The Snowlady Chronicles

De Kas - My New Fav Restaurant In Amsterdam

Sunday September 18, 2011

Schipol Airport

Cold and Damp

Writing the last blog on Amsterdam as I wait for my flight back home.

So on the last day of IBC, I had planned to organize a dinner at de Peper – a “restaurant” ran and operated by legal squatters in the abandoned Dutch Film Academy building.  I had heard good things about it as the food is organic, vegetarian and very cheap.  But there is no table service and you have to call them between 4-630pm if you want to eat there.  The other option was De  Kas,  a restaurant started by the Michelin star chef Gert Jan Hagema.  De Kas was also highly recommended to me by my friend and is his favorite restaurant in all of Netherlands.  However, getting a reservation at De Kas is very difficult.  So while I was getting a headcount on how many people want to eat at de Peper , I happened to get a txt msg from my friend stating that he got me a reservation at De Kas!  So I quickly checked my email and found out that we did have a reservation and they were going to give us the business table with no extra cost but I had to let them know by 3pm.   And it was 250pm!  So I quickly, asked the team if they were OK with the change and confirmed the reservation.

And the restaurant did not disappoint.   The restaurant is located where an old greenhouse stood since 1926.   It was about to be demolished but the chef with helps from his friends and family saved it and converted it into a restaurant and nursery.  So when you walk into the restaurant, you can tour the nursery and also the farm outside.  It's quite a unique experience and a wonderful idea for a restaurant.

There is only one menu and the ingredients are either from their farm or farms they specially contract to who practice organic and humane farming.  The service was also exceptional.  They were very accommodating for vegetarian requests and as the main dish was duck and as I don’t eat duck, they made a fish dish for me.  And the price was reasonable as it came to 70 euros a person which included wine and drinks.  I have to say the vegetarian meal looked to be the best as the main course was risotto in an artichoke.  It was very special.  And for dessert, we had a strawberry soufflé but those who wanted cheese could substitute cheese instead of the soufflé.  The soufflé was perfectly cooked and came with a vanilla bean ice cream and crème anglais.  And just when we thought we were done, out came another pastry – almond crème filled cake, which was delicious!  And on the way out, one can take a fresh apple home !  We LOVED that place.    And it is definitely a restaurant we will go back to and also use to take clients.

 This is what you walk by when you enter the restaurant

The restaurant De Kas

The restaurant Garden

Tomatoes growing in the nursery

Fresh bread with house cured olives and pickled radishes

Fresh corn in a rich butter sauce

Savory Muffins

Risotto in an Artichoke - The main dish for the vegetarians

My snapper with a citrus sauce

Pickled lemon cucumber - very good and unsual

Strawberry Souffle

Bonus dessert:  Almond cake

We all thoroughly enjoyed our meal and rolled out of the restaurant very happy.   De Kas is now one of my favorite restaurants in the world.  

A Walk through Vondelpark

 Saturday September 17, 2011

On Thalys Train Somewhere between France and Holland

Cool Autumn Skies

For the second year in a row, we stayed at the Fashion Hotel in Amsterdam for IBC.  I was not particularly excited about it as it is kind of weird, creepy hotel where the lobby had mannequin displays including a pink mannequin that can give kids nightmare.  Last year the area around Fashion Hotel was under construction.  This year, it seems most of the construction has been completed.  And the lobby actually had a map with the location of the hotel.  So once I found the hotel was basically a 5 minute walk from the famous Vondelpark, I decided to explore it.

I can’t believe I didn’t explore this part the previous times I was in Amsterdam.  It is known as the “Central Park” of Amsterdam and opened in 1865.  It’s much smaller than Central Park  but I argue more beautiful.  I explored it for 3 mornings as weather allowed.   One morning, I spent close to 2 hours exploring the entire park.

Here are some highlights from the walk around the park.

