The Sentinel Amsterdam vol.8 #1 by Consultancy Market Media

vol. 8 #1 – 07 October 2014

The Sentinel Amsterdam

Integrity, heart, humour

feature

lifestyles

WHAT YOU DO

HELLO BEAUTIFUL

CULTURE PERSPECTIVES LIFESTYLES TRAVEL OPINION REVIEW TECHNOLOGY ART FILM MUSIC TRENDS RECOMMENDED SPORT

content

feature - p.04

perspectives - p.12

lifestyles - p.30

What you do

Dam in 60 minutes! Near –South

Hello Beautiful

‘Charity and good practice begins at home

‘The money belt of our lovely city’

‘No cancer patient would find her or himself flying solo’

K: C A B G BRIN trends - p.58

sport - p.58

Bring back! The Guilder Pt 1

Bi-polarisation

The Gold Room

‘They all had PhDs in economics’

‘We would secretly prefer to move back in time’

amsterdam city life - p.51

more sentinel interview - p.36

café/bar review - p.42

perspectives - p.48

Philosophy & Fermenting

De Oranjerie

Real beauty

star beer guide - p.52

recommended - p.54

spotted - p.56

Tumulus Magna

Where is this in Amsterdam?

film - p.57

health & well-being - p.60

technology - p.62

Room 2C

Stoned

User interface

sport - p.66

SFFL 2014-2015

The Sentinel Amsterdam

E-mail: sentineldesk@gmail.com Website: www.thesentinel.eu Contributors: Sam van Dam, Jane Watson, The Observer, Dirkje Bakker-Pierre, Evelina Kvartunaite and Andrei Barburas

Editor: Denson Pierre Design: Dirkje Bakker-Pierre - no-office.nl Realisation: Andrei Barburas Webmaster: www.sio-bytes.tumblr.com Webhost: Andrei Barburas

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 sentineldesk@gmail.com.

feature

‘We are living in a current-future’

What you do see is what is really happening pt. 2

by Denson Pierre

With some of the world’s best technology-enhanced infrastructure about, the Netherlands and Amsterdam, can indeed at times feel like we are living in a current-future. It is however, becoming a near-future quickly clouded (sic) by a fog of pollution which only indicates a wider and indeed totally global problem. Just as with anything else of course, charity and good practice begins at home.

feature

‘The wholly bizarre collective title of ‘environmentalists’’

‘We are on a tiny rock hurtling through almost incalculable space’

Despite what some considered to be a dramatic and doom-laden tone set in the previous piece of this two-part article, the truth is that grim, but we are also that human; so even if we are destroying ourselves at speed on the one hand, there are still the lesser-heard voices screaming out for us to take the last chances to save the planet as a viable and bio-diverse entity, on the other. This too starts right here in Amsterdam, and in your own bedroom and kitchen, as it is not just something to be fobbed-off as the waffling of journalists, scientists, writers and documentary film makers who fall under a wholly bizarre collective title: ‘environmentalists’. If ever there was a term as misleading for a group of contemporary society’s leading thinkers it is this. Not that the thought and research they present is mind-numbing in degree of difficulty to comprehend, but it is, in fact, quite the opposite. All it and they set out and try to model is that

which is understood by the majority of humans above the age of ten found inhabiting this planet today; we are on a tiny rock hurtling through almost incalculable space, while sealed within a delicate atmosphere that shields us inside conditions suitable for sustaining life as we know and can project it to be. Meanwhile, here at sea-level in central Amsterdam, the greatest growth in polluting machines has to do with motorised scooters. The increase in column centimetres taken up by avowed and conscious Amsterdammers rising up against the mushrooming of these fouling machines is quite impressive. As impressive as the exhausts of these stuttering, massed monstrosities are overwhelming and noisy, in the context of this quiet city. As if via some alien indoctrination, scooters have become somehow desirable or utterly fashionable. Neither can be true

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‘At sea-level in central Amsterdam, the greatest growth in polluting machines has to do with motorised scooters’

however, as this city already evolved to be at its maximum traffic volume with those now presenting splayed and fatty backsides on scooters having been projected to be found maintaining mild levels of fitness at least, instead, while using bicycles. So many electrical scooters are available at the explosive number of new shops in Amsterdam for powered two-wheeled vehicles but it would seem that despite the great fight the city fought in getting lorries out of the city, taking their heavy exhaust with them, that we seem to be replacing that plague with these fossil fuel-driven scooters. Those, with their ‘inbetween’ and unhandy dimensions, each chuck out almost as much of the ‘bad exhaust’ as that of a modern, eco-engineered family car; really.

behaviour within the startling global epidemic of fatness/obesity. Scooters can haul the weighty with reasonable ease here as they are powered machines on wheels operating over pretty flat topography. There is not an argument to be had about style either, as the sexy legs of a cyclist remains the best indication of a lifestyle lived with fitness and respect for nature somewhere close to the owners’ core.

