The Sentinel Amsterdam vol. 6 #8 by Consultancy Market Media

vol. 6 #8 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 19 March 2013

The Sentinel Amsterdam

Integrity, heart, humour

feature

perspectives

POLAND: WAITING ON SKIERS

PERSPECTIVES: DAM IN 60 MINUTES!

in this issue

travel - p.36

restaurant review - p. 56

Waiting on skiers

Barbados

Veni Mange

‘No country in Europe has coloured discussion and opinion as much as Poland’

‘The Mecca of Caribbean holiday resort islands’

‘It feels like you are in someone’s living room’

trends - p. 70

technology - p. 74

sport - p. 72

Dead famous

User interface

The Gold Room

‘Frankenshoes’, made from a collection of all the exotic animal skins’

‘Interfaces are pretty much everywhere’

feature - p.04

more perspectives - p. 20

tripping days - p. 42

culture - p. 46

Dam in 60 minutes

The heights of Trinity

Wroclaw

amsterdam city life - p. 61

star beer guide - p. 64

sentinel recommended - p. 66

Bring back

Debowe Mocne

spotted - p. 68

film review - p. 69

health & well-being - p. 72

Where is this in Amsterdam

Room 2C

Citrine

sport - p. 78

sport - p. 80

On the Volley

White Out

The Sentinel Amsterdam

E-mail: sentinelpost@gmail.com Website: www.thesentinel.eu Contributors: Sam van Dam, Andrei Barburas, Dirkje Bakker-Pierre, Evelina Kvartunaite, Ananda Welij, and Simon Joseph

Editors: Gary Rudland & Denson Pierre Design, realisation and form: Andrei Barburas & No-Office.nl Webmaster: www.sio-bytes.tumblr.com Webhost: Amsterjammin.com

The Sentinel Amsterdam does not intentionally include unaccredited photos/illustrations that are subject to copyright. If you consider your copyright to have been infringed, please contact us at sentinelpost@gmail.com.

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Poland: Waiting on skiers 4

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Opinions and feelings are not 100% loaded on any one sideâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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By Denson Pierre

No country in Europe has coloured discussion and opinion as much as Poland over the past ten to fifteen years. The content of this opinion has been an extraordinary mix of misinformation, in the main, usually wrapped up in tired pseudo-economic arguments, seasoned with hollow socially prejudiced sniping. As with most things in life, however, opinions and feelings are not 100% loaded on any one side. On this press trip, together with my two Dutch colleagues, we were tasked with spreading some of the more positive truths about Poland and, more importantly, the fun and sport available in the holiday region of Polish Silesia.

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‘Spreading some of the more positive truths about Poland’

This region, with its capital city of Wroclaw, also encompasses a wonderful nature park and reserve, and numerous picturesque towns and villages. It is a long inhabited and cultured region that boasts more castles and palaces than all of the nearby Czech Republic. What tends to dominate attention at the tail end of winter, however, are the well resourced opportunities to indulge most forms of alpine sport and recreation. The beautiful Karkonoszce Mountains offer various ski and walking routes. The morphology and relatively low height of the landforms make for relatively easily manageable slopes, in the main. Green and blue coded slopes are most popular, making this region an exceptional option for beginners up to intermediate skiers. Because of the reduced sense of danger common in massive ranges and at greater heights, it is an ideal family destination for snowy sport.

So much for the logistics of accessing this region but the real news is that it is extremely good fun to be here. Polish people of this region are comfortable in their skin and this makes them more hospitable. With employment rates just around the worrying level common to the ‘second-tier’ Euro countries (14%), this region is not as ravaged by economic woe as others, such as southern Poland, where some black spots record up to 40% unemployment rates. Seemingly everyone I met spoke enough English even to joke around, as quite a few are typically modern, mobile Europeans, in as much as they have spent some time in a foreign country at some point in the past fifteen years, seeking better employment opportunities. Poland remains on

Fortunately, our trip coincided with the region’s massive international cross-country event (http:// www.bieg-piastow.pl/), with 6,000 participants over two days, and my own first attempts to ski. The short version of this story is that, on my narrow bits of dried spaghetti (cross-country skis), I managed about 26 metres in distance before realising that if I had already fallen three times, there was no way I should consider the six-kilometre course my colleagues were about to embark upon. Later that day I was able to negotiate the ‘baby’ learners’ slope without falling, using much more realistic and stable downhill skis. I would consider further lessons in the future but only within this sort of family setting and not somewhere with a greater emphasis on ‘show skiing’. In fact, this is the crux of my recommendation: this area is so ideal for a family break; almost every activity on offer is interesting and all the activities are kept to a non-extreme level, which really means they are for everyone! To gain a fuller impression of the places at which we stayed and the activities we enjoyed, have a look at the movie link below. This is accompanied by links to a selection of recommended hostelries and places of interest, which may spark your interest in also visiting the fun of Silesia. A further handy tip is that the exchange rate to the euro is about 4:1 and everything, yes everything, you would need on holiday is priced at what feels like at least 40% cheaper than in the Netherlands. Movie: watch here Hotel: hotel-tumski.com.pl Hotel: hotelmagnes.pl Hotel: samotnia.com.pl/en/index.php Hotel/palace: palac-lomnica.pl Activity: wang.com.pl Activity: muzeumkarkonoskie.pl Activity: kpnmab.pl/en Activity: sudetylift.com.pl/en/ Host: polen.travel/nl

As to how this entire region relates to and is relevant to visitors from the Netherlands or elsewhere, it strikes me as peculiar that it is not even more popular with tourists. The capacity is there; the mountain town of Karpazc alone, where we stayed for half of our visit, can easily accommodate 15,000 visitors. Should the resources of nearby and utterly affordable bed and breakfasts (at around €15 per night) be needed, a substantial number of extra rooms can be made available. For those who desire the higher star-rated and all-inclusive, spa-resort feel, there is also the humungous, 900-room Hotel Golebiewski to consider. Driving from the Netherlands takes just 8.5 hours and flying from Schiphol, via Frankfurt, is an established route which leaves just a 90-minute drive from the cute Wroclaw international airport to the welcoming heights.

the outside of full economic integration into the EU but, of course, the tourism sector can only report a so far non-scientific 40% decrease in visits over the current season. German, French and the other big European populations are naturally the majority of those who usually turn up but with these countries practicing more austerity, the more ‘exotic’ holiday trips are the first to suffer. Russian visitors, on the other hand, are increasing in number.

