In a world that expects wine be a glass of Amstel.

On Christmas eve we took a stroll through our favorite street Utrechtsestraat. If you walk along from Hutspot to Rembrandtplein you will trek through this darling of a stretch, which has delightful stores, quaint eating joints, cafes, and bars.

It was all dressed up for the festive season – glittering lights and shiny store windows. This street offers you the delight of moseying past some of the best canals that Amsterdam has to offer namely Prinsengracht, Keizersgracht, and Herengracht. The canals are pretty during the day, however the night lights bring out their velvety glory, the lusciousness of the dirty waters.

I had once written that Amaltas were like chandelier earrings dangling next to the face of New Delhi, bridges, in Amsterdam, much like the Amaltas, are like hoops bobbing on a disco-night out for Amsterdam. You grab a glimpse of them every now and then, dancing, connecting, glinting, catching your eye. You almost forget they are there, and then just as the music hits the chorus – BAM!

Rembrandtplein is touristy yet quaint, noisy yet shy, holding in its folds the art deco Pathe Tuschinski. Where you watch a movie for the experience and not for the technological advancement made in movie-going.

We dined at Gauchos, which is a popular steak-grillhouse chain. The king-size prawns were some of the best I have ever had. I was brought up by the sea so I have consumed in my lifetime copious amount of seafood, Gauchos for a “chain” (insert arched eyebrow) took me by surprise with the quality and freshness of its prawns. Along with the prawns, their sauces especially the black pepper sauce I would highly recommend. So, while their location triggers the memories of tourist-traps – it is definitely not one.

Finally, what caught my eye was the abandoned glass of Amstel, which stood on the ledge of a wine shop, Apoorva insisted I take a picture, and I am glad I did, metaphorical – isn’t it! I felt like it was my life in a vignette.