Amsterdam Bijlmer tour

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Difficulty: Easy
Length: 10.3 miles / 16.6 km
Duration: 1-3 hours

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Overview: Starting point: Hoekenrode Square on the east side of the Amsterdam Bijlmer train station.

End point: Arena Boulevard, at the west side of the Amsterdam Bijlmer train station.

Bijlmer is a neighborhood that formed in 1966 as an extension of Amsterdam. Before that time Bijlmer was agricultural land.

Following ideas that were fashionable at the time, high-rise residential buildings were built with open park space in between. The buildings, nicknamed honeycomb flats because of their shape, were large, with long corridors and galleries.

An important element of Bijlmer was the separation of fast and slow traffic. Cars used roads on an upper level; cyclists and pedestrians had their own paths on the level below that went through park areas. The bicycle and foot paths turned out to be unsafe, so they fell into disuse. Another quirk of the area is that it was built without churches (in the '60s religion was an archaic notion), so Biljmer's many religious groups created places of worship in old parking lots, abandoned buildings and other nontraditional spaces.

Bijlmer became a problem neighborhood in the 1970s. Crime and drug trafficking were rampant and people stayed away.

A massive urban renewal project started in Bijlmer in 1992. The honeycomb flats were either renovated or demolished. More conventional residences were built. The neighborhood renewal process is ongoing.

Bijlmer is a neighborhood of immigrants from many countries, particularly from Suriname (a former Dutch colony, independent since 1975) and Africa. The roots of the residents are reflected in the shops found here.

There is a strong contrast between old and new, and Bijlmer's ongoing development is still visible, as is the the cultural diversity unique to this part of Amsterdam.

Just next to Bijlmer proper, at the other side of the Bijlmer train station, is the Arena area. This area, with the ArenA Stadium (home of the Ajax soccer club), is developing into Amsterdam's second center, with several large theaters and many shops. The Amsterdamse Poort is the largest shopping mall in Amsterdam.

Tips: The trip goes through an urban area with many shops and restaurants. Most shops are closed on Sunday so you might want to bring water and food. However, you can always find something to eat and drink.

The trip is not long, but you can easily spend a few hours checking out the stops along the tour.

Points of Interest

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Haag en Veld

Buildings like Haag en Veld and Hofgeest were completely renovated at the beginning of the century. The public space around them also has been improved.

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Drug user day care center

Certain parts of the Bijlmer long have been notorious because of drug trafficking.

Here, next to the Gulden Kruis bicycle path, is a day center for drug users. Addicts can use their drugs inside and get shelter.

This is a temporary place; a new building is scheduled to be built.

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Bijlmerpark Theater

Opened in 2009, the Bijlmerpark Theater has been nominated for several architectural awards but has never won a prize.

The theater overlooks the Bijlmerpark, which was closed for redesign at the time of this review.

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Church center 'De Nieuwe Stad'

At Luthuliplein, this building serves several religious communities, which is common in Bijlmer.

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Les Pisseurs d'Amsterdam ('Tayouken Piss')

You'll find this group of statues by Pascale Tayou under the viaduct. They are self-portraits of the artist, head to toe, posing as the famous Brussels statue "Manneken Pis."

The colors of the six statues—red, white, blue, green, yellow and black—are based on the national flags of Cameroon, the Netherlands and Belgium.

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Bijlmermonument

This memorial site commemorates the victims of the El Al Boeing, which crashed into the buildings Groeneveen and Kruitberg on Oct. 4 1992. The tree is nicknamed "the tree that saw everything."

This park area is also called Bijlmer Museum because the original layout of the public space has been left intact to a large degree, following the design principles with which Bijlmer was originally created (high-rise buildings with parks in between without cars).

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Mother Earth

On the little island in the pond stands the statue "Mother Earth," or "Ma Aisa."

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Taibah Mosque

This is the only mosque in the Bijlmer. The mosque is Surinamese/Pakistani.

