Netherlands

Watch out for the bikes!!!
Our Netherlands trip was mostly about 'Amsterdam', but the train ride in was a really interesting slice through rural Netherlands. In addition to the usual pastoral scenes, becoming whiter and more frosty as we headed north, some zones had massive areas of intensive farming in lit greenhouses - with food packing and transport warehouses right next door. It made us all remember Sir David Attenborough's 'Life On Our Planet', with the need to streamline and intensify our food cultivation so we can rewild vast tracts of poorly yielding agri-land. We wondered how much food was actually produced in these enormous 'indoor farms'. Past little villages, and tiny, shaggy ponies, we travelled past the Hague - looked up a bit of the history of the International Criminal Justice court as we wove through the countryside to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam is a popular destination for school-leavers and students, with the Red Light District and the marijuana-selling coffee shops being major draw cards in the liberal city. These were unlikely to feature on our family tour, although we stepped off our first tram into two clouds of green smoke, and most souvenir shops generated questions, "Mommy what is this? And THIS?!" Our hotel was our first taste of 'hostel-type' accommodation. Although it was very well located and had a lovely view of a canal, it was pokey, noisy, and complete with a mouse that ran over Nicola's arm in the middle of the night.

Amsterdam is unlike any other city we have been in. We weren't expecting so much water, with the whole inner city delineated by the multitude of canals. Then there are the bikes... All shapes and sizes, including toddlers bundled into boxes on the front of parents' bikes, and all flying around at high speed. We were very unused to having to look out for bikes, cars, trams, cars again, bikes again, all coming from the wrong direction, just to cross the road. It was a symmetrical high-speed traffic sandwich! We'd had a plan to rent bikes and cruise around the city like locals but thought better of it after seeing how fast they ride. Considering Daniel's propensity to walk and ride in diagonals rather than straight lines, and noticing that there were hardly any children actually riding in the traffic, we elected the very efficient trams and otherwise explored the city on foot. The architecture of central Amsterdam is also very particular, with tall, narrow buildings from the 17th and 18th century lining the canals, many of them a bit lopsided from their foundations sinking into the marshland. We were also amazed by the gantry hooks hanging at the top of most buildings, used to hoist furniture and other heavy goods up the forward-slanting façades to the upper floors.

One of our 'must-sees' of Amsterdam was the Van Gogh museum. We learned that the Dutch museums are incredibly well done. The kids were provided with a 'treasure-hunt' activity sheet which they used to engage with and explore the over 200 Van Gogh originals, as well as the works of some of his contemporaries. We gained a real appreciation of Van Gogh's tortured life and his progression as an artist. Although we didn't get to the Rijks Museum this time, it was fascinating to see the breadth of offerings: multisensory tours for blind and visually impaired visitors, audiobooks embedded in fluffy toys geared to preschoolers, a 'wild-watching' tour which is a pick and mix bag of directions and activities for those who like surprises, family tours in Dutch sign language, low stimulus family evenings for visitors with sensory challenges, and family tours with extra attention for kids with special needs. The intention to make the art as accessible as possible was impressive.

A boat tour of the canals through the city offered a bit more of the city history. Looking at the gables, you could see the inspiration for the Cape Dutch style that spreads the design into a more spacious context. Carys said she found the shoulder-to-shoulder buildings 'stressful' - like there wasn't enough space for everyone. Daniel said, "I like it, it's wonky."

The final stop on our first day was the Anne Frank House. Again, so well done, with thoughtful and sensitive audio guidance around the original building and secret annex, providing the kids with a great and very personal introduction to the persecution of the Jews in World War 2. A very poignant visit. To cap of the day we sampled traditional savoury Dutch pancakes at the Pancake Bakery, and learned from our waiter that Dutch stroop goes with everything - "it doesn't matter what you've ordered"!

Our itinerary for the second day included a relaxed wander through the streets of Amsterdam towards the NEMO science museum. On the way we browsed the Delft pottery shop and the amazing floating flower market with more colourful bulbs on sale that we'd ever seen. The science museum is a great outing and entertained the kids (and adults) for the whole afternoon: from enormous soap bubbles, to light and sound experiments, to a lab experiment with washing powder and an exploration of the human body. Carys was the star of the 'Cause and Effect' demonstration, setting off a 5-minute chain reaction that ended off with an air-blown rocket. As we ambled back home through all the Christmas lights, we couldn't fight the (literal) pull into one of the many enticing sweet shops for an assortment of exotic gummy sweets.

Having got a taste for festive, wintery Amsterdam, with twinkling lights and decorations in the windows, it would be great to come back some day and see it's summery face - maybe this time on bikes!