Rusty

That's Rusty, the bike in front. I purposely posed her in front of the graffiti. (totally kidding)

Rusty and I on getting to know one another on a 40 km bike ride in Dutch country.

No bike spandex here!

I have two bikes at home and being in Amsterdam without a bike is NO fun. So on Friday, I got "Rusty." No need for the explanation on her name. She's my bike for the rest of the time I'm here and we're going to have a brilliant time. I got her at a place called Recycled Bicycles, the company builds bikes from spare parts that are garbage-picked or donated (no stolen bikes) it was a cheaper alternative than renting a bike for 3 weeks. Today I took Rusty on a 40 km bike ride in Dutch country.

Dam Canal Cruising

The weekend has been jammed packed since my sister in law, Sara, is in town. The weekend couldn't have looked better...blue skies and sun in the Dam, which of course, calls for a canal cruise. I read about the St. Nicolaas Boat Club, a non-profit club, in one of my many guides. Basically a 30s era flat-bottom boat that seats about 10 and you can bring your own food and drinks. Our captain, Ken, a complete expat hippie from the States was a great guide. Since it was so nice out and everyone was enjoying the company, weather and tour, we cruised around the canals for almost 2.5 hrs. All this for a €10 suggested donation.

I heart FOOD!

I've always secretly wanted to be a food journalist or a travel writer. I thought those people had it good by being able to eat amazing things or travel to exotic places all over the world. Well lucky me, I can be those people on my blog. :) So here's my attempt at my first food entry.

This evening my sister-in-law, Sara and I went to Balthazar's Keuken, located in the heart of the Joordan neighborhood. I had a recommendation from a friend who lived here and Sara had it on her list from a food blog, so obviously it was meant to be that we would eat there. We made reservations for 6 pm. The place just opened and we were immediately greeted by a really charming, modern-rustic, comfortable atmosphere. We really didn't know what to expect, but knew it was a set 3 course menu. The waiter pulled up a chair, sat down and proceeded to explain to us (in English) what was on the menu for the evening. If you can read Dutch, it's the picture above. If not, let me tell you. The first course was a mix of appetizers: veal in mustard sauce, beets, duck, fried goat cheese ravioli with a sweet glaze on top, clams and bread presented on a large plate for both of us to share. It was nice to try such a variety because normally these are not the things I venture out to try. The main dish was a seared tuna steak with squid ink, shrimp risotto with fried basil on top. This was DEVINE! Seasoned and seared to perfection. The chef even came out to ask how our meal was. Nice personal touches. The finale was a macaroon filled with raspberry with a orange flavored cream dalloped on top served over a citrus sauce, Sara's macaroon was filled with a pistachio cream. We ate every last bit on that plate!

Atmophere: ★★★★★
Service: ★★★★, only because they aren't really customer service driven and the waiter went out on at least 3 smoke breaks while we were there.
Food: ★★★★★, thanks for tantalizing my taste palette
Location: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★★, we went to a sub-par Thai place down the street and paid about the same price per person, wasn't even close to this caliber of dining/food experience.

Overall, a 5 star dining experience, we were there for 2.5 hours enjoying every moment!

Daily inspiration

SKYPE ROCKS!

Ok, so many of you may already know this, but Skype rocks! I think it's been a savior in keeping up with the hubbie while I'm over here. It's nice to see him and of course, I love doing my "Maya-voice" and freaking my little pup out. It's fun watching her try to figure out where my voice is coming from. Anyway, if you wanna Skype....look me up but remember what time it is here in A'dam. XOXO, Winnie.

Norway Says

When I was in Norway, I made a stop in a design collaborated called "Norway Says." I had a great experience talking with a designer of the firm, Torbjorn Anderssen, and learned about some of their amazing products. One of the products was this amazing wallpaper, which is made from straw that is leftover from the grain production from Torbjorn's hometown. The wallpaper is mostly sold to private homes, but you can see it up close and personal stateside at The UN Building in NYC. Great example of using sustainable materials.

Today's Dam Walking Tour

Beautiful canal home. The sun is shining on the brick, but it's black and I loved the contrast with the red flowers.

One of the many beautiful canals in Amsterdam.

One of the stalls at Noordermarkt. Spools and spools of ribbon.

Today I consider my first REAL day in Amsterdam. The other days were a blur due to jetlag and then I was in Oslo. Since it's Monday, nothing really opens until 13:00. Yes, I even set my iPhone to read in military time for the full immersion effect and totally digging it. Amsterdam is definitely NOT a city of convenience. For example, the train station, grocery store, take out food places, most shops and most cafes do not except credit card. The sun was shining today and I decided to look through my many guide books and picked out a walking tour of Jordaan, a really cute neighborhood here. First stop, Noordermarkt, a outdoor market that sells lots of stuff like furniture, clothes, jewelry, fabric, bike locks. It's huge so I spent a lot of time just perusing the stalls. It was nice following the book, as it was like having a conversation with the city, pointing out things I would never have known if I were to aimlessly walk around. It was a successful morning and then a trip to the grocery store to stock my little kitchenette.

