Amsterdam, Netherlands

Back to the office! Or, perhaps I should say Zurück ins Bureau! Let me explain. Yesterday I posted a link to the website of the Süddeutsche Zeitung quality newspaper on my Facebook. It was to point people to a beautiful poem, Was gesagt werden muss, by German author Günter Grass. In short (and I realise I'm not doing it justice here) it questions why the world is looking so anxiously to Iran's possible nuclear weapons program when at the same time it has allowed the most powerful country in the region, Israel, to have a secret nuclear weapons program. Israel has never admitted its program, simply doesn't talk about it, but from people who worked on it we know that it exists. Grass is concerned about Germany's support for Israel by sending it yet another submarine, and asks why the criticism that Iran faces is not applied to Israel as well. As a German he is of course, and he says so, painfully aware of Germany's stained past. It's a brilliant poem and if you can find a good English translation (should you not speak German) then it's definitely worth the search.

"I didn't know you speak German!" our German business developer, who was in Amsterdam today, said to me the moment he saw me in the morning, "I may have a job for you in my team!" Later in the day, when he sat at my desk, it became clear what he meant. He was looking for a contact person who could communicate between our company and a possible German speaking client. Would I be able to do that? I told him that I would be comfortable speaking German but that the task may not be really suitable after all because I didn't know that much about the subject that had to get discussed. Not in English and not in German. It was a funny moment though. I actually love German, and think it's one of the world's most undervalued languages (quite possibly due to that horrible moustache man in the 1930s and early 1940s) and admittedly, had I been born two kilometres to the east, I would have been German. We'll see where we go with this German task but I don't think I'll expect much of it. The picture is the view from my computer table, looking west. Quite a nice sunset (or should I say Sonnenuntergang?) today.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Of course one of the things I was most curious about as I got up this morning was how the Easter weekend with its delicious but rather carb rich foods had affected my weight. I stand on my scales every morning after the shower and record the measurement in an iPod app and also in an Excel spreadsheet. So I know that a person's body weight (or at least mine) fluctuates and is hardly ever exactly the same as the previous day. And in general, the measurements on Monday and Tuesday mornings are the highest of the week, with Thursday's measurement generally the most flattering. Nevertheless, this morning's verdict was quite a shocker. Compared to Friday morning, just three days ago, I was 1.9 kilograms heavier. Given that, on average, I lose just under a kilogram a week, that means that the Easter weekend put me back two weeks in my diet - if the increase is an actual permanent one of course, which remains to be seen.

It didn't stop me from going out for lunch with Hanno though. This Monday, the one after Easter Sunday, is a public holiday in most of Europe. In this country it's simply known as 'Second Easter Day'. Hanno arrived at my place at around one and we went for lunch in a small, cosy cafe not far from where I live. Of course I tried to order something low carb, but I don't have carb tables in my head so I have no idea if the soup I ordered was really low carb... and even though most of the ingredients in the salad seemed to be low carb, did the cheese in the salad also comply with my diet? I had no idea (I looked it up afterwards: yes, cheese contains no or hardly any carbohydrates so it's safe to eat in this diet.) And then there was the bread that came with both the soup and the salad. Even though it was delicious, it definitely was not low carb. I ate it nonetheless.

After lunch, Hanno and I walked to Gallery W139, a large space on Warmoesstraat where Hanno worked as a volunteer, specialised in modern art installations such as the one in the picture above. It's an interesting gallery. Depending on the artist(s) that are exhibiting their work, the entire space gets adjusted according to the artist's needs, which often meeds a complete overhaul of the interior. I have no idea what the installation in the above picture is supposed to be other than four record players with a fluorescent light uncomfortably low over them. I'm not a huge modern art fan, I'm afraid. Still, it was nice to see, and definitely nice to catch up with Hanno again!

Munstergeleen, Netherlands

I had my very first Easter egg of the year today, at my parents' place. From a low-carb diet I have completely switched to a go-carb diet, and that's just fine. It was a very nice day with the family today, which included some card games in the afternoon, watching the Paris-Roubaix cycling race on the telly, playing with Senna - my sister's adorable little dog that you see in the picture above - and having a very nice dinner in the evening. Especially when eating the oven potatoes I could hear my carb counter go over time. They were delicious!

In the early evening I took a train back to Amsterdam, and I got back home at around 10, staying in for the rest of the evening. I've not been going out that much, so, even though tomorrow is a public holiday and I could easily go out now and party till the early morning, I was quite happy staying in. It was a very nice Easter weekend in Limburg. No need to follow that up with late night drinks in some Amsterdam pub. Besides, my scales, as I stood on them (clothed) when I got home in the evening, warned me that a return to a low-carb diet would probably be quite advisable.

Maastricht, Netherlands

One thing that I forgot to mention in yesterday's post is that I finally got around replacing the light bulb that was still suspended from the ceiling on an electricity cable with a real lamp worthy of the living room (even if that living room is actually also my bedroom, kitchen and laundry room at the same time.) I bought the lamp at a nicely discounted price at Bijenkorf in the morning and hung it up in the afternoon. One of the advantages of being a qualified physics teacher is that I'm not too afraid of working on electrical things - so all went well, there was no blackout in the city of Amsterdam due to me creating a shortcut or anything like that.