Our concerns are not just those of some middling-class of self–obsessed individuals living in Amsterdam as one of the more pleasant, yet developed cities on the planet. A counter-movement is fortunately growing internationally and the shouts are growing louder. In the same way as I was to physically taste the poison of our time, others in their millions are rising up to say “stop, think, do something now, or else!” The most At the beginning of August I picked-up a sweeping set pessimistic are convinced it is already too late while the tempered insist that action now might just mean of statistics as published by Het Parool which seemed the planet can remain comfortably habitable for to confirm my own mental arithmetic regarding these another 20 years at least. Anything beyond that needs machines which seem to be the cause of, or involved for educated behavioural change (reversal) as that is in, more than half of all road and –cyle path rage the only weapon we appear to have against our own incidents in the city. If memory - not yet bleached by covetous selves and Earth. The absolute truth is that contaminated substances or unclean air - serves me right, the figures provided by the esteemed contributor the earth can indulge and nourish us and our mindless, showed a frightening trend. Apparently, up until about morbid follies but will facilitate our species’ end in a flash if we go on making counter-intuition the new five years ago there were some 5,000 licensed mass religion when mixed with material greed and scooters on Amsterdam’s streets. This total has now excess. There are so many other forms of life just flown past 25,000. The lump in throat moment comes waiting in the wings to take over the scene as soon as when the forecast for the next five to ten years is Homo sapiens (fancy apes) vacate it. At least we can proffered. We can expect an additional 70,000 surmise that the dinosaurs did not see it coming. scooters on Amsterdam’s paved ways in this time! What happened to the bicycles? You may ask, but it is A borrowed movie that should be the only the case that the epidemic of fatness as a lifestyle choice and psychology is on the increase here in the blockbuster on the list in your city, town, village or at Netherlands as well. Many are willing to tell about those corporate/industrial strategy board meetings: http://vimeo.com/93164060 convenience and speed to simply disguise their lazy

feature

[*]sources.

Essentially, I am now wondering how suicidal we are as a species. There are so many forms of slow-suicide already being practised by individuals (smoking, obesity/gluttony, hard drink and drugging etc.) and even more sadly, that of the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;educatedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; masses as entire populations, suspending intelligence. We have on one level settled for living in a clearly cancer-inducing environment because we are blinded by almost each and every sort of benefit this decision seem to promise. We live under a blanket of poison in Amsterdam (and most of wealthy Western Europe) and I do not hear those who are meant to be creating policy to help us save our own lives and cells as well as that of our future generations saying much about it. Everyone is instead busy with the distractions (and they are, in light of this understanding) of the new Bluff War(s). We allow thousands to be killed-off so that we can suffocate the life out of hundreds of millions while driving our ugly machines toward the apparently inexorable destruction of humanity. The planet will continue along regardless.

feature

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The sexy legs of a cyclist remains the best indication of a lifestyle lived with fitness and respectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

feature

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Making counter-intuition the mass religion when mixed with material greed and excessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

Dam in 60 minutes! 12

Near -South

By Sam van Dam

perspectives

‘‘Amsterdamse School’ architecture and style all around’

The RAI station enters my field of vision a little later, there is a major event going on, people in fancy clothing clog up the walkways and I approach to find out what it’s all about. It is a Multi-media fair that has attracted a crowd of international specialists with everyone seemingly waving the latest tablet and mobile phone models around, taking pictures of each other and the surrounding buildings. Traffic controllers and policemen steer the masses toward their destinations and young attractive hostesses smile at everyone, including handsome me rushing by on my bicycle. After a while I turn around and head further south instead, passing by restaurants and cafes that are filled with business people enjoying their lunch. It is though almost impossible to get through the throng of dressedup people filling the terraces, pavements and cycle paths, but with a little help from my bell, I manage. I slowly cruise through the delightful sunshine in the general direction of the Apollolaan, a very special street as it features grand, stand-alone houses that are not shared occupancy, as is the norm is most other districts of Amsterdam; these are beautiful buildings that are the homes of single, wealthy families. One other thing that makes this area special is the fact that there are such lush lines of trees on both sides of the road, a rather unusual thing in Amsterdam, and a vibe of wellness oozes out of every nook and cranny of this part of town. The roadside benches are empty, probably because the people living here have their own wonderful gardens to enjoy instead. An overall appearance of cleanliness and order prevails. On and on I cycle, passing by the Hilton Hotel that is well known for it is where John Lennon and Yoko Ono held their bed-in for peace in 1969, and from whence Dutch pop artist, Herman Brood jumped to his death in 2001. I make a right turn and cross the Noorder Amstelkanaal, to find that on the opposite bank of the waterway that the general appearance changes. Everything still looks tidy and groomed, but there are fewer trees, the buildings become bigger and the pedestrians look younger. I follow the Emmastraat and zip through some of the side streets surrounding the Valeriusplein - this is one of my favourite neighbourhoods of Amsterdam – where it looks pretty but also has a dynamic, elegant vibe to it. I finish the trip by rolling into the Vondelpark, the green heart of the south, and spend some quality time watching the locals and visitors soaking-in the sunshine. It feels a bit like coming home from a holiday, I should really spend more time hanging out in places that are not part of my regular rounds in downtown Amsterdam, there’s just so much to discover and enjoy.

