Dutch Sloepen “Gezellig”
One of the coolest things I miss about Amsterdam is not just the bicycle culture, nor the liberal smoking culture that de-criminalizes pot, but it’s the boats. As you know, most of Holland is below sea level and canals and locks crisscross the country. Not surprisingly the Dutch utilize these canals as one of the coolest ways to get together with friends and family to just chill, people watch and cruise. They also use these canals to get back and forth, on outings, going to dinner or just to go cruising. The Dutch also had a phrase that was used to describe what these people in the boats were doing. The word was “Gezellig” pronounced: heh-SELL-ick. “Gezellig” is a word that encompasses the heart of Dutch culture. “Gezellig” means cozy, quaint, or nice but can also connote time spent with loved ones, seeing a friend after a long absence, or general togetherness. “Gezellig” also can be used to describe something like a Brown Cafe, or a Good Movie, or even a great restaurant can be “Gezellig”. I heard this word all the time on my days off when we were simply chilling out Gezellig. The boats most commonly used by the Dutch locals are these low, flat bottomed Sloeps or Sloops. Built with comfortable seating all around the cabin, these simple looking boats glide effortlessly in and around the canals. We would cruise in them, packing a nice bottle of wine, cheese, bread and plenty of conversation. Riding in them offered quite a different perspective on the city completely. If I could get one of these Sloeps over here in America and start a Dutch boat trend I’d be so lucky. Perhaps in Newport Beach or Long Beach, or maybe Seattle or Vancouver. Not built for open sea cruising but who wants to anyway. There aren’t any people to see out there anyways. The following are a few examples of people cruising in the Amsterdam Canals as well as a few beautiful boats from Interboat and Bob Sloepen. Do enjoy.
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