Trains, Planes, and Bicycles: Amsterdam, my new favourite city

As much as I love cities, generally I'm not so interested in visiting them with the children. Our kids have a limited tolerance for museums, galleries and concerts, they quickly tire of exploring the streets on foot, and it's not possible to linger over meals at local restaurants or enjoy cafe ambience over glass of wine when Tom is likely to start running around, pouring out salt shakers, or fighting with Jacob at high volume. But when it came to selecting a place to meet up with my family, Amsterdam seemed a natural choice. It was a direct flight from Toronto, an easy train ride for my sister from England, and we figured we could easily amuse ourselves for a week there. By the end of our week I was a huge fan, happy to adopt the city's unofficial logo, spelled out in block letters around the city, including in front of the famed Rijksmuseum:

Having my mom and dad, Marty and Sam there was terrific. We really miss seeing our parents, since we're accustomed to spending time with them weekly if not daily, and we all cherish visits with Marty and adorable Sam. Paul and I also enjoyed the added bonus of having some time to explore the city on our own, while the kids were delighted to spend time with their grandparents and aunt enjoying time playing in parks,

taking a canal cruise that disembarked by the Rijksmuseum

and indulging in treats of ice cream and pannenkoeken filled with caramel cubes, apple slices and slagroom (I can't get over their word for whipped cream). We had rented apartments next door to each other. Each morning the kids would race over to my parents' place to eat cereal and play with baby Sam,

and each night we would all reunite for dinner, usually at our place,

but once at a terrific friterie that had a kid's station so they could train for future careers as fry cooks.

There were so many things to love about Amsterdam, first and foremost the unbelievable cycling culture. To experience life in a big city where you could go everywhere by bicycle without fear (except possibly of other cyclists) was glorious. Everyone cycles, no matter what age or income level. I saw people doubling their friends standing on the racks on the back of their bikes, moms and dads with children in front and back seats, and people with cargo bikes carrying all manner of things - I wish I had a picture of the musician I saw cycling with a double bass strapped to his back. The massive four storey bike parking lot outside the central train station was a thing of beauty.

While other cities ban bicycles from roads either explicitly or through dangerous designs, Amsterdam streets had countless prohibitions against cars and trucks, with one way and no entry signs always posting that the interdiction was "uitgezonderd" (not applicable) for bicycles.

Bicycles are allowed almost everywhere, including the path running through the Rijksmuseum, despite an attempt - foiled by politically active cyclists who gathered petitions and lobbied intensively - to close the path during a major renovation of the museum. It's a one of a kind experience to cycle such a path, which we did, to the echoing chords of Vivaldi's Winter played on the accordion by a busker in the tunnel.

Walking through at night allowed us to peer through the arched windows

and see the architectural splendour of the space, finally empty of people.

Another part of the charm of the city was its incredible vibrancy. Street cafes - so pleasant to be at since the streets were much less noisy and polluted since bicycles were the predominant traffic - were crowded with people night and day. Everyone seemed gorgeous - stylishly dressed and effortlessly beautiful - probably because of their healthy cycling lifestyle (am I starting to sound biased?!) and their evident enjoyment of life. The Amstel river and countless canals were criss-crossed with bridges, including the "Torontobrug" commemorating the twinning of two cities in 1974, inscribed with David Crombie's name.

Private and public life are inextricable, with people's lives on display either in windows (as in the red light district - sorry no pictures of that - this is a family blog) or on front steps and promenades. The lack of space means people don't confine themselves to backyards but instead sit on their front steps or bring chairs out onto the sidewalk to relax and socialize.

Watercraft were everywhere - houseboats, pleasure boats filled with revellers,

barges with landscaping and flowers in lieu of a front yard,

and floating playgrounds for neighbourhood children.

The city itself is dense and functions like a well oiled... bicycle. Tall narrow houses mean innovative solutions for moving furniture are needed.

Garbage collection is crucial in such close quarters, and is done by very official looking bureaucrats who comb through refuse put out on the wrong day and fine those responsible (these two are conferring after such a crime was committed one morning on our street - they asked my mom if she had any knowledge).

Parking is tight and there is little space for conventional towing, so they airlift errant cars onto the backs of small trucks.

The many transportation modes in the city come together at chaotic intersections that seem like an accident waiting to happen,

but in practice function far better than our own - pedestrian and cyclists fatalities are rare in the city.

I wish Toronto's politicians (and voters) could understand that bicycles are not a left wing instrument of revolution in a war against cars, but just a basic mode of transportation that makes sense in a busy city. It doesn't have to be cars vs cyclists - there are plenty of cars around

- it's just that they all share the road (even with segways).

The density of the city is well contained, and taking a free municipal ferry across the river brings you quickly to pastoral countryside instead of the massive sprawl we have in Toronto.

We took several cycling day trips. One day we went with Marty and the kids to the city's bos (forest),

where they have a Riverdale Farm on steroids. The animals frolic in the kids playgrounds,

and the kids are free to go into the enclosures to play with the baby goats

or in Tom's case cower in the chicken pen (he stuck close to Jacob for safety)

Another day trip was to Zaanse Schans to see a historic set of windmills, but it was so crowded we could barely tour the site. We lingered long enough for lunch and a cheese making demonstration before heading off on our bikes to cycle home, enjoying the architecture of the surrounding towns on our way.

Paul and I had our own day trips without the kids, free to cycle at our own pace. We cycled a loop to and from Edam, via the lovely town of Broek in Waterland, peaceful and picturesque with beautiful homes right on the water.