Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Madame
Tussaud's
Scenerama
Displays at this out-
post of the London
waxworks range
from the fascinating
to the bizarre.
Special effects, inc-
luding animatronics,
bring to life scenes
from Holland's past.
Damrak
Damrak was
once the medieval
city's busiest canal,
with ships sailing
up to be unloaded
at the Dam. In 1672
the canal was filled
in, and Damrak
developed into the
hectic shopping
street it is today.
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Plan of Dam Square
De Bijenkorf
Amsterdam's best-
known department store
has a vast perfumery,
designer fashion bouti-
ques and much more.
Rokin
The Rokin had its
heyday in the 19th cen-
tury, when its broad
sweep was a promenade
for the well-to-do.
Kalverstraat
Music shops jostle
for space with tacky
clothes stores at the
Dam end of this ped-
estrian shopping street.
Grand Hotel
Krasnapolsky
Adolf Wilhelm Krasnapol-
sky, an emigré Polish
tailor with ambition,
rented the down-at-heel
Nieuwe Poolsche Koffie-
huis in the 1870s, swiftly
transforming it into a
fashionable hotel (below) .
Inside the
Koninklijk Paleis
The ponderous exterior
belies the magnificent
interior - especially the
dramatic Burgerzaal
(Citizen's Chamber). See
fine sculptures by Artus
Quellien and Rombout
Verhulst, ceilings and
friezes by Rembrandt's
pupils, and Empire furn-
iture of Louis Napoleon.
The Vierschaar (Tribunal)
is a macabre room, still
intact, where judges
meted out tough - and
often terminal - justice.
Street
Performances
and Events
Busking, mime, funfairs,
book fairs, exhibitions,
concerts - such things
have gone on in the Dam
since J Cabalt introduced
his puppet show in 1900.
For more Amsterdam churches See pp42-3
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