Travel: Amsterdam in a day

MERCEDEH SANATI September 2006

From Friday's Globe and Mail

Sure, Amsterdam has its share of sin and sleaze, but beyond the city's red-light district lies a hodgepodge of specialty boutiques—everything from hand-rolled cigars to rare comic art.

11:30 a.m. Since 1826, P.G.C. Hajenius has sold cigars to Amsterdam's upper crust. Customers stash their stogies in private humidors and, when their home supply runs low, Hajenius couriers over a refill. Of 200 different blends in stock, the mild Sumatra selection from Hajenius's exclusive line makes a sublime late-morning puff.
92—96 Rokin, 31-20-623-7494

1:30 p.m. Nosh on toasted goat cheese sandwiches with honey and thyme ($6) and fresh mint tea ($3) at Lust. Originally owned by Danny Muller, one of Holland's greatest soccer stars, the healthy lunch spot is one of the few organic eateries to be found in Amsterdam. And incidentally, the cheeky name does not refer to the deadly sin: Lust is also the word for "appetite" in Dutch.
13 Runstraat, 31-20-626-5791

3 p.m. Big kids spend hours perusing the rare-comics cart at Lambiek, Europe's oldest antiquarian comic store. Books, posters and collectibles by the likes of Hergé (TinTin), Charles Schulz (Peanuts) and Albert Uderzo (Asterix) are on display. As well, the store publishes the Lambiek Comiclopedia, a prize-worthy compendium of work from more than 8,000 illustrators.
132 Kerkstraat, 31-20-626-7543

5 p.m. Massive rounds of Edam and Gouda are stacked from counter to ceiling at De Kaaskamer (literally, the "cheese chamber"). Sniff and sample as many of the 300 different varieties as you can, but don't leave without trying the local delicacy, Leiden, a rich and firm cheese spiced with cumin seeds.
7 Runstraat, 31-20-623-3483

8 p.m. The shops close early in Amsterdam. You can decompress at Koan Float, the spa at the mind-blowing Ambassade Hotel. Its therapeutic session consists of 45 or 60 minutes of floating in a soundproof fibreglass tank filled with 35.5 C Epsom-salted water, followed by a soothing rub-down (from $95 for float and massage). When you're ready, stumble up to your room, where floor-to-ceiling windows offer views to the Singel and Herengracht canals below. Rooms start at $265 (double occupancy).
321 Herengracht, 31-20-555-0333

How to drink beer in Amsterdam (properly)
STEP 1 Find an old-style bruin café, or "brown bar," the most authentic of the watering holes in the city. We recommend 't Smalle (12 Egelantiersgracht, 31-20-623-9617), a former liqueur distillery and tasting house. But you won't go wrong at 't Arendsnest (90 Herengracht, 31-20-421-2057) either. Its owner, Peter van der Arend, is a certified beerologist who only serves Dutch brews. He has more than 180 on hand.
STEP 2 Skip the Amstel and avoid the Heineken (you can enjoy those at home). Order a local pilsje like Kroon Pilsener, La Trappe Blond or Hertog Jan Dubbel. You'll probably get less than half a pint (250 ml, to be exact). No less than two fingers' worth is froth. So upsize to a vaasje (vase). And check the glass for smudges; during busy periods, empties are often casually dunked in a sink of water before being refilled.
Step 3 Say proost (cheers)! And don't forget to wipe your whiskers.

If you do one thing in Amsterdam this month Catch the annual Aalsmeer Parade, in which a three-kilometre-long ribbon of flowers floats through the canals toward historic Dam Square (Sept. 2)