In an area northeast of the Plantage, there is a 500m row of warehouses that once belonged to the Dutch East India Company (VOC). This powerful organisation, the Amazon of its day, grew rich on sea trade in the 17th century. This was the largest storage depot in Europe at the time – located in a customs-free zone.
Some of the original facades have been preserved, and the warehouses are now used as hip offices, apartments and dockside cafes, with tables perfect for lazing away an afternoon at the water's edge.