Back to today. I'll be spending the Easter weekend in Limburg with my parents and this morning I took the train down to Limburg, also taking my bike with me. I'd bought my parents some Easter chocolates as well as a nice bouquet of spring-like flowers. Speaking of Easter eggs, I have not eaten a single Easter egg yet this year. Andy and Colin gave me some delicious Lindt Easter chocolates when I was in Glasgow in February, and admittedly they were too irresistible to leave them in my cupboard as decoration, so I did eat those - with much greater moderation that normal - but I've not eaten any of the dozens of Easter eggs that are in a couple of locations in the office. Nor did I eat the chocolate Easter bunny that was left on my desk (I gave it to Ana, for her son) and that is a huge contrast with previous years, when the pre-Easter weeks were completely chocolate fuelled. And you know what? I don't miss it it all!

For this weekend, however, I decided to let go of my low-carb diet and just eat 'normally'. So I did eat the bread that was on the table during lunch time and for the evening meal, even though I've not eaten bread for weeks now, and of course it tasted great, especially because it was home made. I was actually a bit curious if my family would notice that I had lost more than 11 kilograms already since they last saw me on 15 January. My mother didn't say anything during lunch time, but in the early evening she remarked that I looked thinner, and that my 'tummy' was disappearing. Great - it's noticeable! In the evening, when we went to my sister Joyce's place, I also didn't stick to any diet - and it was fine. Earlier in the week I had been wondering if I'd been losing weight to quickly, so it will be interesting to see how my body reacts to two days of carb-rich diet.

In the afternoon I went to Maastricht by train (the sky looked too threatening to risk riding my bike there) and had a nice time walking through that wonderful time. To be honest, I don't see myself returning to Limburg anytime soon, contrary to my statement when I left my home province nearly 20 years ago and expected to be back before the turn of the century, but should I ever return, then Maastricht would most likely be the destination. I love the place. At the Graus photography shop I looked for the new Nikon D800 camera, but unfortunately it was not in stock. Too bad because it seems to be a fantastic new Nikon camera. If my apartment wouldn't have cost me an arm and a leg, I'm pretty sure I would have bought one, because my old D200 (nearly 6 years old) is clearly not in good shape anymore and certainly hasn't kept up with the fast moving times of digital SLR photography. The picture above (taken with my compact Nikon) is of the wonderful Selexyz Dominikanen bookshop in Maastricht. It was chosen as the world's best bookshop by the British Guardian newspaper a couple of years ago. I'm not sure if that's justified (Waterstone's Piccadilly flagship store springs to mind) but it is a wonderful shop indeed. I love it!

Amsterdam, Netherlands

The weather was absolutely wonderful today, despite gloomy weather forecasts for the Easter Weekend earlier this week. With Good Friday being a public holiday, at least for those working in the Financial Services industry, I considered myself very lucky with the timing of the blue skies and the warm sunshine. At around noon I had a stroll into the western part of the city centre and on Westermarkt saw in astonishment that the queue to get into the Anne Frank house, on Prinsengracht, was going all the way down to Keizersgracht. My guess was that that was about a two hour wait - just to get inside. I guess the tourists have flocked en masse to Amsterdam for this long weekend.

On the way back home I bumped into Darren, or to be more accurate, he bumped into me as he suddenly appeared out of nowhere from behind me. Darren is my former room mate who actually stayed with me twice, in two consecutive winters, for six months each time. It was only because I bought my current apartment, that I had to ask Darren to move out. And of course having a room mate is out of the question in my studio now, otherwise I would have been happy to once more share the place with Darren. He's a very nice guy, very considerate, and easy to talk to so I look back with pleasure on the time that we shared Amstelkade 106-1. It was good to hear today that he's happy and that he and his boyfriend Vilius are living together in an apartment close to Westergasfabriek. Good Friday.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

A thought occurred to me that I would have deemed inconceivable just a couple of weeks ago. Maybe I'm losing weight too fast? I mean, is there such a thing? Where, in the past, I had difficulties losing even half a kilogram, with my current low-carb diet and regular exercise (swimming) regime, the kilograms are vanishing visibly. I stand on my scales every morning and today's weight (which shall remain a secret until I have reached my target) was 1.4 kilograms less than what it was last week Thursday, which in its turn was also 1.4 kilograms less than the Thursday before, which in its turn again was 1.7 kilograms less than the Thursday before that one. Ever since I started dieting I've lost nearly 11 kilograms. I'm extremely happy with that... but wonder if there are any side effects to that. Don't get me wrong, I feel fitter than I have felt in years (even went swimming this morning despite the fact that on Thursdays I typically don't swim) and to see it all going so easily - and healthily! - is wonderful. We'll see where this ends!

