They are The Nine Little Streets where we can find the most cute and different stores in Amsterdam. They are the De Negen Straatjes (As Nove Ruazinhas).
De Negen Straatjes are...
De Negen Straatjes are nine side little streets located in the most fashionable Amsterdam district, the
Jordaan, where we can find galleries, restaurants and speciality shops:antiques and curiosities, gifts and toys, interior and design, clothing and fashion, art and culture, music and hobbies, jewelry and acessories, fabric and haberdashery, bags, shoes and vintage clothings.
...and they are located in...Happily situated in the Canal Belt (
Grachtengordel),
De Negen Straatjes offers the possibility to enjoy the most beautiful Amsterdam canals: the
Herengracht or "Lords Canal", the
Keizersgracht or "Emperor's Canal" and the
Prinsengracht or "Princes Canal".
And the streets names are...Most of the streets names are related with the historical activity of this district, the fur trade (comércio de peles).
Some examples are the
Huidenstraat (Furs Street/Rua das Peles),
Berenstraat (Beers Street/Rua dos Ursos), the
Wolvenstraat (Wolves Street/Rua dos Lobos) and the
Reestraat (Roe Deers Street/Rua das Corças).
When in Amsterdam, I go...Generally, when I go to Amsterdam, I usually walk nearby
De Negen Straatjes, in the
Singel canal. I lunch at
Singel 404, I have my prayers in the stunning
Saint Francis Church and sometimes I like to buy some flowers in the
Bloemenmarket (the
Flower Market).
I also like to pay a visit to the Book Market in the
Spui and see all those pretty old books. Sometimes, I go to the
American Book Center, located in the same square, if I wish to buy an English written book.
Finally, I enjoy to have a small walk in
The Begijnhof, this pearl of silence in the middle of Amsterdam, and have an
espresso at the
Amsterdams Historisch Museum.
My first outing in De Negen Straatjes was... only two months ago.
So, believe it or not, I only went to the
Negen Straatjes two months ago. I must say I don't go so often to Amsterdam, in spite of its proximity to Almere (about 25 minutes by train). The Netherlands are not only Amsterdam and I like to know other cities. But now, with my friend Raquel living there, I come more often, at least once per month. Last time, we went to the
Rijksmuseum.
In January, I talked to Raquel about a walk in
De Negen Straatjes. "Seems fine!" she said and we went there.
We took the tram to the
Spui and we started our visit in the
Wijde Heisteeg street.
At the number 7, I saw a
vitrine that caught my attention and I told to Raquel I would like to enter there. They had bags and clothes on sale. I thought I didn't need to go elsewhere. I saw two bags and two blouses I would like to buy. Surprise, surprise, the store had no ATM. I could understand why: very good quality articles for very affordable prices.
De geldautomaat/ A caixa multibanco: differences between The Netherlands and PortugalGenerally, I only have € 20 in my pocket because I pay everything with the
pinpas (cartão multibanco). However, when I took the train to Amsterdam, I had no money with me. So, when I arrived there, I searched for a
geldautomaat (ATM/Caixa Multibanco) in the
Centraal Station. I found an
ING one and I clicked on "
geld opnemen" (withdraw money/levantar dinheiro) and
got my € 20 (I thought I would pay my shopping with the
pinpas). However, ING is not my bank.
ABN-AMRO is.
If I needed to get more money from an ATM on that day, I only could do it in an ABN-AMRO ATM. Yes, a bit different from Portugal where we can withdraw money in the nearest available ATM .
I asked in the store for the nearest ATM and the gentleman said it was in the
Albert Heijn supermarket near the
Muntplein. "Could you, please, keep the articles until I come back from the ATM?' I asked. He said "Yes!" and we took the
Singelgracht in direction to the
Muntplein.
In the Netherlands, even in Amsterdam,
we don't find so many ATM's as in the portuguese streets. So, we needed to walk a bit. Arriving there, we noticed the ATM was not a ABN-AMRO, but an ING. Then I remembered I couldn't get any money there. I asked to someone where was the nearest ABN-AMRO ATM and I got my answer: "
Leidseplein!"
I thought "The store owner will assume I'm not coming back today!!!"
Finally, I got my money and I returned to the store. He was already displaying the things again. I apologized for my delay, explaining the situation.
Do you like the bags I've bought?These are the Italian bags I bought for €25 each. They are made of leather. Do you think they were worth the effort?
I want and I need to come to this store again.
Other storesWe were a bit tired by then, but, nevertheless, we saw some other stores. One that I liked very much was
Laura Dolls. Its Vintage Clothings are something else!!
Maybe next time I will buy something there. :-)
And you? What are your favourite stores in De Negen Straatjes?
....
Roza
Italian Fashion Outlet
Wijde Heisteeg 7
Amsterdam
