Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Left
Houseboat on Brouwersgracht
Right
De Star Hofje
Western Canal Ring
F
OR MANY, THE WESTERN CANAL RING
is the area of Amsterdam that
perfectly encapsulates the city's relaxed yet stylish air. Construction of the
Grachtengordel, Amsterdam's 17th-century ring of three fashionable canals
(see p11)
, began here, with the marshy area just beyond reserved by city
planner Hendrick Staets for workers and their unpalatable industries;
Huguenot refugees who settled here - like others fleeing religious persecution
- were said to have named it
jardin
(garden), later corrupted to Jordaan, and
today it is one of Amsterdam's most fascinating - and bohemian - districts. Its
narrow streets and oblique canals might seem random, but they followed the
course of old paths and drainage ditches. North of the charming
Brouwersgracht lies the recently revitalized district
of Haarlemmerbuurt, and, further afield, the
Western Islands, Bickerseiland, Prinseneiland and
Realeneiland, created in the mid-17th century to
provide much-needed warehousing.
Bickerseiland
Prinseneiland
0
Westerdok
c
v
c
v
9
8
c
Haarlemmerbuurt
v
Huis met de Hoofden
v
c
Sights
7
1
Anne Frankhuis
2
Westerkerk
3
Theatermuseum
4
Huis met de Hoofden
5
Jordaan
6
Zon's Hofje and De
Star Hofje
7
Noordermarkt
8
Brouwersgracht
9
Haarlemmerbuurt
0
Western Islands
6
c
v
4
1
2
Jordaan
5
3
4
4
v
c
v
v
c
DAM
300
yards
0
metres
300
90
