That's me in a nutshell. :bis:

Though I disagree. I just don't like the mood in brown cafe's. It's dark and gloomy and people go there to drink - a lot.

I like to nurse my drink (not a heavy drinker at all.) and look around and chat w/ people w/o having to shout 'cause of the loudness of the music or having to twist and turn because of the crowdiness around my spot.

I really hate 'trendy hi-end bars' when they're cold and shiny and full of people who are mostly interested in themselves -- and of course money. I know plenty of 'trendy bars', but they're trendy in a different way: in an art scene/indie music/design/cult/young people/creative/open-minded/down-to-earth kind of way. I'm talking about people who have a certain imagination, as well as the curiosity and independence to find their own clothing/music/magazines/art (or whatever they're into). These are the non-cynical ones, who actually love something (whatever this may be) and try to make a difference in their own positive and modest way.

Places like Jimmy Woo's - as Jamcocteau pointed out - are not trendy at all. They play house music from 1992 for thirty-somethings who have too much money, but - in reality - have lost touch with the true culture of the night. Places like that are extremely, extremely boring and really encourage the serial killer in me.

In most cases, nice places will be interesting for a while, but before you know the so-called 'trendy' people will take over. Then it's time to move on.

K. (not trendy)

Oh yeah, I forgot the most important thing: there must be plenty of sexy birds.

K.

No offence intended there :blush:

Maybe that is why I like brown cafes because they go there to drink a lot but have to agree that it is nice to find a place where you can go to talk without having to shout or being overcrowded, was thinking about Cafe De Jaren in this instance.

It is one of the things about Amsterdam I do like in that there are enough types of bars / cafes to suit just about everybodys taste.

Amsterdam is where I would like to live if I could. It is a fantastic place, beautiful and exciting. I did visit many many times. And I still do as often as I can afford it.

Yeah, nice one. One of the best terraces in town (that's why it's always full...). You can go there by boat.

K

One of the big plus points of Amsterdam is that everybody's requirements can be satisfied no matter what.

As Ray always says - what in life can be better than coming out of his favourite bar on the Herengracht canal (with all its beauty) to go to a champions league game.

For my 2 penny's worth - my favourite spot is Spui. If you sit there long enough I really do believe that the whole of Amsterdam will pass by you.

I really like Brouwerij t'Ij. That place is great.

A beer at the bar: 2 Euros
Tickets to Ajax - Inter: 35 Euros
Seeing Julio Cruz score a late equalizer: Priceless.

:D

Never been Aves, but On Sunday Ray persuaded (well not that much persuasion was used) me to accompany him to Brouwerij t'Ij after the AZ match. Reallly looking forward to it. :bier:

Could you mention some of those? Hope you got some new places to explore for me.



Very nice place! Go there pretty often 'cause it's about 30 meters from my university building. They've got some great (Illy) coffee!

Here are some of the places that I think have a good feeling/positive vibe to them. I frequent most of them far too regularly... :D

Nieuwmarkt area: Café Cuba, Cotton Club, Lime, Lef.
CS area: Bitterzoet, Dulac, Harlem, Dwaze Zaken.
Dam area: Winston International.
Leidseplein area: Weber, Lux, Noa.
Oud West/Overtoom area: Ebeling, Zouk.
Jordaan area: Proust, Finch, De Buurman.
De Pijp area: Chocolate Bar and several other places along the same street.
'Nine Little Streets' area: Café Wolvenstraat, '23' and a few others.

Some of the more underground music hangouts include the Nieuwe Anita (although I think they recently changed their name... not sure; it's on Frederik Hendrikstraat #111), OT 301, Sappho and Zaal 100.

Some of the simple, honest pubs that I really like are 't Loosje (Nieuwmarkt), Hesp and De IJsbreker (Weesperzijde), Helmers, De Toog (both Overtoom), De Prins (Prinsengracht) and Schiller (Rembrandtplein).

Also (don't want to sound blasé...), as a music journalist I can always walk into the Paradiso and the Melkweg for a quick beer. I have an unlimited access pass for both venues.

Okay - now you more or less know where to find me. Fair chance the guy standing next to me is Jamcocteau... :D

K.

I'm going to be in Amsterdam on Saturday (Aug 4th) for A'dam Tournament match v. Arsenal.

I need a reccomendation of a decent hotel in the city (criteria: nothing fancy, clean, centrally located, reasonable price).

Any thoughts from others that have visited the city?

manneken Pis said:




There is a hostel near mariott hotel its only 25 euros a night...when you arrive at the schipol there is a telephone service with the list and pictures of accomadation centres/hotels...I will try and find the name for you soon.

All hotels are going to be very busy this weekend as it is Gay Pride weekend so might be best to have a look in advance

Interesting little story about the canals:

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/13/news/journal.php

Gentlemen (and ladies, if you're out there):

We need some more hotel recommendations (and also warnings/tales of woe) for this page:

http://www.ajaxusa.com/travel/hotels.html

You can post your comments here, and/or email them to me at jim(at)ajaxusa.com.

Please... the newbies are counting on you...

I can recommend th Hotel De Paris in Marnixstraat. Stayed there a few times, it's not exactly luxurious but central, clean and quite cheap.

I only wish I'd stayed there this time - nicer than where I ended up.

Thanks, SE6Ajacied. I've added this hotel to the page.

Anyone else?

I know I'll be staying at the Hortus yet another time. It's clean, two metro stops away from Centraal Station, close to several bus and tran lines, the owners are Ajax supporters and they have pictures of our previous trips on the walls in the lobby. If you can bear with the pot smokers and if you don't mind taking your shower in the corridor outside your room, then it's definitely the best price/quality ratio you can find.

A question for you local Dutchies... Can I walk into a phone shop (Orange Shop, Vodafone, Primafoon) and buy a cheap phone and a prepaid SIM card, and have a cellphone for a week? In the past I've had the use of a friend's cellphone, and I always just put extra value into that card and keep using it. But I don't know if I'll have access to that phone this time, so I might need to buy one. What should I expect to spend for a simple phone? Any advice?

You can go as cheap as 30 euro's, including 15 euro to call.

Go to places like Belcompany (everywhere in Amsterdam. Nieuwendijk for example), they are really cheap and you'll be ready in minutes.

Excellent, thanks for the tip.

Every one of my friends that has ever stayed at Hotel Donna on Stadhouderskade has been happy, although rooms there are about 80E.

This website has GREAT deals for rooms booked 20 or less days fomr the stay - http://amsterdam.ratestogo.com/

Cool, I added this info to our Hotels page.