Travel into Amsterdam: We chose a rental car but other options include bus, train, or taxi. Getting into the airport on arrival was fine, but departure was another story. Despite arriving at the airport two hours before and running to the gate we barely made it. Moral of the story allow yourself lots of chill time while you are there. This was due to a ridiculously complicated security theatre. You talk to a guy while waiting in the very long baggage drop off line, you scan your boarding pass to wait in the long security line, then you wait in a long line at passport control, and finally you talk to another person about your baggage at the gate. Then you finally do the normal boarding process.
Currency: Euro
Language: Dutch but they also speak English and French (probably better than you do).
Transport: Trams and metros are the best option for downtown Amsterdam as ..
\\\\\\\\\\lo parking is limited. If you are brave enough to attempt the madness of the bike lanes there are bike rental companies available. However, you must return it to the same spot (unlike the bike check out system in other major cities). It was an easy enough city to walk through, but the tram was useful for going to the edges. We paid 12.50 Euro per person for a 48 hour pass. It is worth noting that there are two maps one for the subway (sometimes below ground) such as line 51 and another for the trams such as line 5 and 24. You also can rent a boat but as boat parking is a premium we just stuck with our guided tour. We were glad of this when we got to the canal intersection where locals sit to watch the crashing boats. Outside of Amsterdam we utilized our rental car for transport. We paid 145 USD for the week total after fees and taxes.
Walking:
Old town is very easy to walk through, and we felt really safe there. As with anywhere one must be sensible of your surroundings. In Amsterdam the thing that will get you if you are not paying attention are the bikes. If you enter the bike lane, they will run you over.
Food:
The Dutch are not known for great food despite being very near France. At snacking though, they are pros. So let's start there. Must haves are stroopwafels which are two very thin waffles with a caramel syrup in between to hold them together you can get these hot at a stand, which is the way to go (we found ours just outside the Van Gogh museum). At this moment our luggage has more of these than clothes.
Another is the Belgian Fries which are everywhere. They are traditionally served with mayonnaise but they have other sauce options.
We also tried bitterballen this weird dough with meat and other things that is then deep fried. We only tried it once, but the locals apparently like them.
Throughout Amsterdam were many bakeries with delicious macaroons, waffles and donuts. There are also many coffee shops just be careful to make sure the one you are entering sells coffee. They call their pot shops cafes.
One of our favorite drinks while there was the fresh squeezed orange juice you can get at any of the main grocery stores.
We tried the two top reviewed restaurants serving Dutch fare while in Amsterdam; Moeders and The Pantry. They were good, but not fabulous. We went to Moeders for our anniversary, the restaurant itself is cute and the walls are filled with pictures of people's moms. We ordered water which is served still or sparkling. The europeans even drink bottled water in restaurants so don't be that American and just pay for the damn bottled water. Next we choose two of their set price combinations which include a salad, entree of the price point you select, and dessert. We got a tossed salad with a basic vinaigrette and a harvest kind of salad with pumpkin and orange vinaigrette. They were both fresh and flavorful but nothing too spectacular. Our hotchpot and fish entrees arrived. The hotchpot is mashed potatoes mixed with your choice of sauerkraut or spinach served with one meatball, sausage, and bacon. It was basic and filling. The fish with a cream sauce was served with mashed potatoes, carrots, and broccoli. The cream sauce was the best part of this dish. So far all of it was if your mom had cooked it but was really bad at seasoning, cutting vegetables, and horrible at plating. It was good enough but not grand. Desert they did well we got the traditional Dutch apple pie and the potterfjies which were served with a sort of panna cotta. Dutch apple pie is different than American in that it has a lighter pastry crust and more of it than apples. The pootterfjies were light and perfect little fluffy pancakes by far the best we had anywhere. To Moeders credit, they did have better service than most of the places we went especially the other Dutch restaurant The Pantry.
However, The Pantry definitely beat Moeders on flavor and plating. We started with goat cheese croquettes over a small salad. Entrees were a salmon dish with mashed potatoes and carrots and cauliflower and a lobster cream sauce the salmon was overcooked but otherwise the dish was good. The beef stew, while the plate looked like a bunch of slop, the flavor was excellent. It was served with mashed potatoes and a sweet warm purple cabbage side. Finally for dessert we got the potterfjies which were more dense than Moethers.
The best meal we had in the Netherlands was at a Turkish restaurant in Rotterdam called Zenne (more on this below)
Summary
After flying from Denver to Dallas and Dallas to Amsterdam we picked up our rental which we booked through Thrifty but had a hard time finding them since they were serviced through Hertz. We got our little Toyota Aygo and were off to the tulips at Keukenhof. It was 32 for admission for both of us and 6 for parking. Keukenhof is a beautiful botanical garden. A great alternative when you get to Holland at the end of tulip season. They apparently harvest the tulips mid to late April at most of the farms and therefore the fields of tulips were only green shoots. Therefore the garden was a great alternative.
After much tip toeing through the tulips, off we set to other cities. First, we headed to Hague. Where we looked at the courthouse where Nazi's were tried for thier crimes against humanity. It was an amazing building and TV crews were surrounding to discussing various UN decisions.
From the amazing and important things happening there, I would like to switch gears to talk about my personal first world problems. In Rotterdam, we were attempting to park for dinner, but due to the United States only issuing chip and signature cards instead of chip and pin like the rest of the developed world we had a hell of a time finding parking. Lee went into the restaurant to ask where we could park. He talked to a middle aged gentleman with curly salt and pepper hair a white shirt black pants and apron. Since we don't speak Dutch he used his knowledge of English and gestures to indicate that the 120 parking zone was free after 1800.
We moved our car and walked back past a yacht club. They asked if we had reservations and explained it was price fix for antipasto, entree and dessert for 30 Euro. We agreed and despite us being in our very casual travel clothes they escorted us to a table outside on the waterfront. They immediately brought us a plate of olives and soon after a fabulous crusty bread topped with what appeared to be ricotta salada herbs and green onions it was to accompany eight fabulous small antipasto dishes. I can not guess all the ingredients in these, but one resembled a tomato and tabbouleh salad, one kinda like a creamy yogurt, dill and cucumber combo, a couple amazing bean salads, zucchini, eggplant, tomato,and pepper roast combo, and marinated mushrooms. These items were so flavorful that the entrees even packed slightly in comparison. The fish was skewered served with rice and steamed vegetables over a decadent cream sauce and meat dish was slow cooked till fork tender. The desert was the best baklava I have ever had with a sort of currant custard.