IN TRANSIT: AMSTERDAM -- Try to envision the look and feel of Amsterdam, and any number of clichés immediately come to mind. Some envision the city as a super-sized Red Light district where the only thing separating the prostitutes' windows are hash bars. Others picture the scenic canals and 17th-century row houses, while still others (like me) think of the modernist jewel box homes on the reclaimed islands of the East Docklands (where the Lloyd Hotel is nestled.) All three are essentially tourists' images of the city (especially the first) while the real action -- at least as far as building the 21st-century cityscape of Amsterdam goes -- is to the south, at Zuidas.

If you haven't heard of Zuidas, you're not alone (I discovered it during this trip). The literal name (it means "South Axis" in Dutch) refers to the new central business district south of the city. Zuidas is the home of Amsterdam's courts, an increasing number of law firms, and both of the country's largest banks, ING and ABN Amro. Sounds like Manhattan's Financial District, only more exciting, right?

But consider the fact that you've probably already seen ING's headquarters in the pages of a dozen different architecture magazines. You know, it's the one built on stilts. ABN Amro's tower was built by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, i.e. I.M. Pei's old firm. I paid a visit on Thursday and was stunned at the number of starchitects pouring into the area -- Michael Graves, Rafael Viñoly, and Toyo Ito have already seen their designs built here. (Hell, the Ito building -- seen in the photo above -- is even named after him.)

I was disappointed to see that the creators of Zuidas (private developers are spearheading the project) brought in so many mercenaries overseas, but I am eager to see whether they will succeed in building high-density residential blocks around the towers in later phases. Leave it to the Dutch to essentially build the World Trade Center done right.

Read more of Greg Lindsay's travel blog, IN TRANSIT.