 Nearest entrance to the park on a rainy day from Fashion Hotel

The park is home to many different birds and ducks.  And VERY quiet except for the birds chirping in the morning.

The Stork I ran into

The rose and flower garden.  Many of the roses were not in bloom but there were some spectacular sunflowers.

While taking photos, I guy yelled at me and asked me to take his photo.  So here it is.

Dogs enjoying their morning walk.

Modern sculpture near the edge of the park.

Gorgeous homes along the border of the park.  I would love to have the opportunity to live in one of them.

Ducks!

Beautiful and Serene

Interesting Tree

 

Another stork?

The most beautiful tree

I love this park!

I highly recommend any visitor to Amsterdam to escape the craziness of the popular tourist spots and enjoy a few hours of peace and quiet at this beautiful park.

Dining in Dutch

Saturday September 17, 2011

Somewhere between France and Holland on the Thalys TGV

Beautiful Autumn Weather

 

I'm on a roll here blogging as I travel on the wonderful Thalys TGV back to Amsterdam from the very special city of Paris.  I have to say that Thalys is so far the best train I've ever been on.  Anyhow, back to updating on some new discoveries while in Amsterdam during IBC.

My BFF, Linda joined me in Amsterdam to celebrate her birthday.  It’s her first time in Europe!  Fortunately, Amsterdam is a very easy city to navigate around as it’s small and English is spoken everywhere so very easy for her to get around.  I tried to meet her for dinner when I could so we could spend some time in Amsterdam together.   We discovered 2 very good restaurants that are reasonably priced (Amsterdam can be expensive!).  One was Indonesian and the other was “modern” Dutch.

The Indonesian restaurant Tujuh Market is located on the popular restaurant street Utrechtsestraat.  It was referred to me by a friend and also happened to be in the Lonely Planet Guide.  According to the Lonely Planet Guide, it is arguably the best Indonesian restaurant in Amsterdam and I have to agree.  Ironically it’s located right next to the most highly ranked Indonesian restaurant for food.   Anyhow, we got the rijsttafel, which literally translates to rice dish but is basically a tasting of many different meat, chicken and vegetable dishes to be eaten with rice.   We had the “restaurant” special rijsttafel which consisted of a tasting of the chefs favorite dishes.   What I liked very much about it is that our waitress taught us what dishes to start with first as the dishes are laid out according to spice intensities.   The idea is to end with the spiciest.  We loved all the dishes but the last dish, which was to be the spiciest, was so spicy that I actually gagged!  and that's from someone who loves spicy!

We were very full and could not finish it all.  Our bill came to about 60 euros including drinks and wine for me which was very reasonable.  It is definitely now my favorite Indonesian restaurant  in Amsterdam.

 Rijsttafel at Tujuh Market

Another restaurant recommended by my friend is Razmataz. It is not mentioned in any guide books and is located in the “Centrum” section of Amsterdam that is not part of the “tourist” area .    We had early reservations and were one of the first diners but the place quickly filled up with locals, which created a nice atmosphere.  We also noticed we were the only “foreigners” in the restaurant!  My friend told me the menu was “modern Dutch” but I found it to be Dutch influenced Italian cuisine.   Linda had the 3 course menu which started with Vitello Tonnato, followed by duck a l’orange and ended with a home made hazelnut like ice cream.   I started with the scallops in a fig sauce and ended with home made raviolis filled with ricotta and lemon.  The ravioli was very very good and cooked perfectly.  It was dressed with a fresh tomato sauce.  I wondered about scallops in a fig sauce as I would have thought it would be too heavy but that too worked.   Again, our bill was in the 60-70 euro phase which was very reasonable as we were stuffed.  And the service was fabulous.  There was no English menu so our waitress patiently described each dish to us in perfect English.

My entree:  Scallops in Fig Sauce.  Tastes better than it looks

Linda's Vitello Tonnato:  Huge Portion!

My main course - Lemon Ricotta Ravioli with fresh Tomato Sauce.  Delish!

