TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

I have to say hats off to SupperClub Cruise Amsterdam for truly delivering a different kind of dining experience. Although the food here was quite good, ultimately, for this kind of restaurant you come here to be surprised and be entertained. Yes, those are the correct verbs. Be surprised and be entertained. If you are familiar with SupperClub, they have popularised the communal dining on a bed concept. There are 2 SupperClubs in Amsterdam, the original SupperClub restaurant and the SupperClub Cruise. The difference between the two is of course easy, SupperClub Cruise is housed in a boat that sails on the Het IJ River. I ordered a rose and then 2 more glasses of red wine while Dutchman had beer, cola and a tonic. He is my chauffeur =). So you dine on a big communal bed side by side with everyone, no big table and chairs and shoes off please (and make sure your feet do not stink!) The philosophy of this unconventional restaurant is the feasting of our senses. Anything can happen ...

It is never too late to post what I did last weekend. Well, Saturday and Sunday I pretty much did what the doctor prescribed—do nothing and relax. But Friday evening I went out with Blondine for some drinks and people watching at Zussen Lobby Restaurant in Janskerkhof, Utrecht. We had coffee and then prosecco. I had white and she had rose. Then we ordered another round, both rose. Then it rained. Summer ended for a while. Then it was dry again. It was the perfect evening to people watch in Utrecht. Because it’s the yearly ‘ Summer Darkness ’ festival, a 3-day/night gothic-cosplay event held at the Dom. The city’s ambience was something like god threw out a huge party and invited all his friends from heaven and hell. We even saw the devil and his army of bats. Naturally, Blondine and I stayed glued to our seats as we relish the outstanding passing scenery before us. We had fun watching! I was not able to take pictures of the great costumes because I was busy talking but I managed...

Trivia: Did you know that Belgium was once part of the Netherlands? Blondine and I in Ghent last weekend (21 July). In 1830 Belgium broke away from the Netherlands but it was only a year later that Belgium’s National Congress adopted a new constitution and on 21 July 1831 Leopold I of Saxe-Coburg swore allegiance to the new constitution. He became the first king of Belgium. Thus 21 July is Belgium’s ‘Nationale Feestdag’ (National Holiday) and coincidentally Blondine and I were there. I’ve been to Ghent before so I know what to anticipate except that we didn’t expect the multitudes and the noise. It was about 16:00 when the provisional bar and cafe stands and floating entertainment platforms on the Graslei (canal) were opened. Crowds kept flowing in and the noise became unbearable. Sorry if I am sounding like a grandma but I cannot handle a rowdy crowd. If I go to a street party I need to have static location where I can sit and watch everything happening before me and not t...

Trivia: Did you know that the Danes are the happiest people in the world? Use google please for more info =) It was a sunny day in Copenhagen with sporadic passing clouds. I wanted to enjoy my afternoon in the city with a glass of wine while people watching, something that is always in my agenda when I am travelling. Luckily, I found an available table at the outdoor terrace of the strategically located ‘Café du Norden’ on Stroget and Kongens Nytorv (the Kings New Square). Here, I met Bj. That is Bj at my back before we actually met and had a chat. Bj is in his 50’s, lives in Copenhagen and works in the finance industry. He is married and has a daughter. He’s basically spending his afternoon chilling out with a beer in the city while his wife and daughter went to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, a unique open-air museum located by Oresund, about 42 kilometres north from the capital city. It is the same museum that I wanted to visit that same day, however, I wasn’t feelin...

In Copenhagen, Denmark, there exists a free town where you can do whatever you want and be whoever you want yourself to be. The residents to date in this Copenhagen enclave are less than a thousand and the whole area covers about 34 hectares located in the suburb of Christianshavn. There are no hard rules here except for the following: When visiting, make sure to pay attention to these otherwise you will be pulled out from the crowd. The residents of Christiania are known to have smashed cameras so I made sure to keep my camera out of sight. No pictures and no running in the Green Zone. The Green Zone is the heart/centre of Christiania. So Christiania was high up in my list of places in Copenhagen to visit. Just out of curiosity really. What is a town like without any legal form of entity? Where everything is free going and people can be whoever they wanted themselves to be? People here can do whatever they want? Yup, I was really, really curious! Like San Marino in Italy, L...

Finally! So I bought one of my favourite drink, Martini Rose sparkling wine to celebrate a bit. Really good when served chilled. I discovered this wine 2 years ago. And I have been eating my favourite seafood salads in outdoor terraces during lunch. Yummy. I can eat this for days and I will not complain. This one was at the restaurant of NH Naarden. Ah, one must always seek the good life huh. But I hope the warm and dry weather stays??? Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)

Confession time. I do not really like heights. I mean, I appreciate panoramic views but an open-air setting, in a balcony or a tower on top of a very high building? Oooooh, that makes my knees wobble. Nevertheless, I still push myself every time because I have the gorgeous views at the end of the climb in mind. The beautiful and elegant tower of Vor Frelsers Kirke (Church of Our Savior). You can see the architectural wonder, the Oresund Bridge that connects Denmark (Copenhagen) and Sweden (Malmo) from the top of the Church of Our Saviour in Christianshavn. The tower and spire stretches to 90 metres. So when I stopped over at Christianshavn my goal was to really just explore the area quickly and then go to Christiana, the infamous autonomous enclave in Denmark. However, while walking around I saw the beautiful tower of the 17th century ‘Vor Frelsers Kirke’ (Church of Our Saviour). The spire on top of the tower I believe was finished half a century later. I love the b...