Amsterdam is the capital city of the Netherlands. It has a population of 1,465,405(2006) people. Amsterdam lies between the banks of the Ij bay and the Amstel river. It's origin dates back to the 12th century when it used to be a small fishing village by the Amstel river bank. Presently, Amsterdam is the largest city in the Netherlands and it's the center for finance and culture. It has one of the largest historic city centers in Europe dating largely from the 17th century. The city was designed with a series of concentric and semi-circular canals. along these picturesque canals, one can see many fine houses and maisons which make Amsterdam a gem in the heart of Europe.
This wonderful and eccentric city is rich of cultural heritage, diversity and commercially very active. It has a high quality of life with a perfect balance between people who live here, people who work here, people who study here and people who visit here.
Back in the 1960's Amsterdam was the center of political and cultural radicalism. The free thinking atmosphere gave way for the discriminalization of soft drugs. The first famous coffeshops to be opened date back to the early seventies. Also in the 1970's, Amsterdam became known as the 'gay capital of Europe'. The Amstel Taveerne on the Amstel river bank, is the oldest gay bar in Amsterdam.