De Pijp

Living back in De Pijp again, a funky little warren of a neighbourhood consisting of corner pubs, the biggest street market in the city, a little (ok, more than a little) litter, and chock full of high-end and low-end dwellings, restaurants, and people.

The past 3 days, the wind has been blowing like mad. Biking here is an experience almost anytime, but being blown into oncoming traffic or lightposts adds another element of adventure.

Some photos from this morning's walk around the 'hood...

Some fresh flowers for Andre Hazes, De Pijp's favourite son. He was discovered at age 8 at the Albert Cuyp street market here, and went on to become one of Hollands's most popular singers. He sung mostly levenslied (songs about life) - essentially Dutch folk music.

A four-seater, with air conditioning

In many countries, this would be illegal

Copyright infringement? Nah, let's just put "67" at the end

Wind damage

Amsterdam Architecture

In what will become a semi-regular feature here, a small section of a neighbourhood will be be featured from time-to-time. These posts will showcase mostly architecture, but other local quirks and qool things will be highlighted as well.

This past weekend took me to a section along the Amstel River, just on the edge of De Pijp, a neighbourhood packed with character. It was a brisk sunny morning (here's a tip for Amsterdam-bound travelers: the lousy weather doesn't normally wake up until about 11am, so many early mornings can be enjoyed and photographed in calm, sunny times).

This particular section of the river is lined with houseboats, trees and some excellent restored old homes. And when you head out at 9:00am on a Sunday, it's just you, a few other runners, and some ducks.

Throughout Holland, they take their bike-locking seriously

Cool blinds