Amsterdam

First weekend trip of 2015?  One of the most beautiful and underrated cities!  Amsterdam for 36 hours.  

Notable highlights:

     

The canals. Day and night. 

The museums. Seriously, there is a museum for everything.  We opted for the Van Gogh (one of my new favorites) and Rijksmuseum, and decided on Stedelijk and the Diamond Museum for next time.

The food!  Dutch pancakes (photographed), Rijsttafel (aka, an Indonesian feast), Surinamese food, and street food (fries in a cone, bitterballen, poffertjes, stroopwafels and sausage).  Who knew. 

The architecture.  The Eye Film Institute and the Nemo Science Center, as seen while on a canal cruise.

Large 'I amsterdam' signs - one in front of the Rijksmuseum and another spotted on our canal ride. 

My failed attempt at climbing the giant letters.  The struggle is real.

Tulips.  In all forms and in all seasons.

In sum, the city gets a bad rap from the drugs and red light district, and while they certainly contribute to the wonders of Amsterdam, there is so much more.  Described as the city of dykes, bikes, waterways and cycleways, and as a city that is at once formal and liberal, I could not have chosen a better one to kick off 2015.