Canals of Amsterdam
The seventeenth-century canal ring (Singel, Herengracht, Keizersgracht, Prinsengracht) around the centre of Amsterdam.
At a glance
| Source | Author | Role | In one line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neither Here Nor There | Bill Bryson | setting | Where a sour Amsterdam visit turns: beautiful along the canals, if dirty. |
Neither Here Nor There — Bill Bryson (1991)
Source: Readwise highlight
I found my way to the canals—the Singel, Herengracht, Keizersgracht, and Prinsengracht—and things were immediately better.
- Role: setting
- In the book: Chapter 8. After a night in Haarlem (Amsterdam’s hotels were full) Bryson comes back on a Sunday morning, past shuttered shops, and wanders the canals “in a happily random way”, among the tall, narrow houses and old trees. “Along its canals Amsterdam is an immensely beautiful city.” Then the litter, dog dirt and graffiti remind him that it is also a dirty one.
- Why it matters: The canal ring is where his Amsterdam verdict turns: still beautiful, but more wearing than in his 1973 memories. The chapter’s 1973-versus-now argument needs a place that’s still lovely, and this is it.