Saw a few of these guys around. I guess the Grey Heron is very common in Amsterdam, and they often eat food on the sidewalks and roads. They like to root through garbage for fish parts, and sometimes they hang around the zoo stealing food meant for the otters, and penguins, etc. The Netherlands has the highest density of grey heron colonies in northern Europe.
Hey - did you know that proper bird watchers call a group of herons a "siege of herons"? There's also a covey of partridges, a dole of doves, a parliament of owls, a peep of chickens and a party of jays. I think I'd likely rather hang out with the jays than the owls.
