Amsterdam in Winter Sounds Like a Great Party!

I’m off on an adventure on Saturday when I drive down to JFK to board a KLM jet to Amsterdam. The last time I saw this exciting city was in January 2000, I remember how alive the city was even on a Tuesday night. Every bar was packed, the streets by the canals were full of people, and it had a great energy.

Now, I’m coming over as a guest of Amsterdam tourism for a short trip called “Winternights.” On Sunday we will get a tour of the new W Hotel with a rooftop pool and great views of the city. Dinner will be at a place called RIJKS, which I think alludes to the famous ‘rice table’ cuisine that goes back to the Dutch colonial period.

On Monday we will be present for a momentous occasion. At the DeLaMar Theater, several top Dutch chefs will receive their Michelin stars. Later these same chefs will prepare some of the dishes that earned them this particularly important distinction.

Later in the day we will visit ICE Amsterdam, a huge skating rink near the Rijksmuseum, and I hope they rent skates so I can take a few turns before the hot chocolate. We will then tour the backstage area of the Royal Theater Carre, which was built as a circus theater 126 years ago. Today it’s the city’s most famous performing venue. Dinner will be at the new Grand Cafe Krasnapolsky where Chef Jacob Jan Boerma just got his 3rd Michelin star!   We will cap the night with a canal tour on a private boat where light projections and installations will dazzle over the water.

The next day I’ll take the train to Rotterdam where I’ll bike the city, visit more museums, including a Keith Haring exhibit at the Kunsthal Rotterdam.  I’ve never been to this city, so this will be fun new place to explore.   I’ll post and share photos here to show you what I see.  It will be great to be on the road again!