Random and fun facts about Amsterdam
As Amsterdam is a world renowned and somewhat notorious city everyone knows at least some stereotypes about Amsterdam. So at Meet The Cities we decided to make a list of interesting and fun facts about Amsterdam that people probably don’t know. After this list you’ll be able to answer any trivia question about Amsterdam with ease.
Fun facts about Amsterdam
Did you know that:
– Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands since 1808.
– Amsterdam has about 844.000 inhabitants.
– The metropolitan area of Amsterdam has about 2.431.000 inhabitants.
– More than 20.000.000 tourists visit Amsterdam annually.
– The largest part of Amsterdam is below sea level.
– With over a hundred kilometers of canals Amsterdam has more canals and bridges than Venice.
– Because of the abundance of canals and bridges the city center is made of 90 separate islands.
– Amsterdam Central Station is situated on three artificial islands.
– The Amsterdam Canal Ring is on the UNESCO world heritage list.
– Amsterdam has 8 windmills.
– Amsterdam has about 2.500 houseboats, which are used by people to live on water..
– Amsterdam has the most museums per square meter of all cities in the world.
– Amsterdam is the city with the most different nationalities in the world.
– English is the city’s second official language.
– Amsterdam has more than 30 parks.
– Amsterdam has almost 9.000 buildings and houses from the 16th, 17th and 18th century.
– For over 600 years only single women have lived at the courtyard Begijnhof.
– Amsterdam has the oldest stock exchange in the world, which was established in 1602.
– Amsterdam has more bikes than inhabitants.
– The bike is the most stolen object in Amsterdam.
– Every year about 15.000 bikes are removed out of the canals.
– Mokum is the byname of Amsterdam, which is Hebrew for city.
– Locals in Amsterdam city center prefer to have their curtains open (even in private situations).
– On warm summer evenings locals like to eat dinner on their doorstep or even on the streets.
– Amsterdam is a city built on more than 11.000.000 stilts.
– The Amsterdam Royal Palace on Dam square is built on 13.657 stilts.
– The canal houses are relatively small but very deep, because in the past taxes were based on the width of the houses.
– The smallest house of Europe is in Amsterdam at Oude Hoogstraat 22 and has a width of 2,02 meter.
– The Amsterdam Arena, home of football club A.F.C. Ajax, is the first stadium in Europe with an extendible roof.
– The Fo Kuang Shan temple at the Zeedijk is the first traditional Chinese temple in Europe.
– In Amsterdam a coffeeshop is not a café, they are licensed to sell cannabis products.
– Amsterdam’s three crosses on its coat of arms (weapon) symbolizes the crosses of St. Andrew and not porn.
– The Red Light District is one of the safest areas in Amsterdam, because of the continuous presence of police and security.