DRINKS

• Pavillion Aquarius (Slotervaart)
(http://www.paviljoenaquarius.nl/, Anton Schleperspad 10)
In an area in Amsterdam that makes you feel that you’re far away from Amsterdam. It’s in an area full of nature, Scottish Highlanders wandering not far from the pavilion. You have a great view over the “Nieuwe Meer” (New Lake) and at the background you can see the Amsterdam Woods, which you can visit by ferryboat fromthe 15th of April till the 15th of October (only in weekends and public holidays) and eat pancakes in the Meerzicht-farm.

• Gent aan de Schinkel (Oud-Zuid)
(http://www.gentaandeschinkel.nl/?page=5, Theophile de Bockstraat 1)
A cafe/restaurant real close to the Vondelpark, with Belgian beer and a great atmosphere and a nice outdoor cafe with a view on “the Schinkel” (water). Somehow almost always busy (but not too busy), even though it’s a little bit outside the city centre.

• Cafe Oostoever (Geuzenveld/Slotermeer)
(http://oostoever.com/, Oostoever 1)
A nice cafe with a view over the Sloterplas, in an underappreciated area in Amsterdam (the Sloterplas and Sloterpark are maybe even nicer as the Vondelpark, because they’re not as crowded and you see more people from Amsterdam instead of just tourists). The Sloterplas originated from extracting sand (around the early fifties) for building houses in the surrounding areas and is about 30 meters deep. It is often used for diving – amongst other things- the Amsterdam firemen exercise their diving at the Sloterplas.

FOOD

• Mexican restaurant Roses Cantina (Centrum)
(www.rosescantina.com/ Reguliersdwarsstraat 40)
A nice Mexican restaurant with good food, drinks and an unique opportunity to eat outside away from street noise in Amsterdam Centre. Every Thursday and Friday afternoon from 17:00 tot 18:30 and on Friday evening from 22:30 tot 23:30 HAPPY HOUR!

• Grand cafe L’Opera (Centrum)
(http://www.l-opera.nl/ Rembrandtplein 27-29)
A grand cafe in the middle of the centre. They serve their food quickly, so ideal if you want to go to theatre Carre for example. L’Opera has a nice sun lounge, ideal for watching people.

• Grand Cafe Sloterplas (Osdorp)
(www.grandcafesloterplas.nl/ Meer en Vaart 177a)
A grand cafe with a view on the Sloterplas and located ideally in the centre of the Osdorp area, with its own shopping centre. Grand cafe Sloterplas shares a building with a coffee shop, a club restaurant called Opium and a Chinese restaurant. The building is close to a theatre called Meervaart that’s quite popular, as parking your car is no problem and drinks and wardrobe are included in the price of the ticket (and the tickets are still cheaper than in theatres in the centre).

ACTIVITIES

• Last-minute ticketshop (Centrum)
   (http://www.lastminuteticketshop.nl/main.cfm, Leidseplein 26)
Every day at 12 o’clock 50% off on theatre performances, concerts and/or movies. It’s of course really Dutch to use this discount ;) and on the website “LNP” indicates that for some performances it won’t be a problem if you don’t speak Dutch.

• Uitmarkt (Centrum)
(http://www.amsterdam.info/events/uitmarkt/, several places in Amsterdam) August 28-30. The Uitmarkt is the grand opening of the new Dutch cultural season. There are three days with a few hundred previews of different artists, performing on over thirty stages. A great opportunity to discover new artists or watch your favourites for free or just a small fee. There are many things you can do, on Sunday on of the things you can do is sing along with musicals, a good exercise of your Dutch after your course Dutch language & culture at Earli. And, usually some musicals throughout the day are performed English, so if you have some trouble singing along in Dutch, don't worry.

• Cycling (http://netherlands-travel.suite101.com/article.cfm/cycling_in_amsterdam, everywhere in Amsterdam). The best way to discover Amsterdam is on a bicycle. For inhabitants cycling is often quicker than using public transport and in the centre certainly cheaper than going by car and parking it. Rent a bike and discover the city centre or be more adventurous and go to the suburbs. For some you can find tips from the members of the JURE Local Committee about where to eat and drink when visiting these area’s. The area is always mentioned between brackets.