Linda's Duck a L'orange

Linda's Hazelnut "parfait" dessert

So if I go to Amsterdam again next year, I’m going to make an effort to explore the restaurants recommended by locals and not by hotel concierges or guide books.  A lesson that I learned after over 10 visits to Amsterdam!

 

 

The Flying Ice Cream Dutchman co-starring Shelley

Friday September 16, 2011

Paris, France

Hot and Uncomfortable

 

Meant to post this earlier but caught a nasty bug at IBC in Amsterdam.  Now in Paris and somewhat functional thanks to the wonderful drugs the French pharmacies sell without prescriptions.  Anyhow, while at IBC in Amsterdam, Shelley and I ran into a magician/comedian/ice cream man who performed fabulous tricks with ice-cream.  I coaxed Shelley to participate in the act and did they put on a show!  Here it is (btw, that giggling you hear, is me.....)

 

 

 

Jet Lagged In Amsterdam

Wednesday September 7, 2011

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Rainy, Blustery and Moody

 

Hello from the beautiful city of Amsterdam.  I arrived today after a 10 hour or so flight from LAX.  I did not sleep at all on the packed flight and did not have much room to work so ended up watching several movies on the KLM flight.  The ones I loved in order are: El Bulli ( a must see for foodies, VERY interesting how this famous restaurant came up with the seasonal menus), Midnight in Paris(Woody Allen does Paris justice) and Lincoln Lawyer (good airplane movie). 

Anyhow, plane arrived early around 830am but it took over an hour to go through security and by the time I got a cab and got to the "Fashion Hotel" - (yes the same hotel from last year but I have a MUCH better room) it was close to 11am.  Made the mistake of lying on the bed after unpacking, passed out and woke up in a panic that I missed my appointments at IBC!  You see, I'm here for a grueling conference that goes 5 days straight starting on Friday and through the weekend!  Anyhow, I did not miss any appointments but got me so stressed that I developed a headache.

Soooo, took some drugs and instead of hanging inside the hotel decided to go to Rembrandt's House which is now a museum.  It's one place I haven't been to in Amsterdam, mainly because it's always packed with people.  Anyhow, I took the tram No. 1 from the hotel and made it to Rembrandt's House by 420pm.  Was told they close at 5pm but because I asked the attendants so many questions, they let me stay until 5:15 or so.   Fascinating place and a must see.   I've wanted to go there ever since my work buddies Peter, Frank and I made it to the Rijks Museum (few IBCs ago) about 10 minutes before closing time and begged the attendants to let us in as we really wanted to see Rembrandt's Night Watch in person.  They let us in at no charge and all three of us were directed immediately to the painting and stared at it in awe.  You must see in person to see the genious of Rembrandt.  The way he plays with shadows and light is majestic. 

While at the "house" I learned that Rembrandt was not only an accomplished painter but an etcher and printmaker.  I also learned that Netherlands was the center of printmaking in the 1600s. 

Rembrandt's house is a traditional dutch house with narrow stair cases.  He seems like a big guy in the paintings so I wonder how he got up and down the stairs.   .  Here are some photos from the visit:

Upon entering, you are greeted by one of his paintings

 

and the muse

In the study is a portrait of Eleezar Swalmius which was done in 1637 but was effectively confined to oblivion in 1969, when the leading Rembrandt expert of the time could not verify its authenticiy.  Fast forward to 2008, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp removed the layers of varnish and to everyone's surprise uncovered the painting in perfect condiditon  It was also assessed to be an original based on significant studies done by the group.  So now it's on loan and hanging for one to get a close up look  at the Rembrandt Museum.  And because Rembrandt rarely did portraits after 1636, this painting is now an important one.

It is here in the etching studio, I learned Rembrandt was an etcher.  He would have been a photographer too if they existed during his time, me thinks.

I Want!

