Not a big fan of zoos and animals behind cages, but if you can spot Flamingos in the east-centre of Amsterdam, then count me in <3 ! You can actually see them while riding the bike on Plantage Middenlaan, quite a beautiful scene.  Note: De Plantage next to zoo is quite cool cafe/restaurant, with a mix of vintage style and industrial elements of the old buildings of Artis. Great atmosphere, and ideal for a more sophisticated outing. 

A few years ago, the Volkskrant (one of the countries biggest newspaper) moved office to a new location. Their old headquarter now houses hundreds of artists and musician; along with dance studios, a bar/club with panorama over the city, a dreadlock 'doctor', a Russian cultural centre, a cyberpunk gallery and my photo studio on the 4th floor. It was a conscious choice by the founders to create a total melting pot. In the basement for example, 3 doors away from our music studio, you will find some cheerful weed smoking hiphop producers from the Bijlmer (the 'ghetto' of Amsterdam); an ex-yougoslavian hardcore drummer with a full analogue recording studio and a ballet school run by an obese woman in her 70's. Ok, it might seem artificial, but it really is quite magical!

De Waaghals (= The Dare-devil) is a very nice vegetarian restaurant. The atmosphere is informal, but the food is very nice, refined and creative. Organic ingredients are used as much as possible. Each month a dish focuses on a different country.

Surrounded by the growing business area of Amsterdam Zuid, this modernist historic monument from the 60's oozes freedom. The clash of strict, grey, practical architecture of Gerrit Rietveld with the chaotic, colourful, anarchic bustle of art students working in these spaces is amazing. The 5 years I spend here as a student changed my life and shaped me to a great extend to who I am today. Now, temporarily walking these corridors again as a guest teacher, I realise how much I had missed this place since graduating 8 years ago. This is not a common art school. It's a family, a movement with a very personal and radical approach. Many students coming for a temporary exchange end up staying, because after wandering through this twisted Mondrian painting you will never be the same…

Mussels, french fries and gin & tonics... need I say more?