Amsterdam 2013 - The Jordaan District

The Jordaan District towards the West of Amsterdam is becoming an increasingly popular destination for food, entertainment and shopping. This area used to be a working-class neighbourhood, but like in all modern cities - eventually, the working class gets driven out due to higher rental and property prices and gentrification takes over. This is sad but a fact of life in most modern cities.

What makes this area interesting is that the grid runs more-or-less East-West, as compared to other streets in Amsterdam which follows the roughly octagonal main grid. This results in interesting corner patterns as the 2 grids clash into each other. The city blocks are also more compact than the already compact layout in the rest of Amsterdam, resulting in a very intimate scale to the streetscape and buildings.

What draws people here, besides the picturesque streetscape, are the countless number of cafes, bars, restaurants, boutiques and art galleries that dot the streets. The famous Anne Frank Museum is at the fringe of the Jordaan Area, and you can also find the Amsterdam Cheese Museum and Tulip Museum here.