Amsterdam Visit

[tvenuto]

Some random stuff I learned visiting Amsterdam...

I was there for 6 full days, and how I didn't see one or more absolutely devastating, superman-over-the-handlebars bike wrecks is beyond me. There are constant streams of them everywhere, motorized traffic is allowed in the bike lane (scooters/motorbikes) and regularly weave between cyclists at 30-40mph. Also, these lanes liberally cross motor traffic lanes, including buses and trams (small trains), as well as pedestrian lanes. People are sitting sidesaddle on the rear fenders, and kids are in seats designed for holding them as well as baskets designed for groceries. Also, 95% of these bikes are of the beach cruiser variety, with nary a high-performance bike or "shock fork" among them. They are either skilled beyond the imagination of American cyclists, or just blessed with ridiculous luck.

On a similar note, how someone isn't crushed by a tram on a regular basis is also beyond me. Now they don't go incredibly fast, but they go straight down certain streets where there is no curb or sidewalk to even notionally keep pedestrians out of their path. People casually walk back and forth over the tracks until you hear the bell, but this was an area with bars and drunk food places. I would think drunks stumbling into the tram would be a regular occurrence.

As a pedestrian, this is the order of what is most likely to run into you, from most to least likely: other pedestrian, bike/motorscooter, tram, bus, car. Which is pretty much the opposite of America. Seriously, no matter what side of the street you're walking on, you feel like it's the wrong side, and it also feels as though you're playing chicken with all the other pedestrians. On a sparsely populated street, my wife and I were constantly awkwardly split up by other groups of two, who we also awkwardly split up. Why does no one know how to walk in Amsterdam? Maybe physical contact with another pedestrian is less likely to have a negative outcome there? I'm not the most physically imposing person in the world, but on the scale of "do I want this person to run into me?" I have to believe I'm in the 75th percentile.

Everyone there speaks fantastic English, with very little accent. They'll start speaking Dutch to you, but when it becomes clear you don't speak Dutch they break into better English than I hear in Baltimore, anyway.

If given context, you can read Dutch, but forget about discerning any words when spoken, or being able to pronounce any words you read.

Mayonnaise goes on french fries there, embrace it. Also, they're better at french fries than us (as is Canada, actually). This is embarrassing but true. I never had a bad french fry in Amsterdam, and they seemed to come with everything, which was fine by me.

They pour beer with lots of head. This is universal, and apparently pisses off the Brits, who paid for a pint and want a full pint of liquid. However they also have lots of Belgian beer, which is worth double what they charge, so I don't care.

I am still not entirely certain the seating protocol for a Dutch restaurant. It seemed to be an awkward dance of: you choose a table, but if it's not the right one they might suggest a different one, but there was never a dedicated host. Some places had little "reserved" cards (in Dutch: "gereserveerd" see what I mean?), so maybe that was how you were supposed to know that tables were off limits? In Greece, they will not seat you, or even acknowledge you, even if you stand smack in the middle of the restaurant, so it was abundantly clear that you had to seat yourself.

You don't really tip there, which I found difficult. If you pay by credit card, there's nowhere to put in a tip.

This lack of tipping changes the server dynamic, and they could care less if you sit there for a long time, as it doesn't really pay to turn tables and is actually less work for them. This can be a good thing if you just want to hang out. However, it can be a pain to get the check if your server is off somewhere. However, once you do get the check, they can often process you right on the spot, as they have portable CC machines and a full til in their "server holsters." They may not be able to take your chipless American credit card, though. America: Technological Backwater.

Euro coins are actually valuable, so you are forced to deal with them. Also, people bristle a bit when you only have large euro bills and are forcing them to make small change, of which there seems a limited supply. If something is 15.10, it's much better to actually have the .10. Also, people like when you pay in all coins, which again is the opposite of America.

There is universal pizza availability on all streets. It seems they absolutely love Italian food, which I found slightly puzzling as we don't think of Italian as "high cuisine" here. There are many advertizements for pizza, "New York" and "Dominos" being the most prevalent.

There is a bit of an American fetish, truth be told. Certain things are in English, and I wonder if certain things are made "classier" by being in English. Kind of like if you had a French bistro or hair salon you might have a French name to make it seem classier. There was a restaurant with called "Bourbon Street" with Jake and Elwood blues statues dancing on top. There was a restaurant with a statue of liberty replica on the front facade. I walked into a neighborhood bar that specializes in a large beer selection, and "Born in the USA" was playing over their speakers. The live act that came on later? Jazz.

Amsterdam is the place for sneakers, if that's your thing. A single street had at least 5 locations to buy exclusively sneakers: Puma, Adidas, Nike, Onitsuka Tiger, Asics, etc.

Every shop has the same schedule: 9-6 pretty much every day except Thursday, when they're all open to 9. Maybe they open earlier some days, but here all shops have their own unique schedule.

It rains a lot in the winter there. Everyone is prepared with one or more of the following: hat, hood, umbrella. The hooded, synthetic puffer jacket is popular there.