After having cycled across the entire country last time for this column, I’ve decided to take it easier this time and go for a nice little cruise through the southern part of central Amsterdam, the money belt of our lovely city. I take off from the Amstel station once again and pedal across the Berlage bridge to properly enter one of the wealthier districts of Amsterdam. Runners, cyclists and canoeists are everywhere, enjoying a sunny day, staying fit and healthy. I spend a moment taking in the beautiful panorama around the river Amstel and the skyline of the city in the far distance. This is one of the few places where you can see open space and get the feeling of being able to shake off the hectic business of the otherwise narrow and crowded streets of Amsterdam. On the other side of the bridge the buildings begin to appear different, there’s the distinctive influence of the so-called ‘Amsterdamse School’ architecture and style all around as I admire the various expressions of this manner of building houses that has managed to make its mark on several areas of our city. It is the part of the prevalent local movement in architecture from 1910 and 1930. I steer my bike down the Vrijheidslaan toward Victorieplein where I stop at the statue of Mr Berlage himself, an architect who is responsible for the Amsterdam Commodities Exchange building (Beurs van Berlage), one of the major landmarks of the downtown area. I decide to make a turn to the left and head down the Rooseveltlaan; named after the former President of the United States, and follow its course deeper into the Scheldebuurt.

perspectives

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Beautiful buildings that are the homes of single, wealthy familiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;It is where John Lennon and Yoko Ono held their bed-in for peace in 1969, and from whence Dutch pop artist, Herman Brood jumped to his deathâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Attractive hostesses smile at everyone, including handsome me rushing by on my bicycleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

classifieds

A world of beer has arrived in Amsterdam West.

The Beer Tree Jan Pieter Heijestraat 148

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lifestyles

‘Remember the importance of remaining positive above all else’

Art of the Wingman

A Breast Cancer Journey

‘Surrounded by my mum, dad and close friend Kevin’ By Jane Hutchison

In July of 2012, just as my breast cancer treatment got underway, it became evident that my family and friends would play an important role in helping me overcome the challenging times ahead. Somehow, I knew they were all there to help me remember the importance of remaining positive above all else, for this is the first rule in beating cancer. The early days of surgeries and other uncomfortable procedures such as having my eggs frozen only set the stage for chemotherapy - a far more difficult obstacle to contend with. One of the things that I remember most vividly is entering the chemotherapy unit for the first time, was the unearthly smell of the chemical cocktails they were serving up. I remember my palms beginning to sweat and my heart starting to beat uncontrollably.

Fortunately however, as I sat in the chemo room surrounded by my mum, dad and close friend Kevin, I was able to take my mind off the cannula device [needleless intravenous access device], the antisickness/nausea drugs, and the six hours of the chemo solution being infused into my arm. As my chemotherapy continued, more friends such as Gemma Edwards came flying to my side – in her case even taking a day’s holiday off work to come and sit with me through my session. Obviously not much of a holiday for her [smiling], but her mere presence was an invaluable gift to me and one that I will remember for a lifetime! So many people expressed their love for me during my struggle with cancer, and arrived bearing gifts of positivity; some sending flowers, others inspirational quotes and emails of encouragement, and some just an ear to listen to my chat.

lifestyles

‘I was also able to replay their positive reinforcement when I was on my own’

I was extremely grateful to have these people, these Wingmen, around as they made my journey infinitely more manageable. Just having them in the room gave me comfort that everything would work out. And not only that, but I was also able to replay their positive reinforcement when I was on my own. This proved to be hugely beneficial to me because the side-effects of the chemo made ordinary life seem like a war zone. Wingmen What stunned me more than the room full of people receiving chemo treatment, was the percentage of those people who were there alone. I remember thinking how awful that must have been for those ladies to feel so near to death and yet have nobody around them to help comfort them in their time of distress. This sad reality made it clear to me that there was need for a buddy system or ‘Wingman’ programme that would ensure that no cancer patient would find her or himself flying solo or otherwise going through treatment on their own.

