A Permanent Carnival

Maybe it’s my lack of big-city experience, but my past weekend in Amsterdam made me realize how much a place can be defined by its visitors, not its natives.

After a chat on the train with a group of middle-aged Englishmen leaving their wives behind to celebrate birthdays collectively, I knew Amsterdam must be a destination for party-ers, not just history buffs and intellectual travelers. Upon entering a main drag of the city after a short jaunt from the train station, my senses were overloaded by masses of people, clouds of weed smoke and bright, glowing business signs. It was like I had just entered a carnival but didn’t pay any admission. Quickly I wrote this first impression off and convinced myself this area misrepresented the cultural and historical values of an alternate Amsterdam.

A short rest in our (not) spacious hostel provided much needed energy for what I hoped was a great learning experience. Wandering the city was quite the experience; and wandering is what I did most of the weekend. I was sideswiped by well-dressed bikers, ambled through the overtly touristy Red Light District, and was generally lost in the mass of people and towering buildings. Of the people I encountered, most were not Dutch. There were large amounts of English, American, and other less-foreign accents I noticed. This provided me some comfort, but also made me long for a place more off the beaten path.

Physically, the city is beautiful. The buildings are old, the architecture has a uniquely Dutch feel, and the canals provide a European ambiance. There is also a cramped quality to the space. Businesses nearly always have residences occupying many floors above them and there is limited natural area apart from several parks. Clearly the city needs to pack a lot of people into it; its physical structure allows this to be accomplished. But the cultural distinctiveness of Amsterdam is separated from the overwhelming and luxurious distinctiveness of the physical layout.

Whenever I noticed what I thought was a native Amsterdam-mer, he or she was already a hundred feet away on a bike. It seemed that natives were always on the move on the bike path, never enjoying the sights and sounds of the city. Maybe they had important plans or I just interpreted them incorrectly, but to me it felt as if they did not want to be in the city, especially on such a busy weekend. The whole atmosphere is built on novelty; novelty mainly found in such places as the Red Light District, the “coffeeshops,” and multitude of stores selling strange items. In the coffeeshops and restaurants I visited, I got the distinct feeling from the workers that the novelty has worn off on the people who live in and around the city. They looked tired, apathetic, and worn out by the barrage of out-of-towners. It was as if they just wanted the mass of people to leave, even though it would mean the end of business. The visitors providing the business to the city dictate the territory and culture of the natives. The only aspect of the Amsterdam I felt belonged to the inhabitants was the bike path. There was certainly a culture surrounding biking; it was one thing with which foreigners, like myself, were out of the loop.

At night, the party atmosphere of the city meshed with the novelty atmosphere and provided a fun time. Clearly people came to Amsterdam to enjoy themselves and the good times the city offers. Although this scene did not disappoint me, I sometimes wished I could find the more unique activities of Amsterdam nightlife aside from drinking and clubs. Maybe this doesn’t exist in any big city, but I felt like Amsterdam’s uniqueness was drained long ago by the party-seekers.

Europe is definitely a party, and Amsterdam is a great party destination. It has a lot to offer in terms of history and culture, but this is distinctly separated from the realm of entertainment and novelty that dominates the city’s personality. It was a tiring and fun-filled whirlwind weekend, but it left me trying to grasp unsuccessfully at the city's cultural and intellectual roots. Maybe Amsterdam is just unique in that its culture is novelty, not anything deeper. Or maybe I just caught up in the novelty atmosphere and couldn't get out.