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â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Opportunities to indulge most forms of alpine sport and recreationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;It strikes me as peculiar that it is not even more popular with touristsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 11

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â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;On my narrow bits of dried spa (cross-country skis), I managed 26 metresâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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aghetti d about

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â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Holiday is priced at what feels like at least 40% cheaper than in the Netherlandsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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perspectives

Dam in 60 minutes! â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;This time we pay a visit to Amsterdam Northâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

By Sam van Dam

perspectives

Amsterdam North Last month I visited Amstelveen for the first part of a series in which I hope to show you the less famous parts of Amsterdam. This time we pay a visit to Amsterdam North.

new approaches are designed to make Amsterdam even more attractive to locals and visitors alike. Throw into the mix some newly built luxury apartment towers and the overall impression is attractive and neat.

The other thing that clearly dominates thinking in the north, once you move away from the immediate vicinity of the ferry docks, is the feeling of an Industrial wasteland. Some areas look like a neutron To get to this under-appreciated part of town, I had to take the ferry (free), so I lined up with my bike, together bomb has exploded, eradicating all life and leaving in its wake only empty spaces with the occasional wrecked with the other patient commuters behind Central factory. Of course, this would not be Amsterdam if we Station in the bitingly cold wind. Once we were able didn’t make the best of every situation. Take the NDSM to board I placed myself at the helm of the boat, not Werf (wharf), for example, which went from being too unlike Leonardo Di Caprio in Titanic, humming isolated and desolate to become a new centre of culture the title song in my head. Sadly, I did not find a rich, pretty girl to hold in my arms. The trip took only a few and coolness in just a few years. It now has a huge hall for graffiti artists and Sk8er kids, and even MTV minutes but, once I disembarked the steel hull of the has moved its European headquarters there, adding a ferry, I felt like I had entered a different country; the much-needed hipness factors. style of the buildings and the look of the people on the ‘other side of the water’ are very distinctive and It also doesn’t hurt to have an actual Russian submarine different from elsewhere in Amsterdam. Something floating in the water right next to the ferry stop. I’m not that was very typically Amsterdam, though, was the sure what it’s doing there, but it does look impressive rush of those waiting to get on the boat, barely giving and, naturally, it’s covered with artsy graffiti. The us newly arrived travellers a chance to make it off the NDSM area is also the home to the giant Botel, a ramp and on to safe, dry land. You regularly see the floating, budget hotel that for many years was moored same behaviour on trains and the metro and it seems in front of Central Station but was moved here some we just can’t wait to get somewhere, even if it means time ago, ensuring that at least some of our visitors get trampling over those who are trying to get off. to see a different part of town without having to travel long distances to the heart of the city for their share of The first thing I noticed once I set out on my bike is Amsterdamness. that the north is well served by graffiti; not the simple and sometimes tear-inducing tags that you find on so many buildings in Amsterdam, but actual pieces of art This mix of old, decommissioned buildings and new, hip elements creates an overall vibe that is unique and that add coloured accents to the overall scene. This is highly recommendable. Do take a look if you have a enhanced further by the many sculptures and other couple of hours to spare. Don’t forget to have a coffee artworks displayed in public spaces, creating the quite and/or a snack in one of the cafés or at the Pllek beach, charming impression that you’ve entered an open-air preferably when the sun is shining, as there isn’t much museum. Amsterdam North also boasts a growing set to stop the ever-present wind from blowing you back of entertainment locations, such as EYE; the new film into the water. Warm clothing is a must in this part of museum and former Shell tower that has recently gained permission from the city to operate its business town. Head north! (hospitality, offices and viewing platform) 24/7. These

perspectives

‘The look of the people on the ‘other side of the water’ are very distinctive’

perspectives

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Designed to make Amsterdam even more attractive to locals and visitors alikeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Hip elements creates an overall vibe that is unique and highly recommendableâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

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travel

‘Barbados is one of the world’s most tourism conditioned countries’

Barbados: two faces, one love

By Denson Pierre

At long last we arrived at the Mecca of Caribbean holiday resort islands. Given the options governing our trip to Trinidad & Tobago, connecting with Amsterdam, we opted to travel via Bridgetown with British Airways. We allowed ourselves an overnight stop on the way and a few hours to while away in tropical splendour as a final act on the way back. A splendid choice, as Barbados is one of the world’s most tourism conditioned countries and this means a ‘things to do’ list is readily at hand. This is super handy, especially when you are suddenly sporting shorts and slippers, having just left a sub-zero Europe behind you across the wide Atlantic Ocean.

travel

perspectives feature travel

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The climate aided our thawing and the exchange rate was favourableâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

travel

‘A full extra night and day in Bim’

