Canal Tour

Yesterday Connor and I went on a tour of Amsterdam by canal boat! They gave everyone headphones and you sat at a table that they were able to plug into which was neat because you could choose the language of your choice for the tour!

We rode past a few museums and other cool parts of the city that we hope to visit soon!

Hermitage Amsterdam is a branch of the Hermitage Museum of Saint Petersburg, which was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great.  The museum here has two permanent presentations, one that describes Netherlands–Russia relations and the other that details the history of the building. Temporary exhibitions usually are scheduled for six-months.  Currently, the exhibition Portrait Gallery of the Golden Age is on display.

Where the Dutch Opera and Ballet perform!

The "EYE" is a film institute that serves as both archive and museum that preserves and presents both Dutch and foreign films screened in the Netherlands.

The Amsterdam was an 18th-century cargo ship of the Dutch East India Company, but was wrecked in a storm in 1749. This replica can be found outside the Maritime Museum (we walked past this the other day so I don't wanna bore you with more pictures. Besides, what could be less boring that pictures of a replica of a ship from 1749??)

Hortus Botanicus is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world!

Amsterdam, which is famous for its tulips, unsurprisingly has a museum dedicated to them! The Tulip Museum, which is opposite the Anne Frank House, was opened in 2004 and showcases the history of the beautiful flower.

Amsterdam is famous for the many artists that emerged here. So it is unsurprising that there is a lot of art that can be found in the streets, as well as the canals. Keep in mind though that there is the Light Festival going on right now, so many of these pieces were meant to be seen in the dark.

The original owner of this home was fascinated by Greek and Roman mythology. It may be hard to see, but he has many of the gods displayed on this roof!

 

This bridge was featured in a James Bond movie, Diamonds Are Forever. Check out the scene here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbUXN8u4Mko

 

We've seen this a ton! Hopefully electric cars make their way to the US!

It's kinda hard to see, but when you ride past this bridge, you can see 6 others in the distance! Connor teases me because I like numbers and statistics.  He likes to call it, "fun facts with Lauren!" So today's "fun fact with Lauren" is that Amsterdam has 1,281 bridges, which is 3 times as many as Venice! (Also if any of you talk to him, tell him how fun you think my statistics are!)

PS Connor and I are beyond excited because we got to see Star Wars today, two days before it comes out in the US!!! We won't give away any spoilers, but we really enjoyed it! It was also fun going to a Dutch movie theater. The movie was, thank God, in English, but had Dutch subtitles. The ads beforehand were mainly in Dutch, but weren't just trailers for new movies. Instead they were basically just commercials. They had them for Subway and N espresso! They also had a bit of nudity which I wasn't expecting but I think the pair of 11 year old boys behind us appreciated!