I knew in an instant that the Hello Beautiful Foundation I had established would need to incorporate a Top Gun-style strategy for getting through cancer. One of the most basic necessities for a cancer patient is having people around who can provide positive banter and encouragement to smile through the tremendous difficulties they face. Hello Beautiful wants to harness the power of the community to ensure that the physical and emotional aspects of cancer are met by a team of like-minded individuals. By coming together with people who already know about the cancer treatment process, either because they or someone they know has encountered cancer before, we hope to find a sustainable way of eradicating this disease. My friends in Amsterdam, I welcome you to join the movement. hellobeautiful.org >

lifestyles

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;One of the most basic necessities for a cancer patient is having people aroundâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

lifestyles

sentinel interview

Philosophy & Fermenting By Denson Pierre

Settled behind a glass of high-quality beer at a choice Amsterdam cafe, I present water purification/engineering, yeast culturologist, space sculptor and philosopher of fermentation, Henriette Waal. Henriette will be taking us on regular educational and practical tours in a column within the following issues of The Sentinel, Amsterdam. DP: So you tell me you have just been to Rotterdam to collect a grant or an award. Which is it? HW: It is a talent fund, de stimuleringsfond [Creative Industries Fund NL]. This year they had some 300 persons apply for funding and 30 were successful. Obviously I am extremely happy to have been one of these! It is really the first time that they have sought out creatives who are involved in working within e-culture. DP: Does this relate to ecological issues or do you mean electronic? HW: Yes, persons busy developing and making apps and such. I applied for this as it is a means of literally funding some of my work time. The work I do is usually commissioned and involves a lot of collaboration with

various parties. It is therefore really difficult to monetise my own hours as people tend to like what I do but do not seem to believe that it takes pretty hard work, and my time has to also in some way mean money. This happens to be one of the only funds you can use toward your own â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;free timeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, especially given that my projects are so time intensive in the first place. DP: Why were you in Rotterdam for this? Was something like the Amsterdam Arts Fund not of assistance? HW: Well, firstly it is a national fund and as it turns out I have never properly approached AFK for possible funding. In fact, I have for some reason always thought of them as being too small. DP: They seem to have a lot of money for people who meet their particular criteria. HW: A collaborator and I did have a conversation with them about investment into the Halbe beer brand and concept in the past but even though they were seemingly positive, at that time we were so busy with other projects that the discussion and moment seemed to slip by. We did have a conflict of sorts though, as we wondered if this type of entrepreneurial project should be supported by an arts fund. The thing is, that despite

sentinel interview

what people think, it is really difficult to firstly make good beer, and secondly, to also be able to innovate while doing it. DP: Innovation. You came to my notice based on your extra-ordinary skill set and expertise, and in particular your ability to engineer water. Of all the specialisations to consider, how did you manage to come up with this one? HW: Indeed I happened into it. I was asked to do some work on a water purification system in Tilburg (Moerenburg). It was one of the oldest of its kind in the Netherlands. It got me thinking about such an invention; how it works and the work it does. It is so amazing to be able to separate good water from all the urine and other impurities. That facility was doing sewage treatment since the 18th century but now of course it has been redeveloped as a landscape park. I rather quickly developed an interest in purifying water from then on and branched into making beer, as it is to me, a form of water purification. I would like to say that I believe the current beer-hype has to do with the way people are reacting to the economic crisis. It has positive benefits and it feeds into all things ‘quality’. This means there is greater interest in locally made and fine tasting things that are

not just about better beer. With the advent of social media it also means that knowledge and experiences can be much more easily shared than would have been possible previously. This all leads to a greater degree of experimentation taking place as the help feels so available. DP: Now that we have been steered in this direction, how do you see yourself fitting into this surge of micro or –home brewing? How do you cope with what feels like a tidal wave of dozens of brewers suddenly all around Amsterdam? HW: Maybe I am a pioneer, as I tend to see trends coming sooner than most and act on them. So many artists and designers get stuck and then realise that that which tweaked their interest is easily suddenly long gone. I think currently for me the environment could be to my advantage as it is populated by so many men. I get along very easily with the typical beer brewing type of men. I work with people and they are my interest. Maybe with some artists it is about paint, a material or a computer program, but for me it is all about working in certain ‘scenes’. There I can expose something of my character. It is real life. It is avant garde life theatre.

sentinel interview

‘Making beer, as it is to me, a form of water purification’

