Amsterdam is built on over 11 million wooden poles that support the buildings and infrastructure due to the city’s swampy ground.

Some old houses lean forward or sideways due to their wooden foundations shifting over time.

Many other houses lean forward intentionally. Leaning forward helped hoist furniture up through pulleys without hitting the walls.

Amsterdam has 165 canals, which is about the same as Venice, which has 170 canals.

There are over 880,000 bicycles in Amsterdam, almost as much as the city’s population of 933,000.

The narrowest house in Amsterdam is only 2.02 meters (6.6 feet) wide at Singel 7.

See it on Google Maps

To preserve its historical beauty, Amsterdam bans large billboards in many areas.

Around 15,000 bicycles are pulled from the canals each year.

Amsterdam has a massive underground bike garage near Central Station, with space for 7,000 bikes.

Amsterdam has the highest number of museums per square meter in the world including a museum of sexuality. See also: Strange Museums.

Amsterdam Sex Museum

Amsterdam’s Red Light District has its own museum, which tells the history of the industry.

You might find this video interesting. It is a walking interview with a Red Light District sex worker including a visit to the Red Light District museum.

Marijuana and sex work are technically not legal, but they are tolerated under strict regulations.

Amsterdam’s coffee shops are famous for selling cannabis, not just coffee!

The world’s first official stock exchange was established in Amsterdam in 1602.

Amsterdam experienced the first-ever stock market crash in 1637 during the Tulip Mania. A slow build in speculative value of tulip bulbs, especially tulips of rare colorings continued until some bulbs were worth more than the price of a house. Values crashed in 1637 leaving some investors with tulip bulbs that were worth nearly nothing.

Some historical buildings have false facades to hide the modern renovations behind them.

Over 2,500 houseboats line Amsterdam’s canals, and some are even available as Airbnb rentals.

“De Poezenboot” is a cat shelter on a houseboat, home to rescued felines.

Poezenboot, Cat Sanctuary

The Dutch are the tallest people on Earth, with men averaging 6 feet (182.9 cm).

The famous Anne Frank House was nearly demolished in the 1950s but was saved by a citizens’ movement.

Amsterdam sees more rainy days than London, but often in light drizzles.

People of more than 100 nationalities live in Amsterdam, making it one of the most diverse cities in the world.

During religious persecution, Catholics built hidden churches inside houses.

Amsterdam has its own artificial beach, Blijburg aan Zee, despite being inland.

The Netherlands was the first country to legalize gay marriage in 2001 and the first wedding was in Amsterdam.

Locals are known for being very direct in communication.

A massive network of water tunnels, pipes, and old sewage canals runs under the city, some dating back centuries.