Amsterdam royal palace and Nieuwe Kerk

Links to photo: https://plus.google.com/photos/113880069774612153445/albums/6040348639242354481?authkey=COeDofbpw9PJKw

The Paleis Amsterdam (Royal Palace in Amsterdam) is right at Dam square. It is only open to public during the summer months (mid June to August). It is worth a visit if you are in town during summer. The history of the palace is quite interesting. The palace was first built as the city hall. Then Louis Napoleon came to become the Dutch King and he redecorated the palace to its present day rich and glory. The Dutch are quite frugal. If Louis Napoleon never came, I guess the structure would have stayed as an plain old big building. The New Church (Nieuwe Kerk) is right next to the palace. It is where a lot of the royal events take place (for example, the coronation of the current king). The interior is not very fancy. Sometimes there are special exhibitions. Check before you pay for a visit.
 
Palace website:
http://www.paleisamsterdam.nl/en

Afsluitdijk

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Afsluitdijk is a dam/bridge that closes off a salt water sea bay (previous Zoudzee - South Sea) and makes into a fresh water lake (current day IJsselmeer). The boats can go through the dam via the East and West ends. There are locks to go through. The water level is lower on the South side. The bridge would turn perpendicular for boats with high masts and sails to go through. A lot of the lands along the East bank were filled in. Some great tulip fields were created in Emmeloord.

The construction started in the 1920's and a lot of the work was done by manual labour. At the beginning of WWII, the East end of the dam became a strategically important location. The units inside the bunkers (Kazematten) were successful in holding off the invasion. However, The Netherlands surrendered after the bombing of Rotterdam and the sinking of a navy boat.