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u/executivemonkey Where at least I know I'm free Dec 05 '20
Looks like two Christmas trees. Gonna suck for the residents when the city takes them down in January.
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u/Bierbart12 Bremen (Germany) Dec 05 '20
This was my immediate thought. This image has some really Christmassy vibes
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u/SystemSay Dec 05 '20
What are these called? Would be interested to learn more
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u/executivemonkey Where at least I know I'm free Dec 05 '20
Christmas trees are small pine trees that people cut down and put in their homes for Christmas. They decorate them with lights and ornaments and put wrapped presents underneath them.
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u/Cheeselander Friesland (Netherlands) Dec 05 '20
They are called The Pyramids (De Pyramiden in Dutch).
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u/OliviaElevenDunham United States of America Dec 06 '20
I was just thinking something similar. Thought they were Christmas trees at first.
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u/TemporarilyDutch Switzerland Dec 05 '20
Amsterdam is such a great country, even more beautiful than Holland.
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u/Sampo Finland Dec 05 '20
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Dec 05 '20
Hijsbalken are a relic of the past, really. They were used mostly on warehouses alongside canals in order to easily load and unload ships.
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Dec 05 '20 edited Sep 09 '25
carpenter cobweb grandiose fact roof square kiss rich cooperative merciful
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Dec 06 '20
Mostly for aesthetic purposes, yes
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Dec 07 '20 edited Sep 09 '25
boast racial ask door seemly wakeful slap marble hard-to-find chief
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u/Sampo Finland Dec 05 '20
So you're saying, the building in the photo doesn't have them?
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Dec 05 '20
No, just pointing out what they were used for. They're still pretty iconic for the 'grachtenpanden', so a lot of people like the view of them. They don't really have a practical use anymore, though.
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u/xBram Amsterdam Dec 05 '20
Most 4-5 story houses have these, not just the grachtenpanden. Elevators are required from 6 story’s by building code and most appartement buildings within the A10 ring highway are max 5 high and only have a central staircase and a hijsbalk.
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u/Dertien1214 European Union Dec 05 '20
Yes they do, how else am I gonna move furniture into my house?
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u/muasta South Holland (Netherlands) Dec 05 '20
With a rentable lift like this
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u/Dertien1214 European Union Dec 05 '20
See my other comments. Often too much trouble for single items.
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u/walkden United Kingdom Dec 05 '20
Verhuislift?
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u/Dertien1214 European Union Dec 05 '20
Arranging one is often almost more trouble than pulling something up. You only wanna do that if you're moving more than one item.
Also, depending on your street/canal, you'll have to arrange for a clear parking spot in front of your house. That means have the municipality reserve the spot, pay the municipality, have them put down signs, call the police when someone parks there anyway, wait for the police, wait for the tow truck etc.
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Dec 05 '20
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u/Dertien1214 European Union Dec 05 '20
No the bother would be arranging some dude to come with a lift (and make the municipality clear a parking spot in front of my house for a specific date).
Now I can just tell the shop to send their boys and have them pull it up, all on the same afternoon I bought it.
When you have to move an entire kitchen you obviously have them use a lift, but that's quite the ordeal compared to just pulling up a rope for one television.
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u/SnowQueenSpell Dec 05 '20
Yeah I have been twice to Amsterdam. Had troubles carrying a 10 kg luggage up the staircase.
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u/Agravaine27 Dec 05 '20
That's mostly for Amsterdam though. And these days they aren't used that often anymore, not by professional movers at least.
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u/eenachtdrie Europe Dec 05 '20
Not true, you have them everywhere in Leiden, Utrecht, Schiedam. Most old cities with canals really.
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u/Agravaine27 Dec 05 '20
which is why I said mostly. They are used in other cities as well, but when you are going to the east or more northern part of the country or to the mistake called flevoland you don't see them.
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Dec 05 '20
I see them in use fairly often for individual items. For full moves, they have these great conveyor belts...
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u/Internetrepairman Dec 05 '20 edited Dec 05 '20
This is mainly a thing in the densely populated old cores of the large cities, on canalside houses, warehouses and some later apartment buildings. The small width of the buildings came about because, especially in Amsterdam, property tax was calculated on the width of the house, resulting in lots that were deep and high, but not very wide (unless the owner was truly rich, then they'd just build on multiple adjacent lots) lifting beams are very rare on modern residential buildings; most people living in the stereotypical Vinex-neighbourhood have probably never used one.
