Short stop in Amsterdam

Completed my first trans-Atlantic flight. A very long time to be sitting in an up-right position, while trying to sleep. Arrived in Amsterdam around 7:00AM. Schiphol Airport was very easy to navigate. I only had 4 hours to play with, and my leaving the airport all depended on how quickly I could get through customs. That proved to be quite easy. The train station is directly below the airport and it only took ~15min to get to Amsterdam Centraal. As I emerged from the station, I was immediately awestruck by the beautiful architecture that is typical of the Dutch.

Amsterdam Centraal Station

 

Not set on my new sleep schedule, I definitely needed some caffeine. There was a little coffee shop just outside the station where I had a white coffee (with steamed milk) and a fresh mini raison baguette for less than 3EU. I only had about 2 hours and there were a few sites I wanted to see during my very short visit. I continued my trek down Damrak until I made it to Dam Square. 

National Monument, Dam Square

Royal Palace, Dam Square

Although very early in the morning, it made for an enjoyable self guided tour of the city, without all the hustle and bustle. I began to meander through the little streets and cross the bridges between the canals. It was amazing to see how many rows of buildings were almost completely contained by water. What impressed me most about this city is how bicycle friendly it is. There are lanes for riders, separate from the street and sidewalks for pedestrians. I wish more places were like this...Toronto is seriously lacking on this.

Looking down one of the canals. Beautiful

With so little time, I had to see the famous Red Light District next. As I had no map with me, nor had I remembered to load a city map onto my phone before leaving the airport, it took me wandering around the area where I "slightly" remembered seeing it on the map. I ended up just asking a local, only for her to say to me that I was standing in it. I realized this when some very obvious signage became visible to me.

Bike lane, beside a canal

Even though this area was silent and quaint during the early hours, I knew such could not be said when the sun goes down...

If not any more obvious than this....

Sadly, I had to return to Centraal Station to make my way back to the airport to catch my next flight. I made it back with ample time. Interestingly, security check points are laid out quite differently than what we are used to in North America. It took almost no time to get past the point where only ticketed passengers can be. However, bag check by security is done at each individual gate, which I guess makes more sense, since you know you will not miss your flight if you are already there waiting to get through. Back onto another KLM plane to fly into Kigali, Rwanda to make some pick ups and drop-offs, with my final destination into Entebbe, Uganda!