Concertgebouw


Official home of the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, on the Museumplein. A fabulous concert hall well-known for excellent acoustics and free lunch-time concerts for Amsterdammers. I have enjoyed several wonderful concerts there, while basking in the glow of the masters who have played in this venerable hall. The orchestra also holds an occasional concert outdoors on the Museumplein, which has recently been completely renovated.

Bird Snackbar & Thai Restaurant

Fancy Thai place with a “snackbar” across the street. The “snackbar” is one of the most popular places on the Zeedijk, with patrons lining up and ordering in advance while waiting for one of the small tables on the sidewalk. The service was fast and friendly, and food arrived quickly. Tom Yam Koeng soup was delightful, spicy-hot with lots of lemon grass and galanga, and featured a couple of great big shrimps. The Pad Thai (my benchmark for good Thai cooking) was okay, and only mildly spiced. You need to ask for the hot chili peppers in this place! My friend’s dish of Sweet & Sour Chicken was unfortunately flavoured with tomato ketchup.
A nice place for a quick meal, reasonably priced.

Conscious Dreams – Kokopeli

Smart shop on the Warmoesstraat with lots of open airy space. Displays of San Pedro cactus with Peyote grafted onto them is interesting, as well as lots of books and information for the shaman in all of us. Of course mushrooms and herbal preparations for your head are the order of the day here. They offer a neat chill space in the back of the shop, overlooking the old inner harbor of Amsterdam, and the canal tour boats docked there. I’m curious about the “brain machine” they have back there, I’ll have to go visit again… They have two other locations in Amsterdam as well.