GLOBESHOPPER: HOLLAND

In my first Globeshopper post, I promised to follow up with Globeshopper Milan. Well...that post is still in draft form, and I'm more excited at the prospect of writing about a recent trip to Amsterdam! So, please bear with me, Italy (which includes a day trip to Switzerland) is coming soon. Amsterdam was awesome. We spent a lot of time shopping; seeing the sights; eating Indonesian, Argentinian steaks, Italian, and Dutch pancakes; and thinking about renting and riding bicycles. We stayed in an elegant penthouse apartment on Prinsengraacht (Prince's Canal), one of the main canals in the city.

Living room and a bathroon of our canal house. Best features? Roofdeck and balcony!

The architecture was amazing! Who knew that "row houses" could look so chic? The weather was fantastic--cold, yet not really. In four days we switched between heavy wool coats, to light cotton coats, to sweaters with a few layers beneath. It did, strangely enough, rain, snow and hail (simultaneously) for a couple hours one day.

View of the "row houses" and canal from our balcony; view of same during random "storm".

The girls wanted to shop, and so the taxi driver dropped us off on Hoofstraat* (maybe he thought we were 'ballers), let's just say we did a lot of window shopping on that street--my only purchase was a book! Hermes? Not so much.

We looked on, longingly, at Chanel and Hugo Boss. That chandelier is to die for!

It's easy to get caught up in the sheer beauty and tranquilty of the city, but we all made a point to visit the Anne Frank house--to pay our respects and reflect on more serious matters. We also fulfilled the educational quotient by visiting the Van Gogh musuem, it was such a treat to be surrounded by works of my favorite artist.

Renae and Keish strike a pose and a couple of Amsterdam's fashionable residents... check out the length of her jeans--next big trend!

Here I am in Lady Day, annoyed that I didn't fit that skirt! I did walk away with a fab snakeskin clutch though. "Fashion and photo designers flock to this store, one of the best secondhand outlets in town, with it's wonderful selection of 1940s and 1950s clothing, handbags from the 1930s and 1940s, and loads of finds at moth-eaten prices."- Louis Vuitton's City Guide

*I am utterly disappointed in myself for not conducting due diligence before this trip! We returned to the states on March 5th and guess what took place--in Amsterdam--on March 6th? The third annual Stilleto Run along Hoofstraat! Women race, in heels, to compete for a euro 10,000 ($15,000) shopping spree. Why does this matter you ask? As (i) a former runner (and captain of both my college and high school track teams), and (ii) one of "those" girls who wears heels everywhere, I'm pretty sure I would have won! Never mind that my track and field experience was, oh, 20 pounds or so ago...but still.

Styletip Amsterdam: Be sure to visit Lady Day for great vintage pieces; Hoofstraat for high fashion houses including Chanel, Hermes and Hugo Boss; and Dam Square for more shopping: chocolates, kitsch, flowers, pancakes and H&M! Click on the label below for vintage GlobeShopper post!