DP: In our first meeting, last winter, you touched on the amazing world of yeast culture. HW: Yes! It is in fact one of the reasons I started a programme with MediaMatic Foundation here in Amsterdam. They were first focused upon facilitating creative Amsterdam with internet -based and media innovations but now are more dynamically involved in bio-design. I curate the programme with MediaMatic on Beer & Fermentation. DP: Would it be fair to refer to you as Amsterdam’s very own and foremost fermentation expert? HW: I could well be the most creative brewer from the Netherlands, at least. There are a few other really good fermenters operating outside of the big brewing business scene though. I just think beer is extremely interesting and so deeply set within the culture. DP: As we approach the end of this little introduction which has brushed the edges of the fields in which you are an authority; what should Sentinel readers expect from your forthcoming column? HW: For me it is simply exciting to share my experiences about the processes I am involved in with people. Currently I am working on a book (also covered

by the funding) about my work, so the column will afford me opportunity to reflect. I am regularly told that my life is eventful or maybe even interesting and that I should write about it. I think the Sentinel is a very open publication, I am open to life and things just happen that makes for good reading and teaching material. Ultimately I imagine the process of writing for The Sentinel will help me better my discipline – take things a tiny bit more seriously. DP: We will learn more about your amazing life? You clearly have so much to tell. HW: Indeed, I do so very much more than these brewing projects. I think I may start the column by introducing Sentinellers to my mobile brewery though.

sentinel interview

classifieds

The Mediterranean as it once was.

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www.visitgent.be

cafe/bar review

‘The famous feeling of ‘gezellig Amsterdam’’

Café/Bar Review De Oranjerie

cafe/bar review

‘Care has obviously been taken in setting the different prices’

By Denson Pierre

place just defines what a very good cafe should always mean. Rating 5

There are not many cafes left in Amsterdam into which you walk and feel yourself transported into the famous feeling of ‘gezellig Amsterdam’. This is one of those rare cafes that is hidden within very easy reach and packs the punch as an excellent place to visit as often as you can.

Televised sport There is space to stick a television or two if needed during a major event, but this space is not about flickering screens but nice people. Rating 5

Prices Here is where De Oranjerie also makes the best impression. Care has obviously been taken in setting the different prices for the various snacks, meals and top selection of beers given that they have regulars and Ambiance need not project silly prices which can cause those most Authentic Amsterdam brown cafe-restaurant of the likely to visit to doubt the economic wisdom of doing highest order and warmest welcome. Rating 5 so. When last have you seen a portion of bitter balls going for €3.50? If you know your way around highStaff/Regulars quality beer you can also find some attractive hits at With an address that sees it being both cosily accessible drinkable prices. This place just has a lot to teach other to the neighbourhood and the extra footfall of brown cafes trying to maintain an A-status and almost informed tourists, the entire atmosphere is socially everything else to the other pointless ‘concept’ cafes lively with it being ideal for those one-on-one meetings. about. De Oranjerie service and attentiveness is so good As far as the staffing goes, I am not sure I have had such that you actually want to pay them more (well, tip). a welcome of happy smiling faces doing their job for Rating 5 some months in this city. The catch might be that on my visit I was to be looked after by the husband and Music wife team who lead the business. With more than 25 Nice little system playing easy music that makes room years within professional (and cafe) hospitality they for conversations and the friendly socialising that takes were able to be present at evening, running the place place, led by the business leaders. Rating 5 and entertaining guests with the techniques that make you feel you are paying for said service and not just the Smoking area provision consumables that are more or less available everywhere An awesome awning and comfortable benches out else. This is a rare thing in Amsterdam these days. Too front, and once there you can stretch your legs to enjoy many of the especially younger proprietors do not the sights of this beautiful area of the old city. Rating 5 invest themselves in the passionate feel of their businesses (by being forever absent) and that mostly Total rating: 30/30 leaves you with a hollow feel for having visited. (Rating from 1-5, where 1 = Very poor and 5 = Excellent) Together with their bouncy and flexible head cook, this

Cafe de Oranjerie Binnen Oranjestraat 15, Amsterdam

cafe/bar review

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;If you know your way around high-quality beer you can also find some attractive hits at drinkable pricesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

cafe/bar review

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Service and attentiveness is so good that you actually want to pay them moreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

perspectives

Real beauty by The Observer

“Real beauty cannot be seen with carnal eyes, it requires a microscopic stare”

