Amsterdam

For many who come to Amsterdam, the city itself is an added attraction. Amsterdam is the ultimate ’small big city’. It combines all the advantages of a cosmopolitan capital with a compact, easy-to-navigate size.




A brief history

Founded in the late 12th century, Amsterdam’s name originates from a dam on the Amstel River. The city’s nickname, Mokum, is derived from the Hebrew word ‘Makom’, which means ‘place’. The city is also often called ‘Venice of the North’, due to the many canals.
Traditionally, Amsterdam was a trading city. In order to be successful in trade, good social networks were indispensable. Furthermore, it was crucial to the city and its inhabitants that land and water were developed and maintained. A tolerant and open society as such, attracts people from every corners of the world; and these in turn must feel that their place in the city is protected.
In short, it’s no coincidence that Amsterdam has become the most multicultural city in the world. The city has become a melting pot, with not only space for people of 174 different nationalities but also with room for alternative lifestyles such as homosexuality and squat culture. What may sometimes seem as contradictory to an outsider is actually the basis of all Amsterdam culture: the freedom to be who you are – and to say what you think.

Cosmopolitan character

Amsterdam’s mixed population is reflected in the wide variety of shops, restaurants, and leisure and cultural facilities catering for the international community. Food speaks many languages in Amsterdam. There are Japanese, Taiwanese, and Indian supermarkets, for example, and restaurants represent countless cuisines. The city also has world-class cultural facilities. These include several major museums and some top-notch classical music venues. And let’s not forget the lively night scene tailoring to lovers of jazz, rock, dance and many more.
With its great assortment of international brands and small, independent stores, Amsterdam is also an enjoyable place to shop. Next to the big shopping district around Dam Square, the famous Nine Streets (Negen Straatjes) offer individual fashion and other goods, or head for the ritzy PC Hooftstraat for the big names in style.

Red Light District

The majority of people have heard about Amsterdam’s Red Light District well before their visit. Leaving nothing to the imagination, most stereotypes about this area are true: there are plenty of sex shops, peep shows, brothels, an elaborate condom shop, a sex museum and of course prostitutes in red-lit windows. In addition to the fact that there is much more to the city than this district, there are a few more truths to be known about this (in)famous part of Amsterdam.
The Wallen, also known as the Rossebuurt to Amsterdammers and the Red Light District to visitors is actually the oldest part of Amsterdam. The neighbourhood is also chock-full of interesting shops, pubs, fantastic restaurants, leaning gabled houses and the city’s most charming canals. Don’t miss the vibrant Nieuwmarkt square, the gothic Oude kerk or a walk along the centre of Amsterdam’s Chinatown, the Zeedijk (also home to an impressive Buddhist temple).
Since 2008 several former prostitute’s rooms in the area have actually been transformed into exhibition spaces for talented clothing, shoes and streetwear designers. Red Light Fashion, the name of this initiative, is a kind of open-air shop window where talented fashion designers in the city are given a platform to present their creations to the public.

Amsterdam in Numbers

Did you know there are almost as many bikes as inhabitants in Amsterdam? Some claim the number is even higher. Here are a few more numbers about Amsterdam you might want to know:
Inhabitants: 747,290
Inhabitants in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area: 2,158,592
Nationalities: 174
Mayor: 1
Bicycles: 600,000
Trees: 220,000
Flower bulb in parks and public gardens: 600,000
Parks: 28
Trams: 232
Ferries: 9
Markets: 21
Floating flower market: 1
Shops: 6,179
Antique shops: 165
Diamond polishing factories: 24
Canals: 165
Bridges: 1,281
Wooden drawbridges: 8
Skinny Bridge: 1
Glass-topped canal boats and saloon boats: 110
Houseboats: 2,500
16th, 17th and 18th century buildings: 6,800
Gable stones: 654
Royal Palace: 1
Statues and sculptures: 302
Windmills: 6
Museums: 51
Art galleries: 141
Paintings by Rembrandt: 22
Nightwatch: 1
Civic Guard Gallery: 1
Paintings by Van Gogh: 206
Wax statues at Madame Tussauds: 140
Animals at Artis Zoo: 6,100
Barrel organs: 4
Carillons: 9
Historical church organs: 42
Concerts and theatrical performances per year: 16,000
Concerts and theatrical performances per day: 40
Theatres and concert halls: 55
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra: 1
Muziektheater: 1
Cinemas: 61
Cafés and bars: 1,215
Discotheques: 36
Restaurants: 1,250
Hotel beds: 41,000
Campsites: 5