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Redemption Faith Ministries

One of the many churches in the Bijlmer.

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Remnant of a honeycomb flat

Many of Bijlmer's large buildings have been completely torn down, but remnants like this can be found.

The high-rises were nicknamed honeycomb flats because of their shape. Seen from the air, they resembled honeycombs.

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Shopping mall Kraaiennest

This is one of the neighborhood's older shopping malls, which has seen better days. On Tuesdays and Fridays there is a street market next to the building (along Karspeldreef).

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Goed Geluimdhof

New street, nicely decorated with some palm trees.

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De Toevlucht bird asylum

Hidden amongst the trees you'll find De Toevlucht, a bird asylum that also cares for hedgehogs.
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Hours
Monday-Friday 9-4
Saturday 9-3

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Children's Zoo Bijlmerweide

To be visited from Tuesday till Sunday, 8.30am to 5pm.

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Gouden Leeuw

One of the older residential buildings in the Bijlmer (1974/1975). This enormous complex has one visitor entrance for the 400 (privately owned) apartments. Next to it is another such residential complex, Groenhoven (431 apartments). As these buildings have never been social rentals, the typical Bijlmer problems did not occur, and the buildings remain as they were conceived. The buildings are considered prime examples of structuralist architecture in the Netherlands.

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De Kandelaar

'The Candelabrum': collective building for a number of religious organizations (the high-rise building with orange bricks and coloured windows).

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Children's Zoo de Gliphoeve

Hours
Monday-Friday 12-5

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Gravestein/Geldershoofd

Renovated in the 1980s, these are the only two remaining complete honeycomb high-rises.

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New Bethel Revival Ministries

One of the religious groups still residing in an old building.

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The Holy Order of Cherubim and Seraphim Church

Hidden in an old parking garage, this is another example of a religious group making use of a derelict building.

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Remnant of a park area

Although a new residential building is planned for this area, the start date is unclear because of economic uncertainty. This is an example of Bijlmer's original park spaces.

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Frissenstein

The Frissenstein building looks like a brand-new high-rise but in fact it is a completely renovated (2004) section of the old honeycomb Frissenstein. All apartments are now privately owned.

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Martin Ennalsplein

This spot used to be one of Bijlmer's dedicated bicycle paths (Reigersbospad), running through a tunnel under the Bijlmerdreef (the road above). This design aimed at separating slow traffic from fast traffic. Since the dark bicycle tunnels were deemed unsafe, engineers decided to make two zigzagging slopes on both sides of the Bijlmerdreef.

Note: Google Maps still shows the Reigersbospad, but that is old information.

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Anton de Komplein

This square hosts a street market Mondays and Thursdays. It was named after Anton de Kom, a communist member of the resistance during World War II who originated from Suriname (a Dutch colony at the time). He died in 1944 in a German concentration camp.

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Amsterdamse Poort

This is the biggest shopping mall in Amsterdam. (Cycling is not permitted here.)

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ING bank building

Bijlmerplein Square is dominated by the ING building, nicknamed the "Sand Castle." It is one of the most famous examples of organic architecture in the Netherlands.

On this square you can find the bicycle lane Abcouderpad, at 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) the longest dedicated bicycle lane in Amsterdam, and the only completely intact bicycle lane through Bijlmer.

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Amsterdam ArenA

The Amsterdam ArenA stadium is the home of the Amsterdam soccer club Ajax. The building dates from 1996.

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Ziggo Dome

This is the site of the concert venue Ziggo Dome, scheduled to open in 2012.

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Villa Arena

The largest shopping mall for home decoration in the Netherlands.

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Arena Boulevard

Shoppers will find mega stores along this street along with the Heineken Music Hall and the Pathé Cinema (the only one in Amsterdam with an Imax screen).

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Amsterdam Bijlmer train station

This train station was the second station built in Amsterdam. It has recently been completely renovated and enlarged.

Pictures in this guide taken by: simplyamsterdam

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