Amsterdam "The Venice of the North"

I must admit, when my husband first said that we are going to Amsterdam, I was a little hesitant.
I had a preconceived idea about the city that was totally wrong. I had envisioned tons of younger people walking around smoking pot, getting high and causing mischief.  I never thought much about the city itself, or even thought that I would ever want to go there. I can't speak for all Americans, but everyone I know back in the states talked about Amsterdam as being the cannabis capital of the world. Not to mention the Red light district. That was basically all I knew about the city and it's reputation. Boy, was I wrong. The city is so beautiful, clean, and inviting. There is so much to see and do there. 

 We spent the day walking around the The Rijksmuseum, The garden area is very well maintained and lovely to walk around.

 There are several different garden areas, with plenty of seats to just sit and enjoy the beauty. There are also rows of statues surrounded by neatly trimmed green hedges. It was very impressive. I was also very impressed with the fact that bikes outnumber cars there. Everyone rides a bike, I saw several accidents involving tourists and a bike rider, because the tourists walk in the bike lane. No one was hurt, probably more embarrassed than anything.

As for the cannabis, it is strictly regulated and taxed. You can only smoke in coffee shops, which are everywhere, and you are only allowed to buy small quantities. I was a little surprised that you cannot smoke cigarettes in the coffee shops, you have to go to a regular bar to smoke a cigarette. They are very concerned about second hand smoke. The city is very pretty in the daytime, but it is beautiful at night. Everything is lit up. It is very safe to walk around at night, you can walk along the canals and enjoy the water taxis cruising down the river.

We went in early May, and it was cold, windy, and it rained every day. This is because of it's proximity to the North sea. It is also very crowded with tourists from all over. We were walking through seas of people of all ages, which was kind of interesting to see. There is also a restaurant near the Riksmuseum that we stopped at to eat, the bathroom has LCD doors that turn off & on when locked and unlocked to toggle between opaque and see through. all in all, It was a great experience, and we look forward to returning.