Four years ago, I should have experienced my first Kings day but the pandemic had other ideas. This year, I wouldn’t have missed it for anything. Friday night, I set out on DL 0048 from JFK to AMS. I landed in Amsterdam shortly after 9:00 am. By 10 I was on the train to Amsterdam Centraal.
After switching into my orange, I hit the streets searching for the action. I followed the crowds into the many alleys and small streets until I ended up in Vatten. Vatten was an active street with live bands and crowds. After building up an appetite, I took care of that with a ramen from Vatten Ramen.
From there I went to Dam Square where they had live shows, side by side with protests. I then attended a music festival for a few hours. After walking around from place to place, the end of the day was vibing at the Bulldog, an Amsterdam staple. Outside there were cruises available to party on the water.
My first impression of the holiday was it’s an all out party and something everyone should experience. Spoke to a few locals and they said there are better parties outside of Amsterdam so maybe I can make this a yearly event. Until then I’ll cherish the memories.
The next day was a travel day. Slept in and then headed to the airport to scratch more off the bucket list.
First I visited Planes@Plaza. Planes at Plaza is an airplane store with half of the plane front as well as a large selection of airplanes both KLM and other airlines l. Great place to pick up toys for kids or purchase extra airplanes if you’re a collector like myself.
Stop number two was the Fokker 100. This is an airplane on the roof of the Amsterdam Schiphol airport. Although it’s just an airplane that can be viewed in a few minutes, the roof is also the best place to get uninterrupted views of the Tarmac. Great for plane spotting.
The KLM lounge 52 is also a great attraction with over 100 of the KLM houses. I visited in January when I was in Amsterdam and now I won’t miss it.
Heading home was bittersweet but I appreciate the experience and can’t wait to get back to Amsterdam.
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