About this experience
If you are planning to visit Amsterdam and wondering which other city to see, here is my advice: go to Leiden! It is somewhat similar to Amsterdam with its canals and historical buildings, but here is the difference: it is a city of students and Rembrandt. While students rush on their bicycles to lectures and bars, we will leisurely walk along the route, stopping for photos.
Program
On our way, we will encounter two picturesque windmills, not to mention bridges and unexpectedly cozy corners of the old city. On which street did the future king, then student Willem-Alexander, live? Did Rembrandt see his father's windmill from the window of his house, and what is encoded in the most mysterious monument to Rembrandt?
Places connected with the childhood and youth of the artist are located in the historical center of the city, within a short distance. Our walk will take us along picturesque canals, through bridges, city gates, past churches, and windmills. Leiden is rich in ‘postcard views,’ so don't forget to charge your cameras!
We will see the picturesque buildings of the school and church where Rembrandt attended, walk the route he took to his first studio building. We will not overlook other city attractions: buildings and monuments from other epochs and the events associated with them will give you a picture of the city's history and life.
As a person who studied in Leiden for six years, I will probably not resist and will embellish my story with student bikes. I promise a surprise and (if desired) a photo session in the most romantic place in the city.
On Wednesdays and Saturdays, a market unfolds along the canal in the center, where you can taste fresh lightly salted herring, which is also linked to ‘purely Leiden history.’
The duration of the walk, including a break for coffee or herring eating, is 3 hours.
