Here are some links to check out of things mentioned in my last post:
The store's website: http://www.aboriginalart.nl/php/index.php
Lies playing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-Zu4ffLIlI&feature=channel
http://www.liesundertrees.com/
http://www.myspace.com/liesundertrees
I forgot to mention several things in my last post as I was in a hurry to catch a plane to Copenhagen.
1) I have been to Cafe Alto--an incredible jazz club in Leideseplein--twice now. Each time is pretty much a life-changing experience. When I walked in for the first time, it was exactly how I imagined a fantastic jazz cafe to look. Dark, cigarette smoke encrusted walls. A huge multi-shelf bar that takes up the back half of the place. Too many people in a much too small of a place. Where you have to squeeze your way through the packed standing room to the front in order to see the virtuosic musicians and then stake a claim in a piece of hot real estate called a table. Those are coveted. Once you sit down, you are left breathless by the sheer brilliance of the improvisation--literally like the wind was sucked out of your insides. There, you can easily sit and listen and watch for hours on end. 3-4-5 in the morning. Where older men come to relive the days of yesteryear and buy the college kids drinks, "to a great future, to the next generation." Sometimes, you can just sit back and close your eyes and feel like you were there in the days when Davis, Coltrane, Rollins, Smith, Monk, and other talented heros spilled their souls on stage. The wailing guitar, the sax, hammond b-3 organ, piano, drum set--any variation of these instruments make for a guaranteed mind-blowing night.
2)Ok, I'll stop attempting to be poetic. On to biking...
There have been several near death experiences riding my bike here, but I think everyone can attest to that. I have to admit, biking has been such a great thing. I can go any place at any time of the day or night without being bound to a train schedule or paying for an expensive cab ride. It is incredible exercise--I am hoping to have huge calf and quad muscles by the end. I feel much more of a native Amsterdamer when I am biking then when I am taking the tram. It is a ton of fun to ride with friends, and I am sure it'll be even more enjoyable when it gets warmer out--to not just bike somewhere to get to that place. Biking at like 3 AM is one of the most pleasant things I have done in my life. There are few-no cars or trains running at the time and there are very few people out. My friends and I sit much more relaxed on our bikes and absorb the beautiful surrounding space with very little talking as we head to our dorms. In my opinion, it is the best way to see the city and most of what Amsterdam has to offer--at 3 am, on bikes with one person who knows where to go, with a few friends and no fear of getting run over by another force of manmade machinery nature. Pure peace.
I am planning on checking out a lot of other jazz and music clubs in the near future and will compare the other places.
3) I still have absolutely no idea how to navigate this city.
4) Do you ever have those moments where all of a sudden you just start to smile and know/feel something is going right? Like a wave of relief and sheer happiness and the ability to stay in the 'now'? Yeah, I am very happy here--I'll definitely be excited to come home in a few months, but I am extremely content now.
5) People here and I think, generally speaking, in the rest of europe, are SO trendy and beautiful. I dont know if they feel that way when they see American students. I'm also not sure Im seeing through non-rose colored glasses myself, but there are some really well-put together people in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. I think we are fairly behind on the fashion trends in the US and base everything on European fashion making it popular a couple seasons later. No one would dare to wear sweatpants or a hoodie to class or be seen near school not dressed nicely, which is surprising to me. Who wants to get fancy at 9AM? It is mildly intimidating.
6) Went to Copenhagen last weekend
Some thoughts:
Places we didn't get to go to:
the National Gallery, the Little Mermaid Statue, Louisiana Museum, Tivoli Gardens
a) It is a very nice city, really trendy
b) super cold, and I definitely see the potential in the place when it gets warmer. The harbor is great and can only get better when its 70 degrees and sunny.
c) Copenhagen and every other Scandinavian country is EXTREMELY expensive. 7 kron (kroner) to the EURO. A bottle of water costs approximately 25 kroner. From what many people have told me, Norway is double what it is in COPENHAGEN!!! Ridiculousness.
d) Traveling is exhausting and am reconsidering how many places I should go to (I want to travel and go everywhere, but its time consuming getting places!)
e) People there were really friendly and willing to help out with directions and recommendations.
f) its practically socialist so the people pay very high taxes but receive many wonderful benefits that makes the quality of living quite high.
g) people ride bikes there like they do here in Amsterdam
h) went to Christiania--look it up online! An incredibly inspiring place.
i) Danish children are adorable.
j) the first thing I saw when we got into the downtown area was: Build-a-bear. great.
k) the Danish Design center is totally where the party is at!! I am hoping to write a long blog post about this place as it redefined coolness for me!
I posted my pictures on Facebook in the album with Copenhagen in the title.
7) Drag Queen Bingo at Queens Head is a lot of fun!
