: If you have any ideas about
: what to photograph in Amsterdam, that would be helpful, too. Windmills,
: tulips, canals etc. would be nice.
>From your words I understand you really don't have much time to spend in
Amsterdam, probably only a few hours? From Bergen op Zoom to Amsterdam is about
two hours by car or by train, so you should make a selection.
Regarding Amsterdam: forget the tulip fields. First, there aren't any in
Amsterdam, second, it's the wrong time of the year. All you can do is buy tulip
bulbs. If you wish to see them, come back in April-May and visit 'De Keukenhof'
(Lisse) or hire a car and drive through West-Friesland (Hoorn, Enkhuizen).
Windmills: most windmills aren't in Amsterdam, but near Amsterdam, in a region
called 'De Zaanse Schans' (Krommenie, Wormerveer). There are only four windmills
left in Amsterdam (Zeeburgerstraat, Buijskade, Haarlemmerweg [2x]). The first
two
are in walking distance from the central railroad station (about 1 kilometer);
you
may wish to hire a taxi instead if you can find one that doesn't strike ;)
A shortcut to quickly see some highlights of Amsterdam is to take a trip by
canal
boat. But since taking pictures from such a boat isn't exactly ideal, my advice
is
to take a walk. The grand canals with the 17th century houses (Herengracht,
Keizersgracht, Prinsengracht) are all withing walking distance from the central
railroad station.
If you really want to see more from Amsterdam, like the Rijksmuseum, Van
Goghmuseum, Anne Frankhuis, Rembrandthuis you should stay at least a week.
Regarding Bergen op Zoom: I'm not really familiar with that part of Brabant, but
it lies near the coast of what now is lake but used to be sea: Oosterschelde; on
the east there are also some nice pieces of nature - forests and moor:
Kalmthoutse
Heide, Staartse Heide. Of course it is the wrong time of the year for heather
plants too (they flower in August). There are also some interesting cities in
the
neighbourhood: Antwerpen (Belgium), Middelburg, Goes.
Bergen op Zoom itself (now I'm reading from a touristic guide since I've never
visited the place myself) seems to be more authentic in the remainings from the
late mediaevals and 17th century than most parts of Amsterdam. It is an old
fortress town that succesfully resisted the Spanish troups in 1622. Visit the
Groote Markt (marketplace) with its townhall dating from the 15th century, the
St.
Gertrudiskerk (church) and the Markiezenhof (a gothic palace). You don't need a
car for that ;)
Regards,
Hans
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