Amsterdam Layover
Despite being the most bike friendly city in the world I almost exclusively walked. My hotel was smack in the center of the city, so walking just made a whole lot of sense. I had been to Amsterdam in the past and didn’t feel the pressure to go out and see absolutely everything on my short trip. I instead opted for a more leisurely approach and took in the beauty (the weather was perfect). Compared to being in Bangalore, the city, while busy, felt so much less chaotic. I felt much more at home.
The architecture struck me more on this visit than my previous time. All of the lovely, and presumably historic, brick buildings were stunning. I got to see some shinning examples of what must be authentic Dutch architecture. I spent most of the day aimlessly walking around the city and famous landmarks rather than going inside anyplace. Bikes were plentiful as well even though I wasn’t on one.
I had gotten advice from a coworker to see Amsterdam’s concert hall (Het Concert-Gebouw). Apparently it is one of the finest acoustically in the world. So I couldn’t pass up something like that. I was lucky to get a ticket to a show since I was only there for 1 evening. I wasn’t able to get into the main concert hall but rather the secondary hall. It was still quite beautiful and hopefully still acoustically extraordinary! The performance I saw was a very modern string quintet. They didn’t simply play the classics, rather a much more modern, almost atmospheric style of music. The music would have gone very well in many video games and movies as they invoked a real sense of place. Songs ebbed and flowed but didn’t necessarily have a normal chorus or “song” structure. I felt transported to another world. I am very glad I took my colleague’s advice and would recommend others go experience some beautiful music in a beautiful hall.
And that was it! I left the next day to return to California.