Real beauty lies not in being six foot tall, it lies not in being four foot five, nooo… not at all. Real beauty lies not in having skin the colour of ivory, creamy and rich as milk, it lies not in having skin the colour of mocha, smooth and soft as Asian silk. Real beauty lies not in having chiseled features, it lies not in having a head of soft hair that cascades as Angel Falls, nor a head of coarse hair as lamb’s wool and curly, none of that really matters. Real beauty lies not in having a well sculpted slender body, with more curves than a winding country road, it lies not in having a plump body that seems to be carrying a heavy load. Real beauty lies not in those fine things that adorns one’s frame, they are not in the least bit of paramount in the game. Real beauty does not cause you to stop and stare, Neither take your breath away, it is too deep and too rare. Real beauty cannot be defined by prestige, class or race, in the rules of real beauty, none of the above have any place. Real beauty is lodged in the depths of it carrier’s spirit, soul, body, mind, and reflects in a warm smile so divine, it shows up in selfless acts being kind, and lives on long after the robe of flesh has died, way past the end of time, Through a genuine magnanimous legacy its owner left behind.

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amsterdam city life

: K C A B G N I R B THE GUILDER PT I By Denson Pierre

Beer in this part of the world is as good as currency and seriously underpins the entire sociology as so much of it is available in - refreshing, exciting and in abuse scenarios, spoiling every aspect of - civilised life. Beer is therefore a control gauge with which I hope to show-up the distasteful ‘money disorders’ that seem to have overtaken those who are licensed to peddle it within cafe and bar settings in this city. The trick of bad magic took place at the very point of the switch to the euro. At this time, a glass of standard, A-quality pilsner or lager would set you back about

f 2.50 at even a reasonably hip cafe or bar. The very next day after the changeover saw these same proprietors, maybe because they all had PhDs in economics they never told us about, having modernised the prices for the exact same measure and product to € 2.00+. This of course sounded fine until you checked out the conversion rate between the two currencies and realised that the long eyes of the mass of the greedy and corrupt proprietors saw a chance to force a historical opportunity, to force an immoral advantage. It lacked any vision of how they would correct this outrageous leap when they felt their coffers and bellies filled in the short term. The once nice beer market of reasonable -cafe-bar-pricing has not returned to Amsterdam since. The unchangeable exchange rate of Guilder/Florin to Euro is 2.20371:1. Go figure. Salaries, the price of a barrel of oil, inflation or rents did not follow this pattern of increase unluckily and luckily. If you are above the age of 28 here in Amsterdam, you are now regularly paying more than f 10.00 for a single, 33cl glass of standard beer. Even factoring in how much the taxman does love filling the treasury with social penance accrued from the weakness of alcoholics, there is still something seriously wrong with this pricing behaviour and the proprietors charging it. The crazy reasons they give and the disdain they show for punters will be probed further.

Well, it certainly was one of the more beautiful paper note guaranties to pay from around the world, from the 19th century until 2002 (with those stashed before and since able to be cashed-in until 2032). This series is however, not to do with bringing back a currency consigned to history to make room for the much-bolstered Euro. What I would like to touch upon is the ‘value’ mentality that seemed to have attached to each currency here in Amsterdam, and all of the Netherlands, I otherwise presume. My angle in here, as always, has to do with the everyday and typical indulgences and practises that make behaviours of Amsterdam residents unique. We continue looking at what has and continues going wrong with the fuel of hospitality here; it is about the most culturally popular commodity: beer.

star beer guide

Star Beer

star beer guide

The Sentinel Star beer guide By Denson Pierre

TUMULUS MAGNA

(A.B.V. 9%)

‘Beer with which to define your highpoint (alcohol content-wise) in a settled taste tour of high quality brews’

This a perfect multi-hop beer with which to define your highpoint (alcohol content-wise) in a settled taste tour of high quality brews. It provides a platform from which to descend back into golden, lighter and lighter-coloured samples, should you have climbed up there through dark beers and stouts in the first place. Not for spreeing with and it is even able to encourage you to grade against or switch to German “Weizen” whites.

Tumulus Magna is brewed by De Kale Ridders, Landen, Belgium

More advanced brewing has created a beer that asks you to pay attention. It seems austere because of its name and appearance (bottle) but the experience of it is very much worth having given the right placement within a session.

recommended

Cafe Batavia 1920 25/09/14

ENDED RECOMM

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.

