Sex and the city style Amsterdam!!

So this week has been interesting and also a bit mad, socially.

Of course Monday and Tuesday should have been recovery from the heavy weekend. I say should’ve been…Instead Tuesday I ended up going to the SATC premiere, which was really fun. Of course I was dying to see the film anyway, and because it was a premiere there was all the hype around it, and free food, drinks, and a party afterwards. It was also held at the oldest cinema in Amsterdam, in the Centrum, which is really art deco in style. I will have to post some piccies up (they’re on my computer at work). I got it by default, really – Mali’s other friend had a busy week and couldn’t be bothered to dress up. I knew I should’ve taken my sex and the city dress with me!!! Couldn’t fit the poofiness in my case though.
Anyway, we were standing right in the middle of all the Dutch Soap Celebrities, so really got the feeling we were being papped all the way in through the crowds. The mother and daughter sitting in the chairs behind us won the Swarovski crystal bag, so we were so close (I thought it would’ve been really funny if I had won it, the compere would have to have then talked in English…)
The film was really good. I am watching it again this week with Ilko. The party afterwards was pretty hilarious (I couldn’t believe how early it finished, in the UK it would’ve just carried on until whenever, but everyone had left by 1.30), we got a taxi back, a goodie bag with a dildo inside, and a very horny taxi driver listening into our conversation and asking if we needed some company…Funny.

Weds was the Indonesian meal night with my landlady. Started with a drink at her Univesity hang-out Café Brondel (we went past her other fave, Café Prins). Bless her, but then we ate possibly the worst Indonesian food I’ve ever tasted at ‘SukaSari’ on The Dam. The Sop Ayam was good, the Rendang and Nasi Goreng over cooked, underspiced, and obviously using really cheap ingredients for meat etc. Shame…! I still have time to investigate. She has had such an interesting life, and hard one. She was always the rebel, she never married Piet, she lost her mother when she was 9, her stepmother wasn’t very nice to her, and her brother commited suicide. She has had periods of depression and madness, yet at the same time she is incredibly clever, and also a good artist. I think she regrets not taking her art further. According to her, she always had to take the hard route and Art was too easy for her, so she went into the one thing that she was rubbish at – social psychology. All her other brother and sisters settled down outside of Amsterdam with husbands, houses and kids pretty early. She was always looked down on, although now of course they admire her as she has a pretty big standing in academia here.
We then investigated the red light district, wandered around the central square, had a mint tea in Café Waag (very cool venue), and then cycled home.

Thurs was a sh1t day at work. Can’t be bothered to go massively into it, but had the most rubbish day at work on Thurs, and was so tired really couldn’t be bothered. It seems I stepped on a few people’s toes by sending an email out about this stupid bloody newsletter ‘The Dish’, I just said would be coming around to talk to peops and that we were sorry it was late. Big hoo ha about telling people it was late (negative), and the tone of voice of the email. Had my first encounter with Agnes (a bit of a dragon) and got told o ff three times – oops.

Thurs night was a night of watching a very bizarre film with Heather Graham around Ilkos. I went for a run in Westerpark, which was really good actually, and then met Ilko at the video shop. He fancied an easy to watch romcom and that one was quite interesting, although questionable storyline, film quality and acting in some places too. One of those films that relies on the kookiness of the lead to carry it, and it gets a bit dull after a while. Anyway, it was nice to chill out on a comfy sofa, eat, drink and chat about life & loves. He’s a cool guy, and very positive and sorted considering the things he’s had go on in his life, but sure will go into that later.

Friday was a busy Philips day (I am madly busy now at work and trying to fit in all the stuff I volunteered to do around it :0( ) and then the Dutch football later on – a really good match but you know me and football, couldn’t really be bothered so left at half time for an early night. I needed a good sleep as even at Ilko’s I wasn’t home before half twelve…pretty shattered. And busy week at work too.

Yesterday was a day of running, a bit of sightseeing – I headed down to the east docks via another market I found at Waterloosplein, and found the Stadlijk Museum and the library. Had a wander around an exhibition, and then it was off home to shop, and get ready for a party Ilko had invited me to. He had tickets to go to this gay party and Vordebroodt (or something like that) beach. Interesting place, sure it’d be amazing if sunny and warm, it was a bit cold and windy, and full of the most amazing amount of semi clad pretty boys I’ve ever seen. Ilko pulled (ill) three times, well kissing only – apparently in the gay world that doesn’t count. He has some photos on his phone which I will post up. It was a bit of a trek to get there (Haarlem and then a bus, although there was a bus strike so we got a lift instead), and then back to Amsterdam Central Station, and a pretty grim greasy chinese soup on my account to end with, although Ilko’s was better.

He is a really nice guy, as I said, and it’s fascinating for me to hear about his take on life here, him being massively into the gay scene. It is another world!