The Most Famous Landmarks in Amsterdam

Are you looking to visit Amsterdam? Amsterdam is the capital city of the Netherlands and a popular tourist attraction site in North Holland. It has a lot of attractions and beautiful landmarks that you should visit when in the city. Let’s explore Amsterdam’s fascinating heritage.

Dam Square

Located on River Amstel’s mouth, the large dam was constructed in the 13th century and a sight to behold. Not only does it demonstrate state-of-the-art engineering skills, it also stands out as a national monument and landmark. You can walk from Central Station and enjoy viewing the settlements on either side of the river. Carry a camera and take photographs of the pigeons that pitch at Dam Square.

Weeping Tower

Popularly known as the Schreierstoren, the Weeping Tower is the remains of Amsterdam’s stone city from the middle ages. It is among the oldest monuments in the city and is famous as it is where Henry Hudson begins his journey to discover Northern America.

At the same place, the sailors’ wives watched them leave, and they wept. For this reason, the place earned the name Weeping Tower. Today, the Weeping Tower has a few cafes and outdoor terraces where you can take some snacks and beverages with your friends and family. Find it on Prins Hendrikkade 94-5.

Royal Palace

The Royal Palace is a crucial landmark in Amsterdam. Besides the historical heritage it holds, the palace has a beautiful sight to behold. It was used as a city hall for magistrates in medieval times and had all the ancient furniture.

While at the palace, you will see King Napoleon’s bedroom, the Magistrates’ chamber, the Secretary’s office, and the Citizen’s hall. While on the balcony, you can see the medallions and other beautiful features of the ancient palace. It is located at the Dam, Amsterdam 1012 RJ.

Anne Frank House

While it began as the most departed residences, Anne Frank House is one of Amsterdam’s heritage. There is a statue of Anne Frank outside dated 1929 to 1945. It would be a perfect place to take some photographs.

Anne Frank hid in this house together with her family during the Second World War. They hid from the Nazis with her family, and Anne began writing her diaries. They stayed there for two years, and this is now among the respected places.

Today, it is a museum and attracts a lot of tourists. In the museum, you will get Anne Frank’s diaries and other notebooks. The landmark is located in Westernmarkt 20, 1016 GV in the Netherlands.

Van Gogh Museum

The museum was opened in 1973 in honour of Vincent Van Gogh, a famous Dutch post-impressionist artist. It contains the largest collection of Vincent’s original work. While visiting the facility, you get to see over 200 paintings, more than 500 drawings, and over 750 letters that he wrote in his life.

The artist’s work is hung in a perfect arrangement for five periods. Besides the museum’s beautiful architectural plans, the museum is the most popular one in the Netherlands and attracts over 2.1 million visitors every year.

Conclusion

These are but a few landmarks that should be on your Amsterdam bucket list. These landmarks also have a couple of activities that you can have fun with your friends and family. Most of these landmarks are museums, parks, canal belts and galleries.

By Max Lang Orsini

How Ethnically Diverse Is Amsterdam?

Amsterdam is one city that has a unique and definitive character in terms of its culture among other European cities. Many people have chosen it as a home and it has over 180 nationalities from across the world. This has made it the most diverse city in Europe as it accommodates different cultures with a large number of people coming from Morocco and Turkey.

Many ethnic minorities move to Amsterdam thus make it one city with the highest diverse groups. They have made the capital their home city and introduced their cultures. Thinking about moving to Amsterdam? Currently, you have to present a COVID-19 test that shows you safe to relocate to the Netherlands.

Diversity in Amsterdam

Maximilian Lang –Orsini, an artist living in Amsterdam describes the city to be quite ethnically diverse. Besides, the great diverse culture gives a market to his artwork. Also, there has been an influx in the number of ethnic groups that move here making the city incredibly well-rounded. Consequently, there is a good chance that over the next few years most people in Amsterdam will be born abroad and will have their grandparents overseas.

Community

Amsterdam has different communities that have their way of life. This is what makes Amsterdam vibrant and multi-faceted.

There is unlimited freedom to join any community you want and make friends with. People here have a rich cultural heritage in arts, food and music. Be part of any community and enjoy the culture.

Social life

Ethnical diversity brings about a huge variety of social life habits. There are different food joints, cafes and bars that offer a different kind of stuff. Maximilian Lang-Orsini finds the city good to promote his Dutch artwork by interacting with the tourists and expats who travel to Amsterdam.

Attractions

Amsterdam is a jovial city that rich in culture and bursts with a lot of attractions in the world. Additionally, the beautiful artwork is worth it. For instance, if you love Dutch art then there is a range of artwork to view from different ethnicities.

You can get souvenirs or buy exhibits to take to your country. This diversity makes it a perfect place for all people from different countries.

Queer groups

This capital boasts as the best go-to place for any sexuality. Bisexuals can thrive freely as there are also laws that protect same-sex partnerships. Besides, this means there is zero discrimination against anyone and you can enjoy your life your way.

Anti-discriminatory measures

Amsterdam has people of different races, sexuality and social background. Therefore, as a capital that values diversity in society, there are policies in place regarding migrants. It has a firm stance regarding discrimination that protects each person and goes as far as funding the ethnic minorities. Furthermore, the extensive cultural life gives room for a socially fulfilled life for whichever community you choose to partake in.

