About me
 Name: Robert Birth place: Amsterdam |
It must have been somewhere middle August 2009.
And I should have known; because it happens to me once or twice every year. The day had brought us a warm and lazy afternoon, and we went out with some friends after work for a trip through the canals. Everybody brought some drinks and some self-prepared food, looking for a relaxed evening, and for the water to bring some coolness. When the sun finally descended behind the city’s horizon, and we were covered by the darkness I dropped off most of my friends, going for another circle. When I finally sailed home I found the canal was blocked just before my house, and only just then I realized this was one of the three days a week that they closed the locks to flush fresh water through the city canals. The long detour I had to make to get home brought me back onto the Amstel main canal, an extra trip of about an hour. So at half past one AM, I sailed underneath the ‘Magere Brug’, all alone on my boat, in a t-shirt on a warm starry night, no other boat on the water, and almost nobody else on the streets. I stopped the engine, and I looked behind me. And I fell silent by the overwhelming view: an all deserted Amstel canal, the Magere Brug covered with all lights, and a crystal clear white full moon shining above it. I fell in love with this city, and I will never, never, never leave Amsterdam. 
Amsterdam is truly a unique city. I fully realized that after I bought my boat in 2003 and started to explore the canals and the surroundings of Amsterdam. The impression the city gives you from the water is very different you get when being out on the street. When you wander through the maze of old canals you understand how the city got it’s characteristic layout already ages ago. Looking at the old and impressive canal houses you can imagine sailors, businessman, bankers and traders doing their work during the economic flourishing times. It almost feels as if you are part of the Golden Age life. You sail in between the canal shores, in the summer covered with plush green trees. From the water you notice architecturial details of the houses and interiors that are otherwise hidden. There are no highways, there is the just sound of bicycles, of people having a drink and having fun on the terraces. Out on the canals nobody is hasty, everyone is relaxed and friendly. This is Amsterdam, and I enjoy showing it to other people. |