View of the drawing room from an upstairs window.  Walls covered in his and his students paintings

I also learned that Rembrandt was an avid collector.  He was able to buy this grand house because of his wealthy wife according to rumors.  Well he sure liked to spend monies because the collection alone is mingbongling: seashells, weaponry, Roman Busts, Chinese and Japanese pottery.  No wonder he went bankrupt!

But the highliht is his studio. At that time, it was the largest artist studio in Amsterdman.  Unlike the other rooms, light came from many directions and it's pretty cool that one can be in the same room where Rembrandt created his masterpieces.

Paint display and his tools

The house has also many of his important prints and etchings displayed.  Look at the intricacies of yhe one below.  The guy was definitely a genius

As I walked out of the museum, I was greeted with pouring rain.  As I did not have my umbrella, I snuck in the the Rembrandt Corner Cafe next door.  I knew it was going to be a tourist trap but hey, better than getting soaked.  So while I ate an OK fried fish and chips, the rain stopped and had an idea to walk back to the hotel following the No. 1 tram.  Got the OK to start exercising again after a badly sprained anke incident so decided to test it with the walk.  Here are scenes from the walk.

First my High Cholesterol Lunch

Walking towards the DAM from Rembrandt's House

Passed my many flower shops

And an occasional crooked building

When I thought I lost the tram tracks I followed the signs.  I knew I had to go toward the flower market and Leidseplein.

If it weren't raining, I would have gone to the Cafe Luxembourg for Dutch snacks and a glass of wine on the Spui for lunch.

And I walked past some funky stores.  I can never get enough of this

These are tea bag holders!

 

Required bike and canal shot

Fast Food Candy and Cereal shop

The Leidseplein was pretty subdued.   A very different scene after 10 pm

And another beautiful canal

I found a really cool market called MARKT.  If time allows, I'm going to buy some goodies there.  I'm hoping they can vacuum pack the cheese to take back too.

Another very cool store. Everything is made out os sea shells.  This store and Markt is on the main drag to our hotel.  It seems the street if filled with furniture, antique and interior decorating shops

Workers going home

Love these gardenias shaped like Christmas trees

The No. 1 tram line that I followed back to the hotel

So was going to finish posting this at 8pm Wednesday last night.  Took a precription sleeping pill,  fell asleep quckly but have been wide awake since 215am.  So took another pill, and while waiting for it to take effect, finished the blog and it is now 345AM.  Sigh, I need to get up in an hour and 45 min....  jetlagged in Amsterdam

A Day and a Half in Amsterdam

Saturday October 2, 2010

Malibu, California

Sun and a Surprise Thunderstorm

Meant to post this earlier but got very busy at work so am posting 2 weeks late.  Anyhow, after a wonderful visit to Brussels, I left for a weekend in Amsterdam.  I took the TGV on Friday the 17th in the morning and arrived mid morning and checked into the Pulitzer Hotel.  Originally, I planned to hit the town with my BFF, Chris but work got so busy that she could not make it.  So I explored it on my own and had a great time.  I was fortunate because the weather cooperated albeit it was very cool so I wore the only fleece that I brought for the trip the whole weekend.

As I arrived the day before Yom Kippur, I decided to explore the Jewish Heritage of Netherlands.  I thought about first going to the Anne Frank house, but decided to go on Saturday as I wanted to spend a lot of time there.  It turns out I should have  visited on Friday as it closed for Yom Kippur!  I should've known better.

Anyhow, after checking in, unpacking and a very good cappucino at the Hotel Pulitzer, I decided to take a walk toward the Hermitage with stops at the Jewish Museum and the Portuguese Synagogue.

The view across the lobby of the Hotel Pulitzer:  The Hotel Pulitzer is a traditional Dutch "apartment" building converted to a hotel.  The rooms are small but quaint with a great bath tub.  It is located in the Jordaan district which is quite, elegant and happens to be where my favorite restaurant Bordewijk is located.