Three weeks is a long time on an island as small as Barbados it seems. By the time we returned, it followed a rather convoluted and exhausting day at Piarco International Airport (Trinidad), spent having to deal with a particularly obnoxious and stubbornly unhelpful senior British Airways desk supervisor. There was a mess-up with our return flight times, which could have been easily ameliorated, if not directly solved, due to the heavy weight of traffic out of Trinidad after the carnival season had peaked and expired. It could have been so much more pleasant. The mature woman in question was of little to no help whatsoever and a discredit to the airline, her country and mine. If she could have seen a recording of the three occasions we sought her help to clarify matters, she would and

should have been ashamed. Instead, we had to face three hours of a New Delhi customer service desk (British Airways) and it ended up costing us T&T$ 300 to arrange a regional connection to Barbados, in order to find a seat on the jumbo jet heading back to Europe the following evening. So, a full extra night and day in Bim. This time around we arrived later and by the time we approached the same entertainment area it was clear it was closing down for the night. This left just the sports bar and, lo and behold, it was more ice hockey and silver. Working there was a most pleasant young man who did his smiling best to chat, entertain and update us on cultural news. I would return there just to have a beer while he was working. On leaving the sports bar we gambled on walking past the assembled youngsters pining for the roads to clear so they could burn petrol and rubber to entertain their illegal drag racing lust. Having cleared the posers we eyed a cosy looking hospitality address with lights burning and animated conversations going on inside. We entered this little gem of a place, called The Good Life; an internationally inspired vegan café offering fresh and creative goodies, meals and alcoholic cocktails, making sure that in one fell swoop the entire Barbados experience was uplifted. The place is run by the slam poetry and rapper set, so the vibe is very conversational and the company pretty sharp on the academic way of viewing history and the world, while carousing. Late the following morning we made our way to the airport to make sure we caught the flight out that evening. Our punctuality was rewarded and we were then able to head off to the famous Crane Residential Resort to take lunch and absorb a spectacular farewell to the Caribbean, for now. All that is left now is to thank the super professional Tracy Goddard (British Airways Desk Supervisor) and her fantastic Passenger Agent, Ms Suzette Adams, for their help in easing our way back to Amsterdam, albeit one day later than planned.

In the near future The Sentinel will focus heavily on the entire Caribbean region, when a lot more time will be set aside to study the real wealth of the Bajan offer. But one night in Barbados’ south-western, coastal, hotel complex region showed that we may have miscalculated slightly. Even though the climate aided our thawing and the exchange rate was favourable, the scene was very silver. This should not be taken as a statement on the second-rate quality of anything in particular but simply that the vast majority of the tourist throng appeared to be of post-retirement age. This observation goes some way towards explaining the fact that the nearby and large beach bar, while still full of patrons, started busily closing its shutters so as not to be seen serving after the closing time for normal bars, which appears to be 11.00pm, even on a Friday night in the high season. This left a single option with an extended licence within easy walking distance; a sports bar open to visitors likely to be wallowing in various stages of jetlag. The rush of contentment on finding a place to have another cooling beverage was punctured when it became clear that, with ice hockey being the big event across the TV screens, it would likely be just older Canadians and Americans propping up the bar and occupying a few of the tables. The night turned out to be a very short one.

perspectives feature travel

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;We entered this little gem of a place, called The Good Lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

travel

tripping days

The heights of Trinity

By Denson Pierre

On finding the tranquillity of the mountain village of Brasso Seco, in Trinidad, I decided to briefly interview two beautiful, young, local women on what it is like to live in such a remote (as if that is truly possible on a mere island) place, while the world powers ahead at speed just ninety minutes down the single, forever landslide-threatened, pockmarked, asphalt road, hemmed in by dense jungle and sky. Smiles were continuous and the responses quite frank and humorous, as is the way in Trinidad & Tobago. The two women are sisters. Q. What does someone aged of 16 to 30 do around here on a typical Wednesday evening? A. Well, we don’t yet have high-speed internet here, so there is a lot of staying indoors, reading and a lot of sleep involved. I think you have seen where they are building the new masts (mobile internet), so all that might change soon.

we had here was two years ago. Everyone is busier living ‘common law’ and starting families that way. Q. What do you think of visiting tourists and the interest they show in your historic village and yourselves? Do you understand it? A. Well, the hospitality you experience is simply a typical village welcome and when we are pushed I think we can make about 150 beds available in villagers’ houses, as bed and breakfasts or just really affordable sleepovers. We understand that it is really nice here. Are you going to come and see us again? Q. Do you think you will ever leave the village to seek the bright lights of the city or a foreign country? A. Well, the truth is, I [older sister] always leave but always come back too! It is hard to explain how nice it is to be somewhere like here, where you have hill farmers heading out to their plots every morning and you can just call out to your neighbour and have fresh provisions dropped off for you on their way back at dusk. It is free but you really cannot pay for that kind of spirit. I also think it is important to stay in touch with the Parang tradition of the village.

This conversation was held at the real focal point of the village, the Riviera Social Club. A prestigious name for what, in reality, is an old, converted cocoa storage area with a very airy ‘saloon’ area and a pool table. The well-stocked bar and ‘lounge’ Q. How often would someone from here go into town area are consistent with the best of non-glitzy, (mainly Arima or Port-of-Spain) if not for school or Trinbagonian rum shops and a reasonable length of work? time spent there guarantees that you are greeted by a A. Once a week, as there is always shopping to do and considerable portion of the village population, either then there are the clubs... passing by, popping in for a rum runner or arriving Q. Population, that church, marriage... How many, how to shoot some pool and flirt within the tiny, humble, local scene. much, how often? A. Ha ha ha ha! I think there are about 400 people in The bar turned out to be the property of the village the village. There used to be many more, as recently mayor, who turned out to be the father of my cutey as when we were children. It is not the only church... subjects. I could have been less formal and had a few believe it or not. There is also a Pentecostal church at more White Oaks... the end of the village to go with that Catholic one up there... Marriage... Let me see... I think the last wedding Q. And on a Saturday afternoon? A. Buss rel lime! (extra hanging-out, seeing friends and partaking in community activities).

tripping days

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Authentic and full of surprises. That’s Mechelen. Hospitable and honourable. That’s the people of Mechelen. Come and experience the city’s urban charms for yourself.

photography © Layla Aerts

Mechelen Mechelen

culture

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The wide river Oder, with its strong current, running through its heartâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

By Denson Pierre

The challenge: develop an impression of this surprisingly fine and historical city in just a single Thursday evening and night. Our party left our bags in the well laid-out and conveniently located Hotel Tumski and headed off on the guided tour of the city, which seems to be fairly sprawling and has a lot of airiness due to the wide river Oder, with its strong current, running through its heart. We walked along its banks and through various quarters, all eased by topography not too unlike most of Amsterdam: flat. The variety of architecture found throughout the central district is particularly interesting; this despite the huge amount of restoration that undoubtedly took place after the Red Army levelled the place to force out the Nazis, who felt they had long historical ties with the area and saw it as a city to defend at all costs.

