Whee, new rugs!!

I'm so happy with the changes we made, now with all the pretty new colorful rugs in one room with the tapestries. It's so cozy down there, just in time for winter!!! People are loving our rugs! Thank heavens!! By George, we may have found our niche in Amsterdam. People do appreciate seeing nice things they've never seen before, and knowing what a tough time Spain is having now, I can't wait to sell everything we have at La Naranja and hurry back on a buying trip to help keep the Andalusian economy rolling.

Happy Thursday everybody, thanks for dropping by! If you are in Amsterdam, it's late shopping day, as it is every Thursday, and we will join the many shops that stay open until 9 p.m.

Gollem

Nice chat last night at Cafe Gollem in the centrum with the Foodie and Drinks Meetup group. So many people moving in and out of Amsterdam all the time, trying to figure it out, meeting and greeting and working and seeking work and falling in and out of love. As Liz, the Meetup organizer said, the story of "how did you get here" often involves a flame no longer burns.

Cafe Gollem is a classic brown cafe. The brown bars, or brown cafe's, refer to the classic Dutch pub. Think dark wood, rickety bar stools, native Dutch speakers and decor that could be hundreds of years old. Don't think about the bathroom, which will possibly be a crudely plumbed ceramic urn under a pull-chain tank atop a cracked tile floor. You will probably not have toilet paper or much space to maneuver. But this is the Real Amsterdam, and Cafe Gollem delivers in spades. High on atmosphere, low on space, with lots and lots and lots of different tasty brews to try from all over the world. I went for a Chimay Wit (white), and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Proust!

De Drie Graefjes

Happy November everybody! Well I kicked off the month at a brunch on Sunday with a great group of gals from the Women's Meetup Group of Amsterdam, of which I have somehow become Assistant Organizer, in title at least.

Barb, our real organizer, suggested De Drie Graefjes, a cosy little eatery just off Dam Square. There were fifteen of us, and we claimed half of the tiny upstairs of the restaurant. De Drie Graefjes offers a lot of brunch items. Plenty of yummy muffins and cookies, egg dishes, croques, tosties, healthy sandwiches, salads and more.

I thought the service was very competent, as we all arrived at different times and ordered different things yet we never wanted for anything. I thought 12 euros for coffee, mineral water and a croque with egg and cheese and tip was very reasonable for the heart of the tourist trap. It was great to see a full turnout for this meetup, and I met some new people and was pleased to find a lot of women eager to dive into the culture season, just starting here. One new acquaintance and I are going to take advantage of Museum Night this Friday at the Van Gogh, before we slip away to the American-owned Jet Lounge for another Ladies Meetup. Oh My God I'm actually having a social life!!!

I'm looking forward to seeing the folks at the other end of the table that I wasn't able to speak with. Such an interesting and diverse group of women, from all over the globe. It's especially important to get out and about now that it's so dark and dreary much of the time. Sometimes it's easy to get into the trap of waiting for nice weather to do anything, but if you do that here, you'll be immobile till April.

So, yes, it was raining by the time I left the brunch and I soaked my thighs on the bike ride home, but really, what's the big deal. I've been wet before, I think I can handle it. See, I'm going native already.

Have a great week everyone!