Grachtenmuseum (Museum of the Canals), Amsterdam

Even though it's just a quick 45-minute visit, the Museum of the Canals provides tremendous insight into the physical building it occupies, as well as the construction techniques required to build in Amsterdam as its population grew. Fittingly occupying a four-story former 17th-century luxury canal house on the Herengracht, it also provides an inside look at how the city's upper crust lived.

Delightfully informative, the exhibits explain why some houses lean sideways or forward, the city planning and associated negotiations, and even the funding of America's revolution. Miniature models of the canal houses are of interest, but even better are these little "voyeur" peepholes in the walls where visitors can peek into canal house interiors from different times. A lot of thought had been put into making this place interactive and fun, creatively using video projections and 3D displays.

Last but not least, since most of the canal houses in Amsterdam have beautiful gardens behind them that you cannot see from the road, it’s a real a treat to get a view of the lovely garden behind this museum; a quiet oasis and great example of Amsterdam’s hidden gems.