Poland Wroclaw

culture

‘Begin the glass and reflective metal cabinets’ age-old battle against darkness’

Sweeping back toward the central square, where we would be dining, it was a pleasant surprise to come across so many chic, cool and trendy café-restaurants, along with a good selection of cafés and bars of a more rustic nature. Dinner was another highlight for me, personally, as I was able to have a starter bowl of traditional, low-calorie, beetroot soup. This particular example was of a consistency much less like purple water than the other times I have tried this vegetarian soup in Poland. Restaurant Lwowska comes highly recommended, as it not only serves very good food, with a hint of international sensibilities involved in its preparation, but the ambiance and decor of the place makes it worth adding to a ‘must try’ list for Wroclaw.

With dinner and wine consumed my Dutch colleagues are starting to show signs of fatigue, after a day spent travelling here from different starting points in the Netherlands. Our host and yours truly, on the other Even if Wroclaw is said to be one of the warmer cities in hand, were only too happy to learn that a friend of Poland, due to its location on the Silesian plains, it was our ‘total local’ host had just called and invited us still winter and a temperature somewhere close to zero to join him at a club to further celebrate his city. My meant it was also nice to duck into the enclosed central colleagues decline the offer but I remain seated in the market hall to be slightly taken aback by the design, taxi when we drop them back at the hotel. The club we size and colourful nature of the goods and vegetables were headed to was called Szanty (Shanty). Now, last on offer. Further along we also managed to grab a sneak time I checked, Poland and Wroclaw were as deeply peek at the modern opera that was in progress by the set in Central Europe as any other country you could time we arrived at the opera house. Whatever they were name. How then could there be a late-night club as singing in Italian (with Polish subtitles rolling across popular as this one clearly was, totally themed around a display above the stage), it seemed to have the full folk and sea-faring music? Excellent fun! house transfixed. This was not a planned visit and was only possible because our Polish Tourism host was a Wroclaw certainly deserves a second, lengthier visit, local. A quiet word with the floor manager allowed us since I’m sure it has even more appealing surprises in store. on to the upper balcony for a short eye and earful.

Along the way we managed not only to reach the Love (Tumski) Bridge but, just as we were crossing it, a couple walking hand-in-hand in the opposite direction called out to our guide to say that the lighter of the gas-powered street lanterns was making his way toward us from the courtyard of the nearby church. I had never seen this before and so, with the light fading over the city and an eager, impromptu audience, in swept the man of sparks, flowing black cape and all, to ignite the yellow glowing burners and begin the glass and reflective metal cabinets’ age-old battle against darkness. This quaint and charming piece of theatre will only become increasingly rare. A single person remains on lighting duties here and no successors are lined up. With gas lanterns being phased out everywhere in urban Europe, perhaps we witnessed something others will only appreciate through archive footage in the near future.

culture

‘A pleasant surprise to come across so many chic, cool and trendy café-restaurants’

culture

‘The ambiance and decor of the place makes it worth adding to a ‘must try’ list’

culture

restaurant review

Restaurant Review Veni Mange 56

Port of Spain, Trinidad

restaurant review

‘Veni Mange is not situated in Amsterdam but in the capital of Trinidad & Tobago’

By Antonia Egon

The daily changing menu is filled with local flavours and dishes, and the way they are prepared really brings out the best in Trini cuisine. Of course it is always difficult to compete with home-cooked food but let’s just say that if this place was located in Amsterdam, you and I would be regulars (which I already am in Port of Spain, somehow). On this particular visit we were treated to a lentil soup, which was flavourful, creamy and filled with nice, fluffy chunks of cassava and freshly made dumplings, as it is traditionally served here. All the soups I have tried in this place have been great! On my previous visits I’ve tried the corn soup and the split-pea soup, which were equally scrumptious, and they even have a little takeaway soup stall outside, next

to the entrance, so you can take some home if you can’t get enough… For the main course I chose the shrimp, accompanied by shadon beni (also known as culantro, Mexican coriander) sauce; a typical Trinidadian dish, superlight and full of flavour. With its wonderful and friendly owner and staff, the feeling of being at home, the colours, the art and the fantastic flavours, this is an all-time favourite, which you will want to revisit time and again. Unfortunately, I cannot lay claim to discovering it; Veni Mange is featured in the New York Times bestseller 1000 Places to Visit Before You Die. http://www.venimange.com

‘All the soups I have tried in this place have been great!’

For my European friends, I am sorry to have to disappoint you with the fact that Veni Mange is not situated in Amsterdam but in the capital of Trinidad & Tobago, Port of Spain. Located in an original, wooden, colonial building, the restaurant oozes atmosphere and authenticity. Due to its many windows, it is a light and pleasantly airy place where you can easily spend a few hours during the hot, tropical, lunchtime hours. All the walls are covered in a melee of local art and the tables and furniture are painted in all the colours of the rainbow. It feels like you are in someone’s living room, rather than one of Port of Spain’s best local restaurants.

restaurant review

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;A typical Trinidadian dish, superlight and full of flavourâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

restaurant review

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Featured in the New York Times bestseller 1000 Places to Visit Before You Dieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

amsterdam classifieds city life

amsterdam city life

: K C A B G BRIN Royal routing By Denson Pierre

would traverse were rather properly and speedily carried out. Apparently, some kind of extra budget is available for times when celebrations concerning the royal family touch Amsterdam.