First stop was the Dam, which is the center of Old Amsterdam.  A lot of remodeling being done on the buildings.  I stopped at the infamous "BeeHive" department store (the Neiman Marcus of Netherlands) looking for my perfume Fracas.  Well, didn't have it.  Said it is hard to find and it is.

I then walked along one of the main streets and ran into the flower market:  The flower market from behind.

One of these days, I'm going to visit Amsterdam during the Tulip season.  I find the flower market to be touristy but at the same time, found it very tempting to try and start a garden again when I get back home.

There are many reminders that the sea plays an important role to the culture and history of The Netherlands.  I found this lamp post while crossing one of the many bridges.

I passed the Amstel River which runs through Amsterdam.

I found my way to the Jewish Museum which happens to be next door to the Hermitage.  I visited the synagogue which is beautiful but unfortunately no photos allowed.  Secure was tight, where I had to go through an x-ray machine.  Even in The Netherlands, hate crime against the Jews does exist.  I decided to have lunch at the cafeteria which was recommended by Karyn and also had a special Jewish dessert from Amsterdam - Gemberbolus - which is this yummy gingery pastry.

Gemberbolus

I then went to visit the Portuguese Synagogue which was CLOSED!!  So bummed!  They closed early for the holiday.  The synagogue is under restoration.  But even from the outside it is interesting as you see the walls are warped in this very old synagogue

Portuguese Synagogue

I then went to the Hermitage to see a fabulous exhibition of the Fauvism painters.  The exhibition was called "Matisse to Malivich" where 75 paintings were chosen from the Hermitage in St Petersburg.  I was not allowed to take photos but it was amazing.  Made me really want to do a trip to St. Petersburg.

After thoroughly enjoying the museum, I slowly walked back to the hotel where I stopped at a cheese shop to get some aged Gouda, bread and a nice Pinot to enjoy in the hotel for dinner. 

I walked through many very charming streets.  Here's one of them that is right by the hotel:

The next day, Saturday, I got up early and had breakfast at the hotel.  It was an amazing breakfast but had I known I had to pay 30 Euros for it, I would have eaten elsewhere.  Anyhow, got loaded with Vitamin C from a very good orange juice and another very very good cappucino, it was time to head out and explore more of Amsterdam.  My plan for the day was to start at Ann Frank's House which I've been to before but wanted to go again, then visit the Old Church and Hidden Church in the Red Light District, stop at the famous design institution Droog, have Indonesian food for lunch at Kantjil, walk back to the hotel and then take the Hotel Pulitzer boat ride thru the canals in the early evening.

The first stop was Ann Frank's house.  Well, as I mentioned earlier, it was closed for Yom Kippur.  I thought at least the bookstore would be open but it too was closed.  Sadly the 180 year old Chestnut Tree that Ann Frank referred to many times in her diary fell over during a fierce storm this August.  I've heard the city of Amsterdam will replace the tree with one of its saplings.  If ever in Amsterdam and only have time for one place to visit, Ann Frank's house is where you should go.

Ann Frank

I then walked through the DAM again and headed towards the Red Light District looking for the two churches.  While walking the streets, I notices this crooked building.  It's hard to tell from the photo but it's the building with the small evergreen trees adorning the windows.

While walking towards the Red Light District, I noticed a trio of swans heading the same way.

And they led me to the Old Church.  It's a pretty magnificent church in the middle of the Red Light District. It was built in the early 1300 and nearly 15 generations of Amsterdam citizens have renovated the church over the years.

I admire The Netherlands for their tolerance and their open minds. But visiting the Red Light District has never been something I cared doing.  So this is the first time I've been there and at around 1030am.  I was surprised how clean and quaint the neighborhood is.  It is so odd have "brothel" houses, weed restaurants right by a church.

In 2007, Belle, a statue honoring all the prostitutes of the world was installed in front of the church.

