Amsterdam. City of canals, boats and bridges. City of museums, art galleries and shops. City of cafes, bars, clubs, coffee shops and an infamous red light district.

Something for everyone, as the saying goes. A cliché, perhaps, but for the capital of the Netherlands — true.

First-timers should take a boat cruise through Amsterdam’s port and canals to get a feel for the city and its history. On a follow-up trip, rent a canal bike — similar to a paddle boat — and use pedal power to poke around in places larger boats can’t go.

Art fans will love Amsterdam’s museums: the van Gogh Museum, the Rijksmuseum, the modern Cobra and the Stedelijk museums (it is closed for renovations, but some of its works are on exhibit at Stedelijk CS near the train station) are all worth a visit.

If you like museums but art is not your thing, there is the Anne Frank House, the Amsterdam Historical Museum, the Jewish Museum and the Rembrandt House Museum (well, a little bit of art) to name a few. And while not exactly museums, there is a Madame Tussauds and the Heineken Experience in the factory where the famous beer was once brewed.

Shopping in Amsterdam comes in many forms, from probable junk at the flea market to upscale clothing and accessories. The Waterlooplein flea market is on the low end of the bill, while at the Albert Cuyp Market, called by some Europe’s largest street market, you can get just about anything from clothing to food.

For fresh food and produce, try the Boerenmarkt (farmers market) at Noordermarkt on Saturday mornings, and Spui square for art on Sundays.

Amsterdam’s biggest department store, De Bijenkorf, is on Dam square and Klaverstraat; the city’s main pedestrian shopping street is just off the square. For designer stores, look near Museumplein for names like Luis Vuitton and Cartier. If you are thinking engagement, Amsterdam is known for its diamond factories and stores.

Some people go to Amsterdam for its nightlife alone. There are bars, cafes and clubs open until the wee hours of the morning. They have famous names like Melkweg, Odeon or Paradiso. The so-called Brown Cafes, popular with the locals, get their name from their walls colored yellow by smoke, and while they do sell coffee, in the evening their denizens will be hoisting beers and jenever, Dutch gin.

Coffee shops do offer coffee, but most often no alcohol. What they do sell is illegal — in Europe, in the States, under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and even in Holland — namely drugs. It might be tolerated by the Dutch authorities, but don’t try to take any home with you.

Some of the things offered in Amsterdam’s red light district are also not allowed under UCMJ, but it is not forbidden to walk through, as the hundreds of tourists passing by attest to. There are good bars here, and the city’s Chinatown, with good, family-run restaurants is right on the district’s edge.

If the night of partying was too much, clear your head at the Artis Zoo (good with kids, too) or a walk through Amsterdam’s expansive Vondelpark.

For more on the city and help with finding accommodations, see the Web site www.visitamsterdam.nl.

The I amsterdam sign between the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum is a popular place for tourists' photos. The two museums are highlights of what Amsterdam has to offer culturally. The Amsterdam statue honoring Dutch poet and playright Gerbrand Adriaensz Bredero stands across from the Waag, on the edge of the Amsterdam red light district. An Amsterdam canal house porch decorated with flower pots. A sight-seeing boat plies the Prinzengracht, with the tower of the Westerkerk in the background. First-time visitors should not miss a canal boat tour, to get a feeling for Amsterdam. A majestic, gabled Amsterdam canal house. This one, built in 1617 houses the Theater Museum. The Rijksmuseum, with its collection of Rembrants, Vermeers and other artists, is a major Amsterdam attraction. Although the museum is undergoing extensive renovations, its masterpieces can still be viewed in the Philips Wing. Bikes, bridges and boats, a typical Amsterdam scene. Buying cheese at the Saturday morning Boerenmarkt or farmers' market at the Nordermarkt square in the Jordaan district of Amsterdam. The "Captain" salutes people sitting at a bar as he and his "crew" ply an Amsterdam canal on a Friday evening. Party cruises along the canals are a popular pastime for Amsterdamers with boats. A fishmonger in Amsterdam's Chinatown neighborhood. With its proximity to the North Sea, and the Dutch seafaring tradition, fish is a popular food in Amsterdam. There is always something going on in Amsterdam, and a lot of it happens on the city's canals. Here boats crowd a canal to listen to a concert held on a barge moored on the canal. After the concert, the people on the boats helped each other get untangled. Enjoying cafe life on the streets of Amsterdam. Boats and houses are reflected in Egelantiersgracht in the Jordaan district of Amsterdam. On a Saturday morning a duck as the Egelantiersgracht to itself. Bikes and boats along with the canals, make up a typical Amsterdam scene. Gracht is the Dutch word for canal.

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