I have no desire to enter constitutional debate and accept that the Netherlands is a monarchy. To change that would take a lot longer than it will to complete and have the North/South Line tested and running. In the meantime, seeing as it creates greater urgency, I say Amsterdam should encourage all manner of indulgences by those of the House of Orange-Nassau. It seems to me that this is a clever shortcut to getting the re-beautification of the city moved on at much quicker rate. Bring back love of the monarchy? Why not, if that That said a better system could probably be implement- love manifests itself in the royals spending more time ed, involving speedier overnight or weekend work to engaging in festivities here and, by so doing, activates leave a clearer path for weekly commuter business and investment that can suddenly be found to tidy up the travel throughout the city. The works that are ongoing place. are further underpinned as hindrances given that the city is currently undertaking some of its largest capital projects in decades, if not centuries. The city is the subject of a major re-design and the works, diversions and traffic jams will continue for a few years to come. This being so, it allows for rosy nostalgia of a city as beautiful as this, which was such a dreamlike experience to cycle across prior to fifteen years ago. Driving was also a pleasure, as roadways were more consistently smooth thoroughfares. The last time I recall the city, or certain routes in the city, being properly secured and freshened up was in the build-up to a royal wedding. This was in 2001 and the improvements surrounding the route the royals

Today I overheard a conversation in a taxi between two Amsterdammers about how irritating it remains having to deal with seemingly unending roadwork, diversions and generally unkempt spots of civil engineering throughout Amsterdam. Sometimes I think locals forget that they live on a thin layer of soil, interconnected by bridges throughout the vast majority of the historical city area. We are living on engineered swampland hemmed in by the North Sea.

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Day segments and rates: PR: 08:00-12:30hrs / AG: 13:30-16:30hrs / UE: 17:30-21:30hrs All sessions are priced at u 25 per single adult. Group size upper limit = 8. Accompanied children under the age of five are gratis and school aged children pay 25%. Family package rates are negotiable.

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JC Tours

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star beer guide

The Sentinel Star beer guide By Denson Pierre

Debowe Mocne

(7.0 % A.B.V.)

‘Enters the discussion at the point where beer becomes interesting for adults’ 65

Trawling for quality beer while in Poland can lead you through a rather extensive shoal of weak-flavoured, light and not so exciting beers. The country has a great tradition of producing fine to excellent beers but it takes some prior knowledge to save room for volume, as cool lagers abound at relatively low alcohol content levels. Debowe Mocne enters the discussion at the point where beer becomes interesting for adults. Enough taste to make it remarkable, a beautiful bottle and a logo design for the beer itself that is strong enough to directly aid muscle relaxation. Taken at lunchtime, on a day when my body creaked from muscle soreness brought on by first attempts to ski, having been scrambling around Poland’s icy reaches the previous day, it proved to be good medicine and a session on this beer could be considered for a future date.

recommended

De Zotte 08/03/13

We find the best, most fun, most typical, exciting, or local favourite restaurants etcetera in Amsterdam and bring them to you; an easy way to feel like a local.

g 9 3812 SZ Amersfoort

recommended

35 75 - Fax 033 - 454 35 79Connoisseurs Delight filmproef@eurogifts.nl te: www.eurogifts.nl

Fun, Drinking & Music

ORDERNUMMER: 6 ARTIKELNUMMER: 6

Mulligans Irish Music Bar Amsterdam’s best address for live Irish music: Five (5) nights a week! Check our agenda for upcoming sessions.

Kinkerstraat 228 Amsterdam www.operaprima.nl

Amstel 100 1017 AC Amsterdam www.mulligans.nl

To Be Seen and Tasted

Connoisseurs Delight

To Be Seen and Tasted

Cafe restaurant Edel Cafe restaurant Edel is the perfect place for lunch, dinner or to simply enjoy a drink. Edel is a unique place in Amsterdam.

Café Kostverloren Café Kostverloren is a contemporary cafe offering the cosiness of a saloon, an open kitchen and the intimacy of a living room. During summer there is a large, sunny terrace and during winter, an open ﬁreplace!

Postjesweg 1 1057 DT Amsterdam www.edelamsterdam.nl

Incanto Incanto is a restaurant with a classic Italian kitchen. Venetian chef Simone Ambrosin is known for his pure and simple style of cooking with feeling for nuance. The wine list contains over 150 Italian wines. Amstel 2 Amsterdam www.restaurant-incanto.nl

Fun, Drinking & Music

Connoisseurs Delight

Neighbourhood cosy

Café Oporto Café Oporto is a traditional Amsterdam ‘brown cafe’. Welcoming tourists and regular customers alike, they offer televised sports, wireless internet connection and a wide range of reasonably priced beers and spirits.

Planet Rose Planet Rose is the ﬁrst Caribbean restaurant in the Netherlands, which specializes in Jamaican cuisine. The menu features a daily changing selection of Jamaican/ Caribbean dishes and they ensure that you enjoy the whole experience while dining with them!

Zest Zest is ﬁne food, warm atmosphere and classy drinks with regular semi-acoustic (live) music and DJs (Thursday to Sunday). Amsterdam’s newest and freshest!

Zoutsteeg 1 1012 LX Amsterdam www.cafeoporto.net/home

Nicolaas Beetsstraat 47 Amsterdam www.planetrose.info

Bilderdijkstraat 188 Amsterdam www.facebook.com/clubzest.nl

ENDED RECOMM

2e Kostverlorenkade 70 Amsterdam www.cafekostverloren.nl

Opera Prima Patisserie Bistro Traiteur The best place in town for lunch, exquisite high teas or brunches and all of your luxury catering, both private and corporate!

spotted

Where is this in Amsterdam?