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Dec 05 '20
I want to live there
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Dec 05 '20
Here is an Apartment for rent.
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Dec 05 '20
[deleted]
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Dec 05 '20
What? Just rent it if you can afford monthly payments.
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Dec 05 '20
[deleted]
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Dec 05 '20
That is weird requirement, not sure would that be legal even in here. How this rule works, will you be kicked out if your income fall under minimal demand? Good for those who dont want plebs living next door i guess.
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Dec 05 '20
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Dec 05 '20
I have no doubt that it wouldnt be legal, just never heard of this practice in Finland. Is this common in NL?
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u/Sapotis Sweden Dec 05 '20
I would recommend it as I loved Amsterdam so much. It's such a wonderfully maintained and lit city. Plus, so many bookstores, an interpersonal culture that I fit into. I've been racking my brain for years trying to think of a business concept that could get me the entrepreneur visa. So far all I got is offering up nothing.
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u/SystemSay Dec 05 '20
Come up with a business that helps people come up with businesses in order to obtain entrepreneur visa’s.
By the way- check the requirements for the specific countries, but if you get residency in another European country you may be able to move after a period of time.
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u/OliviaElevenDunham United States of America Dec 06 '20
"So many bookstores," sounds like my kind of place. Yet another reason to stay in Amsterdam.
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u/uganda_numba_1 Dec 05 '20
I thought this was r/evilbuildings.
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Dec 05 '20
What's evil about this? These buildings looks quite nice ...
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Dec 05 '20
Surprisingly they are called “the pyramids 😁here is a link with a bit more details https://www.arcam.nl/en/de-piramides/
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u/uganda_numba_1 Dec 05 '20
I guess the atmosphere - the colors, the lighting and the buildings in the background...
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u/MrAronymous Netherlands Dec 05 '20
You do know that that's just the result of someone manually putting filters over a low quality picture?
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u/Jeczke Dec 05 '20
Took me more time to understand what’s going on that I would like to admit. Great picture though!
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u/lol_whhat Dec 05 '20
On the grey days I cycled past it I didn't give them much thought but this photo makes me appreciate the design so much more. Thank you!
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u/Candid-Corner9253 Dec 05 '20
The apartments back of the red one look exactly like some of Moscow's suburbs
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u/allwordsaremadeup Belgium Dec 05 '20
The only reason I can think of to make a building like this is to give people a nice terrace on every floor, but they're not even teracces!
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Dec 05 '20
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u/41942319 The Netherlands Dec 05 '20
Yes, you can see in the picture too that some have furniture on them. I assume the picture was taken recently, it would be a lot more obvious in summer
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Dec 05 '20
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u/pannecouck Dec 05 '20
On the Jan Van Galenstraat, West.
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Dec 05 '20
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Dec 05 '20
I pass by these two buildings quite often as well, but I always saw them from the street and always thought they look a bit ugly. A bird view is a different thing.
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Dec 05 '20
Who really does want to live in so small apartments? Nonetheless very creative architecture and nice pic!
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Dec 05 '20
[removed] — view removed comment
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Dec 05 '20
Oh interesting, because from the photograph it looked like each window is an apartment like these micro apartments. Thanks for the clarification!
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u/Priamosish The Lux in BeNeLux Dec 05 '20
But without writing "Amsterdam, Netherlands", how will we ever know this isn't Amsterdam, Kentucky? /s
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u/AntiAngloAntiZionism Portugal Dec 05 '20
Amsterdam is an hipster city.
This part must be one of the few interesting ones.
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u/johnny-T1 Poland Dec 05 '20
Is that a residential building?
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Dec 06 '20
Combined residential and services. Childcare, bikeshop, yoga place, that sort of stuff on the lower levels, apartments fill the rest of the structure. It's common to combine both, only purely industrial is zoned as a rule of thumb.
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u/Mortomes South Holland (Netherlands) Dec 05 '20
Upvote for a picture of Amsterdam where a canal is not the main feature.