Connoisseurs Delight

CafĂŠ Westerdok Some of the very finest and rarest of beers available anywhere in the world. The warmest Amsterdam welcome. CafĂŠ Westerdok Westerdoksdijk 715A Amsterdam www.cafewesterdok.nl

recommended

To be seen and tasted

Fun, Drinking & Music

Cafe de Toog 1890’s grandeur fashioned into Amsterdam-West, grand, brown cafe-restaurant-cool. Classy drinks and meals. Nicolaas Beetsstraat 142 hs Amsterdam www.cafedetoog.com

Parck Great fun, beautiful people and simply the best bar food in town! Overtoom 428 Amsterdam www.cafeparck.nl

Mulligans Irish Music Bar Amsterdam’s best address for live Irish music: Five (5) nights a week! Check our agenda for upcoming sessions. 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. Postjesweg 1 1057 DT Amsterdam www.edelamsterdam.nl

Incanto A restaurant with a classic Italian kitchen. Venetian chef Simone Ambrosin is known for his pure and simple style of cooking with great feeling for nuance. Amstel 2 Amsterdam www.restaurant-incanto.nl

Café Kostverloren Café Kostverloren is a contemporary cafe offering the cosiness of a saloon, an open kitchen and the intimacy of a living room. The large terras is great for sunny days. 2e Kostverlorenkade 70 Amsterdam www.cafekostverloren.nl

Fun, Drinking & Music

To be seen and tasted

Cafe-Restaurant Du Cap A spacious and tasty helping to the Mediterranean vibe within Amsterdam’s new ‘West End’ entertainment district. Kwakersplein 2 Amsterdam www.du-cap.nl

Molly Malone’s An Irish pub as it should be and a home away from home! Cosy, friendly, and with its very own character! Oudezijds Kolk 9 1012 AL Amsterdam www.facebook.com/pages/ Molly-Malones-Amsterdam/ 293030997411277

Fun, Drinking & Music

Connoisseurs Delight

Fun, drinking and music

Bax A cosy and friendly local café with a focus on special or interesting beers and good quality food. Open 7 days a week with a professional kitchen offering a lunch and dinner service. Ten Katestraat 119 Amsterdam www.cafebax.nl

Café Rose Red You will not see and sample a better selection of the very best of European beer elsewhere. Cordoeaniersstraat 16 Brugge www.caferosered.com

Gollem Gollem’s Proeﬂokaal, Gollem and Gollem II represent the best addresses serving the fullest range of top Belgian, Dutch and international beers in Amsterdam. Overtoom 160-161 Amsterdam www.cafegollem.nl

To be seen and tasted

Café Oporto Café Oporto is a traditional Amsterdam ‘brown cafe’. Welcoming tourists and regular customers alike, they offer televised sports, wifi and a wide range of reasonably priced beers and spirits. Zoutsteeg 1 1012 LX Amsterdam www.cafeoporto.net

spotted

Where is this in Amsterdam?

Answer to: sentineldesk@gmail.com

film

Room 2c film The Last King of Scotland (2006)

By dpmotions

Saving Private Ryan Those who were there claimed it to be a most accurate rendering of events. The resources of DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Pictures and the direction of Steven Spielberg ensured the recreation of great human drama in graphic detail across movie screens everywhere. June 6th, 1944 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; pure horror.

Kevin Macdonald is unlikely to ever find a more monstrous story to apply his elegant directing skills to. With such able assistance by Anthony Dod Mantle on cinematography, it is a story told around the very real horrors during the insanely brutal nine years of the reign of Idi Amin in 1970s Uganda. Forest Whitaker was born to play Amin and this is a movie you strap in tight for as it is as gripping and terrifying as anything you have thought about.

By dpmotions

(1998)

trends

Bi-polarity ‘Ideas that would normally have been considered extreme are being applauded’

By Dirkje Bakker-Pierre

planet has evolved over the past 15 years or so into one big network; our lives have undoubtedly been utterly changed by the possibility of being connected ALL of the freaking time. Connected to each other, to news feeds, to ‘the system’, the banks, to all types useful but mostly totally superfluous information. Living our lives partly in a virtual world also means our identity and private lives are more than ever before in human history “out there” for anyone to read, use or take part in. Most people don’t seem to be very bothered by this fact. We kind of like sharing our lives with a bigger group of people than was ever possible, we like it that people on the other side of the planet see our holiday photos, our drunken nights out (and what we drink), the food we eat, the music we listen to, our cat’s lives and our endless stream of selfies. We secretly enjoy being a little bit famous, and having our own live ‘newsfeed’.