Answer to: sentinelpost@gmail.com

room2c

Room 2c film A Time to Kill (1996)

By David King

Some people might prefer The Firm but I find this to be the best John Grisham novel adapted for film. An AfricanAmerican father kills two rednecks after they have brutalised his daughter and has to stand trial in Mississippi, with a white judge presiding and an overzealous prosecuting attorney. On his side are two lawyers with no resources while the local Ku Klux Klan makes their lives hell. Let battle commence! 69

Raising Arizona (1987) Was Holly Hunter actually the most attractive Hollywood actress at the end of the 1980s? Is that really Nicolas Cage playing a convincing if tragi-comedic role? Does the funniest final act in a movie prison break sequence take place here? Revisit this movie to fill your room with laughter and feel refreshed after the journey.

By dpmotions

trends

Dead famous ‘The whole world had realised, some time ago, that this was something that should be consigned to history’ Another unfortunate ‘new’ trend in fashion has been developing over the past few years. While I can remember a time when wearing a dead animal’s furry skin was absolutely ‘not done’, in recent years wearing fur has been regaining its popularity among members of the younger generation. According to research they are unaware of the passionate anti-fur movements of the previous century and are also, apparently, more or less unaware about where the things they wear actually come from, from what they are stripped, and that there may be good reasons to reconsider. Why is this happening? I was under the impression that the whole world had realised, some time ago, that this was something that should be consigned to history. How can it again be on the rise? When I read a particular article a few months ago I began thinking about young people walking the streets of Amsterdam and, indeed, the warm, fur-collared, winter coats that a lot of rap and R&B stars have been wearing in recent years. These have absolutely cluttered the Amsterdam streets, usually in combination with Uggs, and are one of those things that happen in fashion that I simply

By Dirkje Bakker-Pierre

don’t understand. A ‘real’ branded version of one of these coats would set you back €830 upwards, which buys you a Canadian Goose coat with a coyote fur-lined hood. The coyotes are caught in the wild using illegal leg snares, which cruelly wound the animals and lead to extended suffering. Their coats are then sold for between US$ 21 and 51. Then last week an article pops up about R&B superstar Beyoncé – she ordered some now renamed ‘Frankenshoes’, made from a collection of all the exotic animal skins you could possibly think of (think stingray, ostrich, calf, crocodile and anaconda). I was surprised. What was it all of a sudden with dead animal skins and celebrities? Some quick Google action soon revealed mountains of celebrities, rock stars, pop stars, style icons, role models and their ilk wrapped up in more square metres of fur than could ever be found on one animal. Why was this? Were they feeling cold? Were they jealous that some of these animals had better skin then they did? After Uggs, which of course are made of sheepskin, but that doesn’t count as fur, the trend in celebrity land is to wear real fur, as exotic and as much as you can find, so yeah, surprise, surprise, that is what the kids want to wear. Shame.

health & well-being

– ‘This lovely gemstone is known to bring inspiration, abundance and success’

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Citrine By Evelina Kvartunaite

With spring being just around the corner, I’ve been looking into gemstones that inspire, enhance creativity and bring a bit more light into our daily life. My mind was immediately drawn towards one particular stone: Citrine, also known as lemon quartz. A member of the quartz mineral group, it gets its yellow to golden, orange-brown or reddish-brown colour due to silicon dioxide. The name citrine is derived from the French word for lemon (citron). This lovely gemstone is known to bring inspiration, abundance and success. This success may take unexpected forms, however. The stone is a birth stone for people born in November, sharing the month with Topaz. I should also mention that citrine used to be called Brazilian topaz, as Brazil is one of the places where it is most commonly found. It is also

a stone that’s traditionally given on 13th wedding anniversaries. Citrine is said to be beneficial to digestion and the stomach, thyroid, general health, heart, kidney, liver, muscles, strength, endocrine system, circulatory system, tissue regeneration, urinary system, immune system, diabetes and fibromyalgia, as well as eliminating nightmares and other sleep disturbances. Citrine is also reputed to be good for removing toxins and overcoming addictions. Since the stone is associated with solar plexus chakra, it is said to increase and magnify personal energy and power. Citrine dissipates negative energies of all kinds. It also does not absorb negative energies from its surroundings and, therefore, never needs energetic clearing. This means it’s always a good idea to leave your other gemstones or jewellery with it openly in your room. Don’t forget to leave them on a windowsill at night when the moon is shining, so they can recharge with that energy.

health & well-being

– ‘It is said to increase and magnify personal energy and power’

–

– ‘Leave them on a windowsill at night when the moon is shining’

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technology

User Interface 74

‘Invest a lot of money each year in an effort to try making user interfaces easier to use’

By Andrei Barburas

Although you may not have noticed, user interfaces are pretty much everywhere; from your door knob to your washing machine and even as far as a condom wrapper or how easy and fast it is to unwrap a packet of sweets. Large companies such as ABN Amro, BMW and many more invest a lot of money each year in an effort to try making user interfaces easier to use, faster and more accessible to different target groups. Some of them went even further and came up with a new term; user experience. After all, an interface is just a standard interface; the difference is that extra step user interface (UI) or user experience (UX) designers take to make them more fun or easier for users. The key distinction is that you will not remember an interface but you will always remember an experience. If you do a bit of research yourself, you will discover that the majority of companies have a department called Customer Experience. This department covers

a variety of other teams that more or less manage the way an organisation presents itself to its customers. Its coverage ranges from audio and video to static images, but also to the outfits of the employees in front offices. All of this in an effort to create that unique and memorable experience. There’s no magic formula for customer experience success. This quote by Colin Powell describes what it takes: “If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude.” According to the Temkin Group, an organisation that uses feedback collected from consumers to evaluate organisations in order to make great customer experience a ‘prevailing attitude’, companies need to master four competencies: Purposeful leadership: does the executive team operate consistently with a clear, well-articulated set of values? Compelling brand values: are the brand attributes driving decisions about how they treat customers?

technology

‘Make great customer experience a ‘prevailing attitude’’