My next stop was the Hidden Church called "Our Lord in the Attic".  At is is Hidden.  I had to go into several "coffee shops" smelling of marijuana and one S&M bar (I had no idea!) to ask for directions as those were the only places open.  Anyhow, found it.  Unfortunately, it too was going through restoration so the church itself was mostly under construction.  In the 1600s, Catholicism was banned but many of the Protestants looked the other way as people constructed churches in the rooftops of their buildings.  This church is the only hidden church of its kind left.  So it is definitely interesting to visit.  Here are some photos of the church.

Love the Delft tile work in the kitchen.

The church in the attic which is under construction.

I then decided to walk towards Rembrandt's house to get to the Droog, the next stop.  While walking, I found another crooked building.

 I love this neighborhood by the Red Light District.  Very quaint but wondered if the houses along the canal flood at times.

I then accidentally find Chinatown.  It was the cutest Chinatown I've ever been too.

I followed a sign to a market and again saw these ghastly things which I saw yesterday in every park I walked through.  I had no idea what they were used for until I saw the gentleman below.

I can't remember the name of this church but a farmer's market was taking place.  Cheese, bread and even home spun yarn was on sale.

I continued my walk toward the Droog but stopped to take this picture of the New Church.  So Amsterdam! 

And then after several more canal crossings, I found Droog.

LUV this place

I started to get hungry so headed towards Spui, which is where Kantjil, the Indonesian place is located.  And it happens to be located across the street from "Five Flies" which opened in 1939 and is housed in five 17th century buildings.  I've been there before (my boss took me there) and remember the butter they served for the bread was the BEST butter ever!

Got my fill of some Indonesian food:  Indonesian Rice Bowl

And started walking back to the hotel where I went thru a funky area of town.

After a nice one hour long nap, it was time for the boat cruise.  This cruise is only for Hotel Pulitzer guests and its on the boat the "Tourist" which was built in 1909 to take VIPs from their hotel to parties, dinners, etc.  I was joined by a lovely Chinese couple and some folks from New York!  It was fun.  Jackson and I texted each other on the boat.  I even sent him a video of the boat ride to his mother's iphone. Pretty cool!

The boat "Tourist" parked in front of the hotel.

First thing the captain pointed out was to notice these gigantic hooks to hoist furniture to the upper floors of the buildings.

Views from the boat cruise:

The South Sea

Moon

We went by many houseboats and charming neighborhoods.  If I were to visit Amsterdam for the first time, a boat ride would be the first thing I do as you get a good overview of the city.

For my last evening, I hung out at the bar, had 2 glasses of wine and finished the book I was reading.  Although the first week was very tough due to insomnia and a crazy work schedule, it ended up being a fabulous trip.  The highlight was definitely seeing Karyn and Peter.  But enjoying Amsterdam for the first time at a relaxing pace was very enjoyable too.  I'm hoping I get to go again next year and if I do, I think I want to explore some of the other towns in The Netherlands.

My First 6 Days in Amsterdam

Friday September 17, 2010

Somewhere between Brussels and Amsterdam on the Thalys 9311

Sunny Crisp Morning

 

What I did in Amsterdam from Sept 8- Sept. 14. - Warning Boring Post.

Wednesday September 8:  Arrived in Amsterdam on a packed KLM flight from LAX sitting next to the toilets and got no sleep!  Finished “Saturday” by Ian McEwan though and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Shared a cab with Shelley to the “Fashion Hotel” cuz we had lots of luggage.  Hotel room was great and lovely bathroom which is important to me when I travel for business.  Took advantage of the break in the rain and walked around looking for a “town” to buy some toiletries as the hotel was located outside the center of Amsterdam.  Would have taken a longer walk if I’d known it was to be the last opportunity to walk around town in daylight for the next 6 days.  Ate Pasta Carbonara at the hotel bar which was horrible, got sick and was sound asleep by 9pm.

Found a quite neighborhood behind the hotel but couldn't enjoy it as it started to rain.

