Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the market plummeted, and
the tulip became just one of
many beauties in the country's
flower arsenal. Today, Holland
is a major exporter of flowers.
Certain seeds are certif ied
and OK to bring back into the
United States (merchants have
the details).
•helongFlowerMarketends
at the next bridge, where you' ll
seeasquarenamed...
Koningsplein
Choke down a raw herring—the commodity that first put
Amsterdam on the trading map—with locals who flock to this
popular outdoor herring stand. (
Hollandse nieuwe
means the her-
ring are in season.)
•FromKoningsplein,turnleft,headingstraighttoLeidseplein.
Atfirst,thestreetsouthwardisjustlabeledKoningsplein(
Selexyz
Scheltema,
Amsterdam'sleadingbookstore,isatKoningsplein20).
Soon,Koningspleinbecomes...
Leidsestraat
Between here and Leidseplein, you'll cross several grand canals,
following a street lined with fashion and tourist shops, and
crowded with shoppers, tourists,
bicycles, and trams. Trams must
wait their turn to share a single
track as the street narrows.
The once grand, now frumpy
Metz & Co.
department store
(where Leidsestraat crosses
Herengracht) offers a rare above-
the-rooftops panorama of the city
from its sixth-floor café.
Looking left down Herengracht, you'll see the
“Golden
Curve”
of the canal, lined with grand, classical-style gables.
•Pasttheposhstores,indthehumbleWhenNatureCallsSmartshop,
locatedwhereLeidsestraatcrossesKeizersgracht(atKeizersgracht508,
opendailyuntil22:00).
When Nature Calls Smartshop
“Smartshops” like this one are clean, well-lighted, fully profes-
sional retail outlets that sell powerful drugs, many of which are
illegal in America. Their “natural” drugs include harmless nutrition