Employee engagement: are employees fully committed to the goals of the organisation? Customer connectedness: is customer feedback and insight integrated throughout the organisation? While you might think that this applies only to large organisations, these are excellent guidelines for peoplecentric design and development in almost any field and on almost any scale. So what is User Experience? Probably the most beautifully written definition of user experience comes from the Nielsen Norman Group: “User experience” encompasses all aspects of the end-user’s interaction with the company, its services, and its products. The first requirement for an exemplary user experience is to meet the exact needs of the customer, without fuss or bother. Next comes simplicity and elegance, which produce products that are a joy to own and use. True user experience goes far beyond giving customers what they say they want, or providing checklist features. In order to achieve high-quality user experience in a company’s offerings there must be a seamless merging

of the services of multiple disciplines, including engineering, marketing, graphical and industrial design, and interface design. The majority of product developers and service providers have a tendency to forget that the products they develop or design might not be used by everyone; hence the market loss. The bottom line is that the next time you design or develop a certain product, don’t forget to put yourself in your customer’s or end user’s shoes. How easy is it to use product X? How quickly can one become familiarised with it? Will it become a product or service used daily? Will it be just a hype? How sustainable is it? Will you, as the designer, be using it? I am curious to learn of what challenges you went through in creating a ‘fabulous’ user experience when you were designing a product or service and, most importantly, how did you overcome those challenges. andrei.barburas@consultancymarketmedia.com

‘Don’t forget to put yourself in your customer’s or end user’s shoes’

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sport

On The Volley

By Simon Joseph

More to the point ‘How to tell a fruit bud from a growth bud’

‘The Dutch aren’t exactly celebrated gardeners’

The snow and ice have finally melted and I’ve been inspecting my balcony for signs of life. In fact, throughout Amsterdam renewal pruning will no doubt be going on. But what kind of activity is ‘renewal pruning’ exactly, and can it ever replace watching a game of football on a Saturday afternoon?

changing face of designer space al fresco is big business all over the world. But just how big has gardening become and can digging over your borders provide the same amount of pleasure that football delivers?

For those of you who have no idea how to tell a fruit bud from a growth bud, renewal pruning is just as much about your available outdoor space as it is about maximising your fruit crop; even so, not everyone is lucky enough to have a garden. Now, I wouldn’t call myself green-fingered but I’ve been attempting to transform my balcony into a significant outside space. This takes time, hard work and patience. When you bike around Amsterdam you can clearly see the amount of time and effort people put into their balconies and urban spaces, although the Dutch aren’t exactly celebrated gardeners. Over in England, on the other hand, our gardens were once the envy of Europe; their style intended typically to reflect an idyllic rural landscape. But fashions come and go and, currently, the

During the past decade, a dramatic swing has occurred in the public’s perception with outside spaces seen as an extension of people’s homes and personalities, resulting in a horticultural revival. In fact, spending time and money doing up the garden has become so popular that dedicated garden centres, television channels and web shops are popping up like spring crocuses, urging some to go so far as to dub gardening ‘the new rock ‘n’ roll’. Today’s typical gardener, then, is a thirty-something high-flier with a steadfastly urban sensibility. Furthermore, it has been suggested that the growing interest in gardening and the accompanying opening of garden centres has changed the face of football forever. But how did tending to green space become a credible alternative to the beautiful game? Growing up in Tottenham in the 1970s there were green spaces everywhere. I particularly remember the allotments on the Great Cambridge Road, just before the junction with White Hart Lane, where some regular supporters turned the soil on their home-grown veg

sport

‘Digging for buried treasure, for example, was one of my favourite pastimes’

before walking down the Lane for a home game. But it wasn’t just in North London that allotments and gardens were so popular. Going back to the Second World War, any vacant land was turned into a vegetable garden, including a few football grounds, to satisfy the needs of the hungry. And it wasn’t just about necessity either; it was about cultivating wisdom with some arguing that it was part of the growing struggle to access the power and wealth that land ownership could provide. The tenders of these so-called ‘Cockney Plots’ concerned themselves not just with growing their own food but with grassroots political activism. Over the following decades, as wealth spread and leisure time increased, so did the simple pleasure of tending green spaces and, eventually, some even went so far as to give up football altogether, in favour of increasingly middleclass activities, with gardening high on the list.

peace and sanctuary, to escape the madness of the city. It’s difficult to say but within the concept of a garden is a philosophy of pleasure-seeking and I only have to think back to childhood memories of our family’s back garden to derive immense pleasure. Digging for buried treasure, for example, was one of my favourite pastimes, as were climbing up or camping under the pear tree and the endless water fights in summer, all of which will remain clinging like lichens to my neural pathways forever. Whatever way you look at it, people enjoy spending time getting their hands dirty and creating their own little representation of Eden or some other vision of paradise.

Tending to your garden is a different expenditure to, say, standing on the terraces or shouting at a screen. Compared to the relatively simple pleasure provided by football, garden maintenance is no walk in the park. So where does the pleasure from such hard work stem from? Is it the ability to control nature or tame wildlife that appeals perhaps to a deeper, inner desire? Or maybe our gardens are simply a place to turn to for

At the moment I have a dilemma when it comes to my little bit of spare time; but I don’t think I’ll be converting to ‘the good life’ as I struggle to find contentment on my moss-covered, north-facing balcony that’s beleaguered by an icy and perpetual wind. However, as the keen gardener John Stuart-Mill once said ‘Those only are happy who have their minds fixed on some object other than their own happiness.’ So perhaps the answer is not on a football field but in our own backyard.

‘Web shops are popping up like spring crocuses, urging some to go so far’

white out sport

Heroes, tricks and adventurers 80

By Ananda van Welij

Just another girl from a country without mountains, addicted to snow.