 

The Pasta Carbonara that made me sick

The Fashion Hotel:  Creepy mannequins everywhere

Thursday September 9:  Got up around 1am as stomach was still recovering from the Pasta Carbonara.  Staggered to the lobby restaurant to get some very light breakfast as stomach recovered and headed to RAI to prep for the conference with Shelley via the train.  It is inside the RAI where I will spend most of my time.  Go to my company office, do my presentation, head back to Fashion Hotel, eat at the bar again but this time with great company and hoping I get to sleep as the conference starts the next day. 

Friday September 10:  Wake up at 3am and can’t get to sleep.  That’s about a total of  6hrs of sleep in 2 days.  Make it to the RAI and do my pitch.  Everything is good but want to take a nap.  Meet up with my old Japanese colleagues when working in Japan and go to a local restaurant around the RAI for dinner.  I have Chicken Piri  Piri which is supposed to me spicy but not spicy at all for me.  Head back and so tired so hoping I’ll sleep thru the night.

Saturday September 11:  Remembering that tragic day in  America.   Wide awake again at 2am.  Jet lag is very bad this trip.  Should’ve brought prescription pills.  Brought Excedrin PM but after reading the side effects decide not to take it.   Make it through another day at the RAI and take the team out for Indonesian food at Sama Sebo. Yum!  Walked to the DAM, had an after dinner drink, saw a almost naked man climb a rope, headed back to the hotel on the Tram, confident I’ll get a good 8 hrs sleep.

@Sama Sebo whe had the "Rice Dish" course.  Basically a lot of dishes meant to be eaten with rice. 

The City at Nite.

Sunday September 12:  2-3 hrs of sleep was all I could get  Made a mistake of checking email and got stressed out.  Survived another day at RAI, managed to not make too much of a fool of myself, except that I somehow managed to change the time on my watch so that the the time was 4 hours ahead of the real time.  Gave a colleague a hard time cuz he insisted it was 1130am when my watch said 330pm.  Anyhow, found out I was wrong, had a good laugh but then I got depressed  because a) thought the show was over for the day in 2.5 hours but instead have 6.5 hrs more to go and b) freaked out because it felt liked a worked almost a full day.  Went to the client cocktail event which was nice .  Ended the day with  a fabulous dinner  at Brasserie van Baerle.  I had one of the best Caesar’s salad in a long time and a delicious fish dish.  Didn’t take photos as could not think straight by the end of the nite.  Went out with friends for a nite cap, had 2 more glasses of wine, hoping that I’ll have a very good nights sleep.

Monday September 13:  Went to bed around 130am woke up around 4am dead tired but could not go to sleep.  Had a 730am breakfast meeting and now I’m running on adrenaline.  Survived our busiest day at the booth and ended the day eating fabulous Italian food at Segugio.  Had the 4 course vegetarian menu. Now really hoping I’ll have a good nights sleep as have lost my short term memory. 

Tuesday September 14:  Last Day!  And slept for 6 hours which made a BIG difference.  Last day at booth was mostly internal meetings.  Ended early so went to the hotel where fell into a deep sleep for about 40minutes.  Woke up disoriented.  Went to my FAVORITE restaurant in Amsterdam , Bordewijk which did not disappoint. I had spinach raviolis with truffles and a roasted monk fish.   Got back to hotel exhausted and passed out but not before packing to leave for Brussels.

The Cheese Man at Bordewijk

My dessert.  I LOVE that restaurant

Summary:  So to summarize, I spent the past 6 days or so in the wonderful town of Amsterdam at the RAI and inside restaurants so hardly enjoyed the town but ate good food and gained probably 5 kilos.   I have a  day and a half to spend in the center of town after my visit with my BFF Karyn and her husband in Brussels so hoping to get out and absorb the beauty of the city before leaving for LA.

And last but not least, the cute barrista who served me pretty and very good latte's at the booth to keep me going.