Reflections Of Amsterdam - The Elder Statesman

Reflections Of Amsterdam - The Elder Statesman, originally uploaded by AmsterS@m - The Wicked Reflectah.

Unedited mobile phone shot of a biker in front of the Haarlemmerport building, reflected in a puddle in Amsterdam. No editing, no Photoshop, no magic tricks :)

"The Haarlemmerpoort is the only gate left of old Amsterdam. These old gates used to surround the city. Others built included: Leidsepoort, Muiderpoort and Utrechtsepoort. They functioned as guarded entrances to the city and as exits out of town. The gates led to the cities with which their names matched: The Haarlemmer Gate led to Haarlem and the Leidsepoort to Leiden. Until 1825, Amsterdam was located inside these gates. Following another city expansion, the gates and the town ramparts became useless and were taken down. In 1840, the Haarlemmerpoort was restored in the classical style by architect C. Alewijn. The gate was then named after King Willem II, after he made his entry into Amsterdam through it in 1840, the year of his coronation. Unfortunately for Willem I, the people of Amsterdam still, even today, call it Haarlemmerpoort."