This weekend and coming week: Tomorrow I am headed on a day-trip with my program to Urk and Groningen. Urk is a former island and fishermansvillage. It is in the middle of the ‘newly created land’ in the centre of the Netherlands. The ‘new land’ now makes Urk mainland. Groningen is a college town in the northern part of the Netherlands. We are going to explore the city, tour a castle, and hang out a bit there. Sunday, I am going to go to some museums around town as I have yet to do many touristy things since I have been focused on wandering around the city. Monday, I plan on checking out a few markets and cool streets.
Wednesday--My program is taking all of us to a huge soccer game between the Netherlands and the USA. It should be a ton of fun.
Friday through Monday I will be in Geneva, Switzerland. A few friends and I are going paragliding over the Mont-Blanc mountains in Chamonix, France--only an hour bus ride from Geneva!
Hope all is well and will post some pictures here at some point in the next few days.
Looking Forward To Picnics, Sun, and Warmth Soon! Love,
Syd
There have been several near death experiences riding my bike here, but I think everyone can attest to that. I have to admit, biking has been such a great thing. I can go any place at any time of the day or night without being bound to a train schedule or paying for an expensive cab ride. It is incredible exercise--I am hoping to have huge calf and quad muscles by the end. I feel much more of a native Amsterdamer when I am biking then when I am taking the tram. It is a ton of fun to ride with friends, and I am sure it'll be even more enjoyable when it gets warmer out--to not just bike somewhere to get to that place. Biking at like 3 AM is one of the most pleasant things I have done in my life. There are few-no cars or trains running at the time and there are very few people out. My friends and I sit much more relaxed on our bikes and absorb the beautiful surrounding space with very little talking as we head to our dorms. In my opinion, it is the best way to see the city and most of what Amsterdam has to offer--at 3 am, on bikes with one person who knows where to go, with a few friends and no fear of getting run over by another force of manmade machinery nature. Pure peace.
I am planning on checking out a lot of other jazz and music clubs in the near future and will compare the other places.
3) I still have absolutely no idea how to navigate this city.
4) Do you ever have those moments where all of a sudden you just start to smile and know/feel something is going right? Like a wave of relief and sheer happiness and the ability to stay in the 'now'? Yeah, I am very happy here--I'll definitely be excited to come home in a few months, but I am extremely content now.
5) People here and I think, generally speaking, in the rest of europe, are SO trendy and beautiful. I dont know if they feel that way when they see American students. I'm also not sure Im seeing through non-rose colored glasses myself, but there are some really well-put together people in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. I think we are fairly behind on the fashion trends in the US and base everything on European fashion making it popular a couple seasons later. No one would dare to wear sweatpants or a hoodie to class or be seen near school not dressed nicely, which is surprising to me. Who wants to get fancy at 9AM? It is mildly intimidating.
6) Went to Copenhagen last weekend
Some thoughts:
Places we didn't get to go to:
the National Gallery, the Little Mermaid Statue, Louisiana Museum, Tivoli Gardens
a) It is a very nice city, really trendy
b) super cold, and I definitely see the potential in the place when it gets warmer. The harbor is great and can only get better when its 70 degrees and sunny.
c) Copenhagen and every other Scandinavian country is EXTREMELY expensive. 7 kron (kroner) to the EURO. A bottle of water costs approximately 25 kroner. From what many people have told me, Norway is double what it is in COPENHAGEN!!! Ridiculousness.
d) Traveling is exhausting and am reconsidering how many places I should go to (I want to travel and go everywhere, but its time consuming getting places!)
e) People there were really friendly and willing to help out with directions and recommendations.
f) its practically socialist so the people pay very high taxes but receive many wonderful benefits that makes the quality of living quite high.
g) people ride bikes there like they do here in Amsterdam
h) went to Christiania--look it up online! An incredibly inspiring place.
i) Danish children are adorable.
j) the first thing I saw when we got into the downtown area was: Build-a-bear. great.
k) the Danish Design center is totally where the party is at!! I am hoping to write a long blog post about this place as it redefined coolness for me!
I posted my pictures on Facebook in the album with Copenhagen in the title.
7) Drag Queen Bingo at Queens Head is a lot of fun!
This weekend and coming week: Tomorrow I am headed on a day-trip with my program to Urk and Groningen. Urk is a former island and fishermansvillage. It is in the middle of the ‘newly created land’ in the centre of the Netherlands. The ‘new land’ now makes Urk mainland. Groningen is a college town in the northern part of the Netherlands. We are going to explore the city, tour a castle, and hang out a bit there. Sunday, I am going to go to some museums around town as I have yet to do many touristy things since I have been focused on wandering around the city. Monday, I plan on checking out a few markets and cool streets.
Wednesday--My program is taking all of us to a huge soccer game between the Netherlands and the USA. It should be a ton of fun.
Friday through Monday I will be in Geneva, Switzerland. A few friends and I are going paragliding over the Mont-Blanc mountains in Chamonix, France--only an hour bus ride from Geneva!
Hope all is well and will post some pictures here at some point in the next few days.
Looking Forward To Picnics, Sun, and Warmth Soon! Love,
Syd
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