples and old friends sipping lattes, smoking their cigars or just watching people go by. Alfresco cafes in Europe with their pots of overhanging ferns and the slow swirl of the mahogony ceiling fans have that indescribable rustic charm of old world appeal, a characteristic I find a rarity in sunny Singapore.
In winter, the cold sends everyone scrambling into the cafes for piping hot onion soups. The interior decor is just as charming. Artistic nude paintings that lend their inspiration from the classical Greeks are a common sighting.

Le Pot Au Feu is a good option if you are not on a tight budget. I have never tried their breakfast menus before but English breakfast are priced at €5.95. Because winter always intensifies my craving for soup; I had a pot of french onion soup that had a layer of semi-hardened melter cheese on top. Soups are priced at €4.50. Oh dear,look how distracted I can be, I think I have to starve for the next two days.