Top 10 list for Oslo, Norway

4 days, 3 nights in Oslo, Norway. Here is my Top Ten list of the city and what to see and do there. In no particular order except how the pictures appeared above.

1. Visit the local markets. You can get a good local flavor by visiting the markets. I got disappointed I couldn't ship all the cool furniture and housewares back with me.

2. Eat a Skollebolle. Words can't really explain how yummy this Norwegian treat is. Some bread with a hint of cardamon, covered with toasted coconuts with a creamy custard filling. Delicious!

3. Stroll through Vigeland Park to view the sculptor's many amazing works, sit and watch the locals to get a good sense of Oslo's community. People come here with their families, hang out, catch some rays and BBQ.

4. Take an architectural tour of the city. You'll find some amazing buildings, including the one pictured above of the US Embassy, by Finnish designer, Eros Saarinen.

5. Must stop into Henri Vibskov Boutique to drool over all the amazing pieces in the store, including Comme de Garcons, Raf Simon, and of course Vibskov himself and to chat with the really friendly gal at the store to find out what local events the store might be having.

6. Eat at Alex Sushi, it is the BEST sushi in town according to all the locals. I even tried the whale! Seared rare like a steak and has the texture of a red meat. Very interesting. The menu quoted a Japanese proverbs "Eat something new everyday and you will live 7 years longer." This will be added to my short list of best dining experiences.

7. In any city, a bike tour is a must. Fortunately, Oslo has an amazing bike check-out for locals (thanks Brede and Alaina) where you can pick up a bike around various locations in town. Only locals get this privilege.

8. Must walk on top of the Oslo opera house. See by last post.

9. Visit the local design collaborative called "Norway Say" and chat with the local designers about their projects and learn more about what's happening in design in Norway.

10. There are a million galleries and museums around the city. I went to the Museum of Design and Architecture. Check a few out, if it's not nice out. Fortunately, it was gorgeous out for most of the time I was there, so we spent a lot of time outdoors.

Oslo Opera House

View from top of the opera house

Cool looking patterning...need to find out more about this.

In the building, but outside of the actual auditorium.

Surface patterning

A better view of the opera house

There are so many design highlights from my Oslo trip, but this one is the freshest in my mind. After biking our way around the city with my personal tour guides and friends, we ended up at the Oslo opera house. To see it is the flesh, was nothing but jawdropping. My friend, Brede, suggested it looked like a glacier with all the brilliant white Italian marble. I loved all the textures and patterns that this building allowed you to interact with and the fact that you can walk all over it, literally walk on top of the opera house. I also appreciated what an amazing community space this was. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see a show there, but I could only imagine that the acoustics are phenomenal.

On a side note: these pictures were taken around 9:15pm. Since we're so far up north it doesn't start to get dark until 11pm and then it starts getting light around 3am.

Oslo Opera House Facts:
° Designed by Norwegian architects, Snøhetta
° Walkways and the roof plaza are paved with slabs of La Facciata, a brilliant white Italian marble
° Winner of the European Union Prize for Comtemporary Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Award 2009
° Construction started in 2003 and was completed April 2008
° Cost $800 million

Really??

This skateboard shop in Oslo is called "SHIT." Yes, I was very amused. I love how the name/logo of the store is straightforward and to the point. I can only imagine how appropriate this term is if I were a skateboarder.

Uh-oh.....

Dutch is such a hard language to learn....guess I'll have to figure this one out. It's a washer and dryer all in one. The Dutch words are spelled out in front of me, but then again, I don't even need words to NOT figure things out. I couldn't figure out how to get the shower going today. I even called the front desk and they sent someone up. I guess I was suppose to pull the button up not push it down. I'm pretty sure the guy thought I was a dumb American. Oh well....made me laugh!

Home Sweet Amsterdam

I'm so tired, but need to try to stay up. The least I could do is post pictures of where I'll be calling home the next couple weeks. It's located right in the heart of Amsterdam at Dam Square and on the other side of the canal from the Red Light District. They tried to put me in the basement apartment, but I asked for a less depressing room. I'm very happy now.

Explorer

A good reminder of my upcoming trip. Click to see larger image.

Bon Voyage

Tomorrow I leave for Amsterdam for a 5 week work immersion. YEAH! I'm going to give blogging another go to keep you all posted on my whereabouts, thoughts, and inspirations. Right now, I have to go finish packing. So far: 2 pairs of heels, 1 pair of ankle boots, pair of Chuck Taylors, a pair of workout/running shoes, 1 pair of sandals and a pair of flats. Those of you who know me, will know these pairs of shoes will reproduce by the time I get back to the States. Haha. Thanks for all the love and support. Also, if anyone has any suggestions on where to go, what to do, feel free to leave a comment. I'm trying to leave my 5 weeks loose to allow room for some spontaneity.