You would think that with unlimited information so readily available and the public sharing of our lives and thoughts for everyone to view, that being more connected would also lead to more openness between

different social and religious groups - more understanding for each other’s points of view, a more global and open viewpoint instead of one purely being influenced by local or cultural thinking. The opposite is true however, with all the freedom to mix, match and share, we just seem to be looking for groups of like-minded people to share virtual time with. It is as if we would secretly prefer to move back in time and live in a little village where everyone thinks and acts the same. These places are somehow being recreated online and we are caught-up in a trend of renewed polarisation. Hipsters got more hip, the right became even more right, the left moved further left, the religious (of all denominations) more religious and so on. All of a sudden certain thoughts or ideas that would normally have been considered extreme are being applauded by ‘like-minded’ people and become more normalised, creating space to take things a step further. We have used technologies of connection to sort ourselves into more and more tightly homogenised subcultures instead of embracing the opportunity to step out of our own mind-set and create a more open and free society. It is as if we weren’t really ready for it - this internet thing - this big connected world, as all it does is scare us back into our old bad habits and ‘safe’ little bubbles that only contain things that we understand. Maybe it would be better to try again in a few hundred years…

This

health & well-being

Stoned By Evelina Kvartunaite

As first said in a 1949 Broadway musical, “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend” They are also the emperor of gemstones. Unlike almost all other minerals and gemstones, which are complex carbon-silicates with metal impurities, diamond is simply a carbon allotrope which makes it the purest derivative in mineralogy. It’s interesting that the same element that creates coal and graphite also creates diamond – with just a re-arrangement of the atoms. Diamond is the hardest known mineral, and one of the poorest conductors of heat and electricity of any known material. Its industrial applications range from industrial cutters to knives which can grind other softer minerals, but of course, its

greatest and most traditional use has been as jewelry with other valuable metals like gold or silver. Venus guides the wearer of the diamond. This planet holds prime importance in both modern science and mythological tradition. It’s revered by practitioners of music, arts and culture – and the good alignment of this planet is supposed to relieve the wearer of his/her personal and mental demons. Artists, doctors, traders and businessmen have been found to benefit the most from wearing this gemstone. This brilliant gemstone improves physical and mental health, prevents sexual diseases, increases stamina and helps in improving the wearer’s marital life. So, sounds like a good friend to have indeed!

– ‘The emperor of gemstones’ –

health & well-being

– ‘The hardest known mineral’ –

– ‘Venus guides the wearer’ –

technology

‘Make efficient use of the 24-hours that we all have’

User Interface 62

Apt Apps

‘Apps that are smart, easy to use and can really make a difference’

‘Whatever you read on your mobile, syncs on the desktop’

By Andrei Barburas

Apps - pieces of zeroes and ones that we love to hate and hate to love. Keeping track of everything that is happening in the world is becoming more and more a case of an overload of information and time consumption. Besides the regular culprits like Gmail, Facebook and Instagram, there are many apps that can help you make efficient use of the 24-hours that we all have. We are familiar with the ‘standard’ apps that come pre-installed on a smartphone, but is that enough? I currently have 117 apps installed on my Nexus 5, that including those pre-installed, and to be honest, some of them I can live without. Yet among these 117 are a few that are central to my day going smoothly; Gmail, Calendar, Banking and SwiftKey being among these.

Nevertheless, there are several apps that are smart, easy to use and can really make a difference in the way you consume information. The first one is Feedly. Feedly is a news aggregator application for various web browsers and mobile devices running iOS and Android, also available as a cloud-based service. It compiles news feeds from a variety of online sources for the user to customise and share with others. A few years ago, I was using Google Reader as my aggregator, but when Google decided to ‘retire’ it, Feedly boomed and the majority of users flocked there. The cool thing about it is that there is a dedicated app for it and whatever you read on your mobile, syncs on the desktop and vice versa. I find the app extremely convenient, especially when you’re on the go or if you are waiting for an ad break to end. Another app that is probably one of the best, is IFTTT. IFTTT is a service that lets you create powerful

technology

connections with one simple statement: IF THIS THEN THAT. Channels are the basic building blocks of IFTTT. Each Channel has its own Triggers and Actions and there are currently about 130 channels that you can activate ranging from Facebook, Evernote and Weather. It even plays well with hardware devices like WeMo switches, Philips hue and so on. An example recipe would be ‘If it begins to rain then change the light colours to blue’ or ‘if it’s 6:00PM then turn on the lights’. Truly magical stuff and it is all part of the Internet of Things! There are literally thousands of recipes that you can use. I currently have around 25 recipes activated and it truly saved me a lot of time in checking things, things that I now get automatically thanks to IFTTT. The final app I would like to mention is Pushbullet. What Pushbullet does is basically connect your devices, making it easy and automatic to share almost anything between them. You can see all of your phone’s notifications on your computer including WhatsApp

messages, texts, phone calls, and more. You can also send files from your computer to your phone with a click. I personally use it most to push images and links to my phone and also to be aware of my phone’s notifications without having the need to check it. These are three apps that I really find handy and time saving. There are thousands of apps out there that can make us more efficient, smarter and definitely lazier. What apps are you using and you think are really worth sharing? Links: http://feedly.com https://ifttt.com https://www.pushbullet.com

‘Create powerful connections with one simple statement’

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