Amsterdam, The Netherlands - Amsterdam is achingly beautiful, quirky, liberal, bohemian, self-assured-and a city with loads of attitude. Quintessentially European in its natural charm and city landscape, in a nutshell Amsterdam allows everyone to be themselves. The slick bicycles and breathtakingly gorgeous tapestry of tulips aside, Amsterdam is a city of aesthetics, which can be spotted in the most unsuspecting elements. It can be a weird looking artist playing a musical instrument in the middle of a street; a few people huddled around a quaint coffee shop on the backstreets of the city or even the centuries old merchant’s homes. The city is littered with innumerable cafes, museums, interesting specialty shops and is a super summer carnival destination-what with its parades, music festivals and endless events and concerts. Ah! And who can forget the picturesque canals and the old monuments strewn around them along with the city’s relaxed pace. Amsterdam is like the proverbial duck, which looks placid on the outside but is paddling furiously under the water to stay afloat.

During my trip to the ‘tulip city’, I had the chance of reviewing a few restaurants and a five-star hotel as well. Read my review of Hotel de l’Europe, which though touted to be a luxurious five-star hotel, offered nothing more than two-star service. While Excelsior Restaurant was an excellent fine dining option with a fantastic view, Incanto Italian Restaurant and Oesterbar Restaurant fell slightly short of my expectations.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands - Amsterdam is achingly beautiful, quirky, liberal, bohemian, self-assured-and a city with loads of attitude. Quintessentially European in its natural charm and city landscape, in a nutshell Amsterdam allows everyone to be themselves. The slick bicycles and breathtakingly gorgeous tapestry of tulips aside, Amsterdam is a city of aesthetics, which can be spotted in the most unsuspecting elements. It can be a weird looking artist playing a musical instrument in the middle of a street; a few people huddled around a quaint coffee shop on the backstreets of the city or even the centuries old merchant’s homes. The city is littered with innumerable cafes, museums, interesting specialty shops and is a super summer carnival destination-what with its parades, music festivals and endless events and concerts. Ah! And who can forget the picturesque canals and the old monuments strewn around them along with the city’s relaxed pace. Amsterdam is like the proverbial duck, which looks placid on the outside but is paddling furiously under the water to stay afloat.

During my trip to the ‘tulip city’, I had the chance of reviewing a few restaurants and a five-star hotel as well. Read my review of Hotel de l’Europe, which though touted to be a luxurious five-star hotel, offered nothing more than two-star service. While Excelsior Restaurant was an excellent fine dining option with a fantastic view, Incanto Italian Restaurant and Oesterbar Restaurant fell slightly short of my expectations.