Setting off early and packing a raincoat as it was already raining (again) we jumped aboard the bus in Egmond aan zee to Alkmaar then the train to Amsterdam. Exiting Central Station we were immediately engulfed within the scrum masses of tourists. We took a quick turn east to a less popular area with the visitors to our first stop; The Rembrandt House Museum; a restored, 17th-century house where Rembrandt lived & worked for 20 years, hung with his etchings. Farther east we walked through the quiet Entrepotdok area that is a canal with a complex of former docks and warehouses now quite nice housing. It is just north of the Artis zoo and exotic animals can be easily seen across the canal. This area is the largest inhabited warehouses complex in Amsterdam. Time for a beer break at de Biertuin to enjoy some of the large number of special beers on tap and of course some fries and mayo. We then traveled westward to the Oude Pijp area and to apartment number 305, birthplace of mom (new building replacing the original). We then walked through the Bezoekerscentrum de Dageraad a social housing complex built in 1920s. The Rijksmuseum was our next stop and as Nico is not so interested in human art we walked over to the special beer bar; Gollem’s Proeflokaal to await Bev’s return from the museum. A few beers later (and patate with mayo) we walked back toward Central Station. The large sidewalks were teaming with thousands of tourists most seeming to be British men and women taking part Stag or Hen events. Through the central station then across the large canal is a former industrial and poverty area now undergoing a gentrification of sorts. A welcome break from the overcrowded tourist area. Oedipus Brewing is a larger brewery drawing in hipsters from south of the canal.