The picture is nothing special today, but in a way it's special for me: I have a view again on the canal side of the house! For three months there was scaffolding on this side and those were three very long months. Now, the scaffolding has moved to the street side of the house (where the view is now gone) but at least there is sunshine coming through the windows and early evening again on this side. Ugly as the building may be from the outside, at least the view gives me more to enjoy inside.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

The picture shows the office at around half past eight in the evening. It may seem as if it's still light outside, but that wasn't the case. In fact, almost the entire office, as well as the exterior, were dark. Only one light was burning, and because the rest was so dark, this picture makes it look as if that light was extremely light. I guess I should have selected an underexposed picture, but I was not in the mood to think too much about that. Nor did I have the time really.

Just to clarify; No, I didn't work till half past eight. No one did. Around 30 of the paintings and illustrations that were still hanging in the Amstelveen office were 'auctioned' to the staff this evening after work. It was also possible to indicate, on a bid sheet in advance, if you would like to receive a certain art work for free rather than for a price. I didn't bid on anything, not for free and not paid, even though I can still use a piece of art in my studio. It's just that not too much of what was on offer was to my liking, and furthermore, I am not too sure that I would like anything from the office hanging on my walls at home. The office is in my head plenty already when I'm home. No need to have a physical reminder as well. Still, it was a nice evening where I got the chance to catch up with some of my colleagues, have some drinks and some snacks (obviously I stuck to the low-carb snacks) and just relax with colleagues. When it was time to leave, I rushed to my desk, grabbed my stuff, and took this picture. Then the last of us (five people) left the building. At last.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Yesterday in the office was a bit of a struggle, to be honest. It's not related to the five day workweek that I now have to get used to, because we actually have a four day weekend ahead of us, but for some reason it was difficult to concentrate on anything in the office.

Today was easier. Of course I went swimming again in the morning, and that was extra nice. Not only is the pool's temperature highest on Tuesday mornings (and it goes steadily cooler throughout the week, with the water on Sunday actually a bit chilly at first touch) but this morning the main lights in the pool had also been switched off and that meant that the water was mainly lit by the big turquoise and blue underwater lights. It was quite a magical atmosphere! It's funny how quickly you become part of the 'morning swimmers' group. There are a lot of familiar faces each morning; people who, like me, get up early and do their rounds in the pool. You see each other, you say good morning to each other... and you swim on, doing your own laps. It's a great feeling. And I can basically repeat yesterday's post's closing sentence: if you'd told me this a month ago, I would have thought you were a lunatic.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

This has become habit. This has become lunch. For many years, every time I had lunch on a work day, it included bread. Some sandwich bought at the V&D Department Store in Amstelveen, a bread roll with cheese at the local cheese shop, or a bun with delicious meat at the butcher shop. There was always bread. But no more. A couple of weeks ago I switched to a low-carb diet, and that means that I'm trying to avoid any foods that have a high rate of carbohydrates, such as pasta, rice, potatoes and - yes - bread.

So these days, in the morning, I fill a box to the top with all kinds of salad stuff. The contents vary on a daily basis and depend on whatever veggies I have in my fridge. There's typically a huge variety to choose from. Typically I start with a layer of lettuce (often iceberg lettuce because, even though it's not the best type, it deals best with being kept in a non-refridgerated lunch box) and some pieces of tomatoes, and on top of that it can be almost anything low-carb. Today that meant gherkins, small yellow onions, sultanas and boiled (and cooled off) carrots. On top of that a thin layer of olive oil, sometimes some balsamic vinegar or herbs, and presto! And you know what? Much to my own surprise, it's absolutely delicious! I don't miss the bread at all, and if you'd told me that a month ago I would have thought you were a lunatic. 

Amsterdam, Netherlands

"April Fool's Day and the biggest joke in town is the building I live in" is what I wanted to write on Facebook this morning, as I was having a morning coffee in the Coffee Company Store opposite the building. But I didn't - I think it's pretty clear to all involved how I feel about what happened. No need to rub it in. At least not too much.

In the early afternoon, or to be more accurate, in the late morning, I was already on my way to the City Theatre, the former popcorn blockbuster cinema that was completely renovated and turned into an arthouse cinema. I saw Albert Nobbs, the film in which Glenn Close plays an Irish male servant in a Dublin hotel in Victorian times. The film was absolutely brilliant! I loved it, for its story, for its cinematography, for its cast. It was just great. I nearly missed it because it's now in its last runs in Amsterdam cinemas, so I was glad to have caught it still. The moment when Glenn Close, in real life an elegant lady, dresses up in female clothes after you've seen her as a man all film is actually hilarious. Suddenly Glenn Close doesn't even remotely look credible as a woman. For the trailer, click here.

Later in the afternoon, very much in the present time again, I went to Zuiderbad for one of my four weekly swims. That, as well, went brilliant. I'm pretty sure I swam a personal best if I would actually be timing my sixty laps. The picture is two ducks on top of a car, spotted on Leidsegracht, as I walked back home from seeing Albert Nobbs.