In Spring,  2017,  the rivers of Europe were calling again; of course,the Rambler heeded their call. This time, she told the senior Rambler, they were going to try something different. They would arrive in Amsterdam a few days early and spend some time exploring the city. The Ramblers had been to Amsterdam several times but only because Amsterdam’s Schipol Airport was a convenient place to fly into and out of, especially if you live in Atlanta.

The last time we flew into Schipol, we didn’t see much of the city as it was the week of Sail Amsterdam. This is a tall ships sailboat festival held every 5 years.  Because it is such  a special event, it draws crowds from all over Europe.  After we boarded, our captain told us  that the river and canals were too crowded for our ship to dock in its usual spot. Looking at photos of the event later, it was pretty much wall to wall boats on the water, with rows of people lining the banks. Thus we didn’t get to see much of Amsterdam in 2015; this time it would be different.

The sun was just coming up over the canals and ocean that surrounded Schipol when our plane touched down. Even after disembarking and locating our luggage, nothing much was open. I had booked a shuttle that would take us to our hotel, but when we got to the office, it too was closed. Sometimes the early bird doesn’t get the worm.  The shuttle office finally opened, we got our passes and found that the stop was only a short walk. The tricky part was to find the correct shuttle as  all the shuttle busses in Amsterdam seemed to stop here.

Finally the right mini-bus appeared and we were on our way to the Grand Hotel Amrath. When we booked our cruise, it included a AAA promotion of one free night in Amsterdam before the cruise. At the time, our stay was at the Grand Hotel Amrath, so I booked two additional nights  for our Amsterdam experience.  Later the free night was changed to the Marriott Renaissance Amsterdam; I could have changed the booking but didn’t so we would have to change hotels on our last night in Amsterdam. On the map, they seemed close to each other, so it wasn’t a big deal at the time.

The Amrath was truly grand in appearance but it had one failing as far as the Ramblers were concerned. Its somewhat slick front steps were steep and had no railing. Although the friendly Doorman was willing to lend a hand, I would have much preferred a railing. This entrance is the ONLY way to enter or exit the Amrath, so keep this in mind, before booking there  if you have balance issues.  Of course we had arrived well before check-in time and expected a wait but the front desk clerk said it was possible to check in early and led us to our room.

Needless to say, we were tired and a bit jet-lagged and  happy to check into our room. We had stretched out on the comfortable beds and were just dozing off WHEN we were startled by the sound of construction right outside our window. To our dismay we saw that a large building was under construction adjacent to our room.  It was obvious that the work would go on all day, and probably start fairly early the next morning. We learned that it would be a 5 story addition to the Amrath.

The Rambler was not happy about this; she had booked a 5 star hotel, not a room near a construction site. Making her way back to the front desk, she asked kindly but firmly for a different room. Fortunately the front desk was willing to change our room to one on the other side of the hotel but we would have to wait until it was ready. We readily agreed and eventually found ourselves in a pleasant room with a canal view, far away from the construction noise. We recommend booking a room with a canal view in Amsterdam, as it is a lot of fun to watch boats of all shapes and sizes cruise past.

Too bad I missed several Trip Adviser posts about construction noise at the Amrath before we left home. I usually read the most recent posts and the posts about construction were dated a few months earlier.  If something like this happens to you, the Ramblers hope you are lucky enough to get your room changed. I think it helped that we checked in so early, latecomers might not be so lucky.

Despite the steps and the noise, the Amrath is a majestic place. It was built in 1916 for 6  shipping companies in an Art Noveau, but distinctly Amsterdam style, thus its Dutch name, the Scheepvaarthuis or shipping house. Much of its decor has  a nautical theme, and  carved oak and paneling line the halls.  When the shipping business declined, the massive building  was sold to the City of Amsterdam and for a time, housed the municipal transit company. During this period, it was modernized but not in a good way. In 1998, the City put the building up for sale. Fortunately it was rescued by a property developer who had a vision of turning it into a hotel. Architect Ray Kentie successfully turned this vision into reality and in 2007, the Grand Amrath opened to rave reviews. Many of the original decorations were refurbished and more were added as all signs of its post-war modernization were removed. Despite a few glitches, we would enjoy our stay in this historic landmark.

By late afternoon, the Ramblers decided it was time for something to eat.  We took a brief walk to explore our options and settled on a small restaurant serving traditional Dutch food and hamburgers. Although it was still cloudy , the weather was warm enough to enjoy our meal outside so we could watch the urban scene that unfolded before our eyes. You may guess who had the traditional pea soup and who had the hamburger…

Amsterdam is a city that pulses with life. There is constant traffic, on foot and  bicycle, as well by car and tram. We quickly learned to watch out for the ever-present bicyclists who seemed to stop for no-one, sometimes not even traffic lights. The Amrath was  close to the Grand Centraal Station which teemed with activity, it is a huge place with many shops and restaurants as well as trains. It was also a popular tram stop and meeting place.

Although Amsterdam is certainly a walk-able city, the Ramblers found getting around somewhat daunting mainly because of the large number of pedestrians and bicyclists, in particular as well as motor scooters. Not realizing how difficult it would be for us to get around in Amsterdam, I had scheduled two tours, on the two days before we boarded our ship. After much research, I had booked a Viator Tour to Bruges as we had enjoyed our tours in Provence and also got tickets for the Anne Frank house. Both of these excursions would not turn out quite as the Ramblers expected.