Spring of 2009 felt like a good year to visit Amsterdam and Queen's day. This one night-and-day event is a fusion of street festival and carnival, held all over the country. People are gathered on the streets to enjoy Amsterdam's delicious beer, celebrate the Queen, dance to the various DJs and bands playing, eat traditional street food and maybe try out the carousels. All while dressed in orange. 

What differentiates Amsterdam's street fest is the relaxed atmosphere. Despite the huge crowd (meaning that getting from one street to another could actually take hours), people are friendly, calm and joyous.

Since I was visiting only for a few days, main focus was the festival, catching up with old traveling mates and enjoy a beautiful city. Thus, we stayed at a hostel close to the train station in central Amsterdam. Hostel prices are higher during happenings like Queen's Day when visitors come from all over Europe and despite booking ahead (like 2 months!) we paid around 30-40 euros (each) for a dorm bed.

I'm gonna have to go back, this buzzing capital has a lot to offer in terms of art, culture, history, food and hangouts.  We did get to see some of this in terms of buildings and parks for instance, as is seen in the pictures.

What do you love about Amsterdam?

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