The front side of our canal house was built in the 16th century and the back side in the 19th century. At the ground floor the local businessman was collecting wood shavings, which were bought from furniture makers and wood workers in Amsterdam and transported on his flatbottom boat to Monnickendam. These wood shavings were sold to approx. 125 local fish smoking units. Fish smoking - eel, herring, etc. - was an important local industry in Monnickendam till 1950. The owners of the fish barges were located in Volendam and in Marken. Short history of the North region of Amsterdam after Romans` retreat: • First the Frisians (six till ninehundred AD) developed these peat zones, building villages on "terpen". Using flat-bottomed boats to trade paying with money. Drained peatland became farmland. Sea broke into a brackish & tidal lake: the Zuider Zee • Then Vikings (eight til twelve hundred AD) came to rob & trade. Zuider Zee lined with dikes. Dutch already managing water: “free ground with free people”. Peat-mining industry for fuel & breweries. Building "dams" in Amsterdam & Monnickendam • Then Hansa towns (twelve til fifteenhundred AD): cartel between Hamburg, Lubeck, Cologne, York, London & Edinburgh • Golden Age of Amsterdam (fifteen till seventeenhundred AD), (physical) stock market for Atlantic & Pacific trade. Art, riches, great fleets & complex markets in anything from paper, slaves, species & grain. Show, glitz, armies & diplomacy essential when a ruler is surrounded by disorderly, independent towns & dependant on big merchant enterprises.

Looking for high-end canal house at the quay in the heart of a 13th century town? Only a 20 minutes’ bus lane far from Amsterdam Central Station? Rent The Dutch Buoy, our gorgeous 17th century canal house, in the City Centre of Monnickendam! This picturesque fishing town Monnickendam – a Dam (= protection against low & high tides) built by the Monks 760 years ago – is lying 8 kilometers East from Amsterdam. Cheaper, more authentic & safer to stay in a small town than in the metropolis. Living at two levels in our 17th century canal house with seven rooms for maximum 6 persons. The first floor has one bedroom with one king size bed & bathroom. A communal kitchen, completely and modern furnished with high-end utilities & facilities. And a completely furnished living room. The second floor has two bedrooms (with two queen size beds) & one bathroom. A library. A washing machine & dryer. A library. And a wardrobe room. You will be welcomed by our local concierge at the crow step. Renting 1st & 2nd floor of our 17th century canal house. Completely furnished with high-end utilities & facilities. Modern stylish furnished. Beautifully situated in the heart of this 760 years old fishing town, Monnickendam

Attractions & distances from The Dutch Buoy: • Local: cycling, sailing, skating, fishing, swimming, cocooning in a boat, billards & darts, tennis, golf, swimming pool, ice & wind surfing, cruising • Ancient fishery villages: Marken (11 km), Volendam (11 km), Edam (18 km), Hoorn (35 km), Enkhuizen (45 km), Medemblik (50 km) • Amsterdam (18 km): Canals, Rembrandt, van Gogh, Concert Orchestra, Secret Gardens, East Indian Company, Tulips, Paradiso, Coffee Shops • North Sea Beaches (Bloemendaal = 38 km & Zandvoort = 41 km), + Keukenhof and Tulip Bulb Fields (= 45 km) + Water (Saw) Mills (Zaansche Schans = 43 km).