Canamsterdam ClogBlog
Greetings from Amsterdam! This is a blog for my husband Craig and I to share our adventures with our friends and family back in Canada.
We hope that if you are reading this blog, you'll visit often and leave us messages letting us know how you're doing. Enjoy!
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There are a tonne of great festivals happening in Amsterdam right now!
Rolling Kitchens is a mobile food fair with lots of different tasty treats. Clare, Alex, Craig and I shared a dish of with a massive artichoke, dip, bread and olives. There was so much delicious food. I wish we could have tried one of everything.
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Here’s my first glimpse of a sculpture from Art Zuid 2011. Art Zuid is an installation of artworks around the “Zuid” district of Amsterdam, featuring works by artists from around the world. Here’s a link if you are interested in finding out more.
Luckily, everything will be on exhibit until August 28th, so I’ve got a bit of time to catch the rest of the exhibit!
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Craig and I recently took a day trip to Bruges. It was a beautiful medieval city which really reminded us the game Zelda with it’s narrow pathways, cobbled streets and castle like buildings. It was fun travelling to another destination outside of Holland, but I don’t think we will ever go back to Bruges. It seemed to lack any sort of energy. Maybe we’ll give Antwerp a try?? The station in Antwerp was beautiful and I hear the shopping is great!
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After finding out we had missed seeing White Cowbell Oklahoma (thanks to a lying doorman), Sandy, John, Clare, Craig and I had an awesome night playing a few intense rounds of Jenga at Cafe De Koe. Each round of beers only cost €12.50! Good thing because I lost a couple rounds!
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Happy Birthday to all those born in the month of May! It seems like everyone I know is having either celebrating a birthday or giving birth this month. It’s nuts!!
Last Saturday we celebrated a new friend’s birthday at a cool restaurant called Mazzo. It’s a great restaurant in the west end similar to Terronis or a Pizzeria Libretto in Toronto. Luckily, we just found that Mazzo’s sister Witteveen restaurant is just a few doors down from us!
Clare, Me and Craig
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I’ve come across these cool looking birds with their blue lined wings a few times while sitting in Vondelpark. Not sure what kind of birds they are, but I’d love to find out!
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Craig and I love our neighbourhood! We have been living in De Pjip, also known as “the Pipe” for just over a month and have discovered some lovely shops and cafes. This is one of the little cafe stumbled upon last week.
The last photo was taken using a photo-stitching application called Photosynth on my iPhone. Not quite the same effect as when you look at it on the iPhone but it’s fun to use!
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It has only been two weeks since Craig and I arrived in Amsterdam, yet in that time I feel as though we have seen, done and experienced so much since then.
Our first week here was spent staying at a Bed and Breakfast on Weesperzijde. It was an amazing neighbourhood situated along the Amstel river with lots of cafes, a rowing club (Roeicentrum Berlagebrug) and coincidently, the largest bike path in the Netherlands! It was nice to see everyone out everyday either riding their bikes, rowing, taking leisurely strolls along the river, or just sitting outside at a cafe enjoying a beer.
Above: view of Weesperzijde
On our first Friday, we stopped by Craig’s new office to say hello and were greeted with beers and an invitation to sit in on some presentations prepared by the employees. It was nice to see his new office and meet some of his new co-workers. A form prison ground called the House of Detention use occupy the square where Craig’s office now stands. Apparently, Anne Frank was even detained here.
On Saturday the 16th, we met up with some friends, at the Waterloopleinmarkt, whom showed us where to buy some used bikes. After a bit of searching and a few test rides, we found two Gazelles ready to ride and explore the city with. For anyone visiting, you can easily rent a bike from a few places around the city. Once you have one, you can see so much more of the city and it’s so much fun to ride around.
Later on in the evening Craig and I attended a show at the Melkweg to see the Dears. Lucky for us, Natalia was kind enough to put us on the guest list. It was really cool to have our first concert in Amsterdam be performed by a Canadian band. :)
One of the biggest misconceptions Craig and I had before we came was that we weren’t going to find any good food in Amsterdam. Boy, were we wrong! After a couple of days of eating Maoz falafels (which are delicious) we decided to find a place where we could get a good hearty meal. We stumbled upon Pompa, close to the museums, large concert hall and Vondelpark. The food was delicious! We both had freshly picked mint teas, a warm goat cheese salad and a penne primavera to share. I know the meal hardly sounds like anything special but we were pleasantly surprised by the huge wheel of goat cheese that came with our greens. Here are some photos of the salad and pasta:
Craig and I now officially have our Burger Numbers! Confused? I was too at first. Burger Service Nummer (aka BSN) are registration numbers similar to Social Insurance Numbers (SIN) for everyone in the Netherlands. These are required in order to be permitted to work. Burger literally means Citizen in Dutch. Anyhow, we are now registered. Unfortunately, I still have to wait a while before I can be approved to work. Until then, I guess I will be working away on my portfolio!
On Wednesday the 21st, we finally got the go ahead to move into our rental for the next year. We found a place in De Pijp, also known as the “the Pipe”. It was such a nice feeling to finally be able to unpack our bags and feel like we staying for a while. The area is full of cool cafes and shops. Luckily, the Albert Heijn grocery store is just around the corner, as well as the Albert Cuyp Market. The Albert Cuyp Market is a huge outdoor market that spans a few blocks, open everyday with the exception of Sundays… so nice, especially since we had gotten so use to having the Metro grocery store and St. Lawrence Market so close to us in Toronto.
We’ve been fortunate to have amazing weather during our first two weeks here in Amsterdam. 22 degrees and sunny for the last couple of weeks. Here are some photos from two close parks: Sarphaat Park and Vondel Park. The first photo is from Sarphaat park. It was packed with people out trying to get a good tan! The second two photos were taken at Vondel Park. Craig and I enjoyed a nice picnic by the water. It was an amazing day!
Well, I hope everyone is staying dry in Ontario! Hopefully, May will bring lots of sunshine and warm weather. Craig and I are gearing for Koninginnedag (Queen’s Day) here. Stores and buildings are already decking themselves out with lots of orange gear for the last two weeks, so I know they’re already excited to celebrate!
Until the next time,
Nancy + Craig
xoxo
