Monday, May 19, 2008

Amsterdam - a Lifestyle

What you will see here is the locals of Amsterdam enjoying their beautiful weather.


We had great weather while we were there and it was interesting to see how the locals enjoyed it even when they had to be at home. The Netherlands is the 3rd most densely populated country and Amsterdam has a severe housing shortage. As the agent who rented us the apartment said "There are no lifts and only narrow staircases because they must maximize space.

We got a kick out of seeing people with feet hanging out their windows, reading or working in their windows and enjoying each other's company on the small terraces or sidewalks. You have to be careful - if you see a table set out on the sidewalk and people eating, it's not necessarily a restaurant. Or if the front door is open, it is not necessarily a store. Many of the people use the sidewalk or their front step as additional "living space" during nice weather. So the people enjoying their dinner as you pass by are not necessarily going to take your order should you sit down at an open spot. Make sure you look for a restaurant sign!

And it was a good thing they all took advantage of it - it started raining the day after we left. Raining here too as a matter of fact!

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