Inspired by Lyndash, I decided to do a little trip report even though my trip was much shorter than hers. But our days did overlap although we didn’t know it at the time !
I was there February 13 through 16, Friday through Monday. I had a friend come from Washington, so I took off Friday and Monday to join her.
I was scheduled on the 8:14 Eurostar out of Paris Friday morning, but about the time I got to the station, they said we would be delayed. So I headed over to Five Guys and got a breakfast sandwich to go. Just as I came back to wait with everyone for the announcement and was wondering how I was going to handle this sack with my ticket and boarding, they announced another delay so I went back into the restaurant and ate it sitting down. I think we ended up leaving about 30 minutes late (maybe 40), but it didn’t make a difference to me as we had no must-dos on our agenda for that afternoon.
Now a funny thing is that I just spent nearly a week in and around Amsterdam in August (plus I was there in January three years ago ), so I am pretty comfortable getting around. That made it easy when I arrived to jump on the tram and head a couple of stops to where I needed to get off for my hotel (using my credit card to tap in and tap out, which I don’t absolutely love, but it is cost-effective).
I changed for this trip. The prior two trips I have stayed at the De Ware Jacob boutique hotel near Museumplein and Concertgebouw, but their room was way too expensive for this trip (aha, I realized, it's Valentine's Day). So instead I got a single “Shoebox” room at the main Hoxton Hotel (on Herengracht). In fact, when I checked in, the girl at the desk kind of looked in dismay at my booking - “it's only a Shoebox” like she was sad for me, but I was delighted when I got up to my room. It was small (but actually bigger than my friend's room at the Mr Jordaan Hotel) but really nicely laid out, with a cool chair by the window, wonderful bathroom (with fantastic hot water and water pressure), a desk, a kettle for tea, fun art, and a digital radio. I was snug as a bug in a rug.
My friend had arrived before me, so we met up on the streets and went to the Eddy Varekamp Gallery. I had seen some of his work and discovered he does not sell online or by post - you have to go to his shop, which just happened to be near my hotel and happened to be open - they only open certain afternoons of the week. I really love his print style, and was so happy to pick up a couple of pieces for gifts. Www.eddyvarekamp.nl Hartenstraat 30
My friend and I then went for a late lunch / snacks and beer at the Foodhallen, which I love. We picked up grilled Padrón peppers, oysters, some fries, and some satay with peanut sauce, and a couple of dark beers. It was great because this place can get packed, but 3 pm-ish on a weekday, it was busy but not overwhelming. Www.foodhallen.nl
We wandered around a while just admiring the architecture and popping into shops. Then we each went to relax a bit at our respective hotels until meeting up for dinner, which I had reserved a few weeks prior. We ate at De Belhamel, where I had enjoyed an absolutely wonderful canal side meal with my sister-in-law and youngest niece in August - the food was great, but it was our server, who took such care to make sure we were happy and especially to get my niece a mocktail she liked. This place, although not inexpensive, had left a very good impression on me, so I wanted to take my friend back. Obviously we weren't outside near the canal in mid-February ! Instead, we were inside their gorgeous Art Nouveau dining room (after a stop in the cozy bar to wait for our table), and it was again another lovely evening. Www.belhamel.nl , Brouwersgracht 60
Continued . . .