Patti Smith & other Adventures in Amsterdam

On Thursday I arrived in Amsterdam... and wow. This just really seems to be the city of the future. It's kind of hard to believe that the Dutch have got it so right... I mean, what on earth are we doing in the rest of the world? Granted, I've only been here a few days, but the overall impression is one of serenity and efficiency. Public transportation is great, police presence verging on nill, and despite what you would think, no public 'scenes' so endemic of US/UK societies on a weekend.

Maz and I have had a wonderful time relaxing and catching up the past few days. On Saturday we went to see Patti Smith at Paradiso which is a converted church and must be the coolest place to see a gig ever. I've never really listened to Patti much, but she was incredible live. Despite being a living legend, she has to be the most unaffected musician ever (and yeah, I'm including all the musicians I know that aren't anywhere close to being a legend!).

The hostel is a bit dull, but clean and warm (and at 27 I think maybe that should be my main criteria for hostelling). The red light district was a strange sight, the city goes from picturesque to ummmm pornographic in a few steps. But crime seems to be a lot lower and we did find our fave hang out spot of the weekend slap bang in the middle (just in case you're concerned, I am leaving with far less money than I arrived with!).

I don't think I've ever had such a great weekend :)