Bottom line

Different ethnic minority groups move to Amsterdam making its ethnical diversity be at its peak. There are over 180 nationalities in this capital and it is attracting more due to the quality of life there. Moreover, don’t miss out on the great lifestyle and lot of culture in Amsterdam.

By Max Lang-Orsini

Why Painting Soothes The Soul – Max Lang-Orsini

Art And The Soul

You have probably heard that watching paint dry can be oddly therapeutic. However, did you know that art itself can help ease and soothe the human soul? There are many mental benefits associated with art. Max Lang-Orsini, an aspiring artist has testified to turning to art as a relief and escape from the mental turmoil that life has put him through.

The Coronavirus pandemic has led to self-isolation of many individuals who live alone. People working abroad or in new environments suffered depression and loneliness during the lockdown since they had no one to socialize or talk to. As humans, such isolation may have taken a toll on the minds of most people.

How Painting Art Can Benefit The Mind:

Helps Treat Or Prevent Depression

Many of the greatest artists in history such as Van Gogh, O’Keeffe, Munch and many more struggled with mental illnesses like depression at some point. This leads to the belief that artists are more likely to suffer with mental health issues.

However, a study carried out at (RCAC), Research Center for Arts and Culture, found that artists such as painters experience fewer feelings of anxiety, loneliness and depression than the average person. The research also revealed that artists are more likely to have a high morale about themselves and life.

In another study, scientists found that people with moderate to severe forms of depression experienced an improvement in their mental health after taking up the creative side and started using painting and visual arts as part of their treatment.

Neuroscientists are still trying to figure out how visual art impacts the mental health of individuals. One thing for certain is that artists and painters have used their craft over the centuries to work through their emotions and express themselves during difficult and dark times in life, and sometimes to cope, it’s where the term ‘art therapy’ comes from.

Helps You Cope With Stress

Many painters claim that there is nothing else in this world as relaxing and soothing as painting. Getting into the flow of a good paint can be a relief to the mind. Painting helps to take your mind off the problems you are facing. In some cases, painting has been compared to meditation.

Therapy based on art is continuously proving to be so effective in helping people cope with stress. The special kind of paint therapy is now used as a tool for treating individuals suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Thanks to technology, there is advance in neuroscience and imaging of the brain. Scientists are now beginning to understand what happens to the brain when you find ways to express yourself artistically through painting and other forms of art.

In Germany, researchers found that people who spent time coming up with visual arts through painting and other forms of art, showed increased levels of connectivity to their brains, during MRI scans.

The people also demonstrated great improvement in their psychological resilience. The research demonstrated that painting could help individuals cope with negative emotions during hard times, and manage to find reasons to be happy when life becomes tough.

If you have been suffering from poor mental health, maybe all you need to do is take up a painting class. As proved by research, oil on a canvas is a cheap and easy way to relieve the mind from stress and anxiety. You can also watch painting videos on YouTube, such as Bob Ross, in case you do not know how to paint and cannot enroll into a painting class.

Life In Amsterdam: A Modern Look At An Ancient City – Max Lang-Orsini

The city of Amsterdam has been grossly affected by the lockdown. The ancient city relies on tourism to keep going. With the onset of the lockdown, the famous cannabis cafes were closed down, social areas were sealed off, the famous Red Light District closed and hefty fines charged on anyone that is found breaking these rules. This has made life very hard for people like me.

My name is Max Lang-Orsini and this is how life has hit foreigners like me since the onset of Covid19.

COVID-19 – Amsterdam

Unfortunately, there have been three Covid19 waves in the city. Every time we thought the city was opening up, we were forced back to quarantine. Artists and curio sellers like myself found ourselves in a catch 22 situation where there were no tourists to sell our artwork to and no locals willing to take some. While the government came up with a few measures to help us cope with the pandemic, much of the assistance was too little, too late.

For the better part of the year 2020, I have been struggling to make ends meet, while one wave after the other led us to sink even deeper into the financial crisis. At the start of the Covid19 pandemic, there was fear that spread across the city. All of a sudden, we all felt dirty and vulnerable.

As the numbers rose around the world, the few friends I knew also took a hit. Two weeks after the first case of coronavirus in the country, I lost a friend and two more were hospitalised.

Our jovial city was engulfed into tears and horror as new numbers of the dead were read each day. I once had the flu and tonsillitis and was shell shocked when I went for a test. Luckily, I did not have the virus. On the other hand, the new regulations from the ministry of health created a shift in how things run around the city.

People were suddenly afraid of each other. The social gatherings where we would joke, hug and play with friends went suddenly quiet.

I remember visiting the local supermarket and it was crazy how no two people could shop next to each other. You even felt hard to pick a product on the shelf where you had seen someone return the product. At some point, I also stopped visiting the supermarkets unless it was absolutely necessary.

However, something happened. After the end of the first wave, people became less afraid of the pandemic. They had to be reminded each day that the virus was still around and taking more lives.

It is only after the second wave hit the people came back to their senses that the virus was around. Besides, the police had very high fines that made anyone think of breaking the rules to think twice.

The dark cloud had a silver lining too. The huge number of tourists that visited the country each day halted to a stop. We could, at last, breathe some fresh air and walk along quiet streets. It seemed we were having our city back.

People are now lobbying the government to put restrictions to cut the number of visitors. We are still struggling to make ends meet but are positive that things will get better. Some restrictions are still in place but much of daily life has come back to the norm.