‘I love the ‘Secret Valley’ of La Clusaz already’

I’m smashing my right ski boot in the hard snow. Pock! ‘Grrr,’ I just hit a rock with the tip of my boot and slipped out. I take a deep breath and try to regain my balance by shifting my skis slightly on my right shoulder. I lift my other ski boot and push myself up to place it higher, while grabbing a piece of rock with my left hand for extra support. “About three more steps and I’m there,” is what shoots through my head. A bit short of breath I make it to the top of the narrow climb. I look up into the smiling and eager faces of my ski buddies and before even looking at the ski terrain that we are about to go down, I know that it’s gonna be good, really good. I love the ‘Secret Valley’ of La Clusaz already.

freeskiers from the lowlands. This little resort, tucked away just an hour’s drive from Geneva airport is the hometown of one of my ski heroes, Candide Thovex. The name might not ring a bell with you but let me assure you he’s one of the most innovative skiers ever and a really nice and down-to-earth guy to boot. I was lucky enough to be at his signature event in 2007. Ever since that day I’ve wanted to go back to La Clusaz and experience the resort to the fullest. After seeing his new movie, Few Words, this desire grew even stronger.

Having completed the avalanche safety course, it’s time to move on to the next adventure. Together with my friend Anna, from New Zealand, I’m driving over to La Clusaz where we will meet up with three eager young

As we are traversing from the climb across the mountain to get to better snow, I hear the boys talking to each other. They are looking around and discussing options of cliffs to drop and switching in their minds

The choice to come to this resort with this crew of skiers was a conscious decision. I wanted to see how they would use the terrain La Clusaz has to offer and whether they could leave the indoor slopes and parks behind. I wanted to take on a new adventure and challenge them to look at the mountain in a different way. To expand their horizons of what’s possible in a way that others have done for me in the past. But also to see how they could challenge me and the things I’ve learned at the avalanche safety course.

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as to what would be the best trick for the photos I intend to take. The quiet Belgian guy with the most experience silences the two park rats pretty quickly by dropping a nine-metre cliff on one of his first runs. “You can play in the freestyle park? Well, I can play on the whole mountain.” The new hero of the group has shown his face, the challenge has been laid down, the bar raised and the group dynamic changed within a few seconds. Let’s see what the rest of the week will bring! At times during the week I feel like I have a bunch of young dogs on a leash, who are ready to pull me off my feet. On one of the days, the avalanche danger is up to level 4 (out of 5). Dangerous. Very dangerous. One of them says “But it looks fine, there is barely any snow up there and it will be great in the valley where it’s snowed-in by the wind. Let’s go!” and then shoots off. The only thing I feel like doing at that exact moment is high fiving the boy’s face. I talk the rest of the group into taking a slightly different, and in my mind, safer route down. Luckily, they don’t have a big need to show off in this situation and do what I tell them. I imagine my face didn’t leave much room for discussion. “I’m responsible for you guys and I’m not OK with this. Hate me for it but you are not going down there. If you do,

you can go home tomorrow.” I guess the (business) bitch in me had to come out at some point on this trip and that was it. But then we reach the top of the Secret Valley, where the avalanche danger is reduced and the ski patrol said it was OK to go there. There is no one around us. First tracks and powder shoot up into our faces and all the concerns disappear with the fresh snow. “I wanna hit that cliff!”, “I’m gonna jump over that thing!” They are all eager to explore and show what they can do. Bruises and sore muscles make their way into the house from day one. At the end of each day and after a delicious dinner made by Anna, they practically push me behind my computer to see how they did and who featured in the best photos. As I’m sitting on the lift with one of the boys for one of our last runs, I ask him what he liked most about this whole trip. “I just can’t believe I have never explored the mountain like this before. It has really opened up my eyes to things that are possible and I think that the tricks I can do in the park are gonna be really fun to do all over the mountain as well.” Mission accomplished.

‘I wanted to take on a new ‘The avalanche danger is up adventure and challenge to level 4 (out of 5)’ them to look at the mountain in a different way’

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‘Then we reach the top of the Secret Valley’

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‘See how they did and who featured in the best photos’

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Get advice on housing, rental contracts and apartments in Amsterdam

www.wswonen.nl/english

we are looking for: - Account Manager Market Media - (Internship) International Marketing Executive www.consultancymarketmedia.com

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sport

The Gold Room 92

By Denson Pierre

With a summer free of international tournament football approaching, even more focus will be placed on the trophies and personal awards garnered by Premier League players during the 2012-2013 season. This includes the crowning of an individual player as the Player of the Season in the FFG-CL (http://thesentinel.eu/ffg/Latest-FFG. htm). The criteria always involve key points of judgement, such as overall point scoring, but in keeping with the golden nature of this master game, we also take into account other important indicators, such as impact on team, impact on league, attitude, discipline and most importantly aesthetic appeal. Only players used by managers for periods longer than 10 weeks in the FFG-CL come into consideration.

keepers with a higher number of Dream Team Star Man awards. DEF: Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham Hotspur) – bearing in mind that this is his debut season in the Premier League, his ability to settle into his game and impress so regularly with his solidity and game-reading ability has been nothing short of spectacular. The Belgian successor to Ledley King. MID: Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur) – not flawless but has brought awesome power and excitement to the British game, as a British player, for the first time since an era when the game was played at a much slower pace. MID: Juan Mata (Chelsea) – the diminutive Spaniard has excelled in his performances at Chelsea when so many other so-called superstars underperformed or were simply awful.

This year’s winner will be revealed on 9 April and the shortlist of six candidates, in no particular order, is as follows:

FWD: Luis Suarez (Liverpool) – a fantastic season in which he has set new standards on striking with regularity, using consummate skill, inventiveness and clinical technique.

GK: Julio Cesar (Queens Park Rangers) – despite a late start and injury at the business end of the season, his has been a truly outstanding season. Maybe because he is at a poor vintage QPR he has had the opportunity to demonstrate the range of his skill and outstrip all other

FWD: Robin van Persie (Manchester United) – has demonstrated that his mastery was not restricted to Oranje or Arsenal and has managed in just a single season to end the discussion about how good Wayne Rooney has never been.

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