This unavoidable and busy street leading up to Centraal Station is now lined with a mostly tawdry assortment of shops, attractions, hotels, and greasy food dispensers. It's a shame, because behind the awful neon signs are beautiful examples of lovely Dutch architecture—they're just really hard to see. Damrak and its extension, Rokin, were once the Amstel River, bustling with activity, its piers loaded with fish and other cargo on their way to the weigh house at the Dam. Now the only open water that remains is a patch in front of the station that provides mooring for canal tour boats. Stop to admire the Beurs van Berlage and catch a canal tour, and then move on to prettier areas of the city.
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