Canal Tour

The final leg of our journey through Europe begins with a pleasant train ride. We pass old wooden windmills and new steel ones; we pass fields of greenery and fenced livestock. Finally, we arrive at the Netherlands largest and most vibrant city, Amsterdam. A taxi brings us to the modern Fashion Hotel, just 4 months old. We are pleased to find a great room with access to a mini-gym and large swimming pool.

It is early afternoon, and to acquaint ourselves with the city, we take a canal tour. Amsterdam has nearly 200 canals and over 1000 bridges. We are told that Amsterdam started out as a fishing village, and was given city status in 1275. In the 17th Century, at the peak of Dutch exploration and colonization, Amsterdam was the center of world commerce. Today, it is a major center of commerce, trade, industry and air traffic. The canals are lined with rows of tall houses. Though the houses were owned by wealthy merchants, they were built intentionally narrow. This was to avoid excessive city taxes which were based on the width of your living space. Behind the smaller doors leading to the basement were the servants’ quarters.

Off to the right, we see the Mint Tower, a defence tower built in the 15-Century to spot would-be invaders. In the distance, St. Nicholas Church stands above Old Amsterdam. Beside the saint’s association with Christmas, St. Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors.

We pass under a bridge and into the Amstel River, for which the Amsterdam is named. This large canal leads us into the main harbour. Here we pass two floating hotels and a floating Chinese restaurant, the Sea Palace. It is a copy of Jumbo Restaurant in Hong Kong. However, the Hong Kong restaurant can seat 5000 patrons, while the diminutive Amsterdam Sea Palace can barely seat 700!

In the early 1970’s, the city installed steel rails along the canals to prevent automobiles from inadvertently entering the water. Even still, today an average of one car per week ends up in the waterways. We cruise pass the elaborate Hotel de l’Europe, owned by the Heineken family. Our captain and tour guide tells us the kitchen of this hotel is partly below water level. I can picture the cooks scurrying around in their rubber boots, boning fish or dicing vegetables for the evening meal.