Amsterdam Canals

Perhaps the most striking characteristic of Amsterdam as a city are the canals.  We spent a large part of each day wandering around the city, mostly on foot, and taking pictures of the quaint houses and, invariably, the canals.

The canals in Amsterdam are definitely in use today.  We're not sure how much of that use is for the traditional shipping of goods from hither to yon.  Mostly we were aware of houseboats being parked along the canals and the ubiquitous canal tour boat.

Nevertheless, we did see a certain amount of what looked to be real traffic along the canals, in addition to well-maintained canal traffic control buildings and the general state of the canals themselves.  Amsterdam is a living city, and the canals are its lifeblood, as they have always been.

The canals give the city an open feel, despite the cramped European-style buildings.  The roads and alleys of the city are just as claustrophobic as those of Paris or Florence, but every so many streets a canal cuts across, opening up the city to light and water.  The casual pedestrian thus strides from the shadows of narrow streets into the light of day across a bridge.

While the canals criss-cross the city, some of them are reputed to be prettier than others.  Prinsengracht, Keizersgracht, and Herengracht (Prince's, Emperor's, and Gentleman's Canals, respectively) are quieter and more picturesque than those towards the central part of the city.  Most of our pictures are of these canals.