If you're a dude, you can pee in these things called "pissuars" but I hope you're not pee-shy. It's little more than a sheet metal cubicle around your midsection to knees, and a urinal coming out of the ground. I wish I had taken a picture, but there was a line at the one I saw and didn't want to seem like a jerk.

[MacLaren]

Awesome. I was hoping you would do this thread.
I was really interested in how it went over there.

[Johnnie1801]

you reminded me of this old clip :)

goodnight folks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRfluaMKoOY

[tvenuto]

Awesome. I was hoping you would do this thread.
I was really interested in how it went over there.

Yea Amsterdam was totally awesome and I would very much like to go back. We spent about 6 hours in the Rijksmuseum, where we got to see a large collection of Rembrandts later work. I'm not a huge "art guy" but seeing his stuff in person was pretty amazing; the man was on another level. We also went to the Van Gogh museum which was cool too, but his stuff is less different in person IMO. Other than that we just kind of hung out and walked around the city. There was always interesting stuff to see and the people were generally helpful and friendly. Also, the Euro is weak to the dollar right now which was a huge bonus for us.

Speaking of which, although the Europeans have the advantage in going to the Amsterdam meet, they pay for it in spades when attempting to buy knives the rest of the year. Apparently their local stores charge MSRP+, and to buy from the US they have to pay import duties and high shipping. One guy said that when he visits his sister in the US he saves up for months to buy knives when he's here. Really put things in perspective for me.

[MacLaren]

Awesome. Sounds like y'all really had fun. That's great.
I would seriously like to attend one year. Maybe when my daughter gets a little older.
Its always fun to hear about different cultures. Its about I experience it first hand.....

[Johnnie1801]

I'm glad you enjoyed your trip Tv and I hope you get the chance to come back soon. Maybe next time you'll be able to not only go to the Amsterdam meet but also watch Ajax Amsterdam play soccer and take a cheap flight down to Italy and visit the Lionsteel factory where they make the Italian made Spydies :p

For any of you guys thinking about visiting Europe then you should really consider it in the next year or so. The Euro is sliding against the Dollar every day now and by the fall there should be some fantastic deals on airfares and hotels etc.

[J D Wijbenga]

Thanks for the fun read! It is interesting to read how someone from abroad experiences the culture that I have grown up with.

[tvenuto]

Thanks for the fun read! It is interesting to read how someone from abroad experiences the culture that I have grown up with.

I can imagine. Seriously, though, what's up with the walking thing?

[J D Wijbenga]

I can imagine. Seriously, though, what's up with the walking thing?

I never noticed that...I guess when something is normal to you, you do not see it. I have been walking in busy Dutch cities for many years! :-)

[phillipsted]

Tvenuto - I was in Amsterdam twice in the past couple of years, and have visited numerous times over my life. I love the city and country dearly. But for the life of me, I can't figure out the "street dynamic" you correctly described. The trams especially freak me out - they indeed move quickly down the middle of crowded city streets, with no barriers between the trams and the rest of traffic. I'm surprised that more people (especially tourists) aren't run over every year.

The dedicated bike lanes also took some getting used to. These lanes have special crosswalks (cross-pedals?) with their own traffic lights. Heaven help you if you stand in the bike lanes and try to walk across a bike lane crossing.

To be honest, everyone we meet always seems very tolerant of this "newbie" behavior - and just whizzed around us, going about their merry way. Like everything else in the Netherlands, the people are more relaxed and accommodating of others' actions (with the exception of football, probably).

New York City (or Washington DC) traffic is definitely much more dangerous to pedestrians - but we Americans are kind of used to it, so it seems "normal." Gotta love it.

TedP

[demoncase]

The dedicated bike lanes also took some getting used to. These lanes have special crosswalks (cross-pedals?) with their own traffic lights. Heaven help you if you stand in the bike lanes and try to walk across a bike lane crossing.

To be honest, everyone we meet always seems very tolerant of this "newbie" behavior - and just whizzed around us, going about their merry way. Like everything else in the Netherlands, the people are more relaxed and accommodating of others' actions (with the exception of football, probably).

About 12 years ago I was on a 2 week Six Sigma course in Hengelo (North of Arnhem) and we were ferried about in the ubiquitous Mercedes C class cabs.

One day our strayed into the bicycle lane, and the bike rider felt she definately had the right of way- result being big old steel Dutch bike-frame hit the front driver's side of the Merc cab......Man, that cab was written off: the front wing was that buckled that the front wheel wouldn't turn and the front bumper/fender was hanging off.

Point being- don't get hit by a Dutch bicycle- You'll come off worst.

[Jeff4034]

Yeah, your situational awareness needs to be tip top here. It's easy to wander in front of a bike and as I understand it they have right away pretty much no matter what. I nearly get greased about once a day.

Did you make to The Old Man?

[tvenuto]

I did not, unfortunately. Everyone told me about it on Sunday, but we left Tuesday and Monday was our big Museum day. Oh well, a reason to go back!