Category Archives: Amsterdam

Summer has begun!

While I find that time passes quickly, it does; however, the summer took its sweet time to arrive. Or the varied experiences that added up, slowing down my perception of time.

How I experience time, changing seasons, and the city’s vibe has dramatically changed. The winters felt mild, for I was always home in comfortable clothes (and hello, climate change); Outdoors felt less crowded, for I am always home. What has stayed the same is how the city glimmers in the golden hour – haze lit up, trees and foilage backlit, and sharp shadows create this ethereal feel indescribable in words.

This particular favourite spot near my home evoked the feeling of watching the Gladiator movie’s opening scene, where Russel Crowe walks through a field, brushing his hand against the crops.

I paused briefly and decided to get to the other side via the bridge nearby. As I dropped onto the other side of the bank, I spotted a lone skateboarder lost in an endless dance of perseverance of, trial, error, and fun.

The sun began to sink further, leaving everything aglow. Streaks of light shone throw the leaves forming sharp shadows.

Am I seeing everything through a film camera? Or is this for real? My mind wondered. The surreality was unbelievable.

I sprinted up the nesciobrug to slowly orient myself homeward

Every single time I am atop here, I feel small. I am just another human in one small corner of the world, calling this place home, a place far far away from a home lost in time.

I momentarily paused at a beach nearby, lost watching a mother-son duo playing frisbee with their dog darting joyfully in between. I was filled with complex happiness, witnessing their joy and love, yet tasting the bittersweet sting of my own grief, a sorrow I know will forever linger

I took a self-portrait in shadow to mark this moment in time and place and headed back home.

Diemerbos

On a rainy Sunday, I headed to explore this little forest, which I only recently discovered despite having lived in my current neighbourhood for the better part of a decade.

Koffie met appeltaartje was delightful despite the crowded restaurant, which I nibbled while sitting at the bar, as that was the only spot available.

It was loud with noise from the nearby motorway and railway tracks, but it was quiet and quaint. The damp weather elevated the saturated green grass tones, making it stand out against the muddy grounds.

These trees reminded me of Speulderbos – Forest of dancing trees. It also reminded me to consider getting back onto road biking, which I fell off seven years ago after that bike went missing.

It brings me great joy to see well-behaved dogs, off-leash, merrily exploring around, occasionally waiting for their owners to catch up to them.

Photographing dry reeds is always fun, and all appear just as same as they are different.

A bridge emerged from the foilage, and I had to go up for a peek.

It was a relaxed 45 walk, though the trails website described it as a 2-hour circuit. It is close if you were herding a few restless kids and a dog or two with every step you take.

Winterparadijs

Christmas is here, which means lots of fun markets and fairs, which translates to expensive food, shitty drinks, random music but good company of friends and excellent opportunity for capturing some photos. That last two bits usually makes braving the cold on a weekend afternoon, quite worthwhile.

Winterparadijs event is one of the largest that happens in Amsterdam and despite me living in this city for almost 7 years, its the first time I ended up there.

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Sunny Sunday in Amsterdam

It was a sunny day. After vegetating for most of the weekend, I decided to step out and cycle around for few hours exploring some of my favorite spots and discovering some new ones.

Reeds with the advent of spring have found themselves growing out of their oblivion. I never get tired of taking pictures of them.

I proceeded to bike towards the sluice locks Oranjesluizen, which connects river Ij with Buiten-Ij. I discovered that it has been around for close to 150 years (opened in 1872).

The red bridge Schellingwouderbrug stood out separating the deep blues on either sides of the horizon today.

What surprised me further was the fact that the water level towards the inland was much higher than Ij.

I leisurely biked around, exploring the dijks on the other side of the sluice locks. The house boats, all bunched up looked exceptionally pretty

The underbelly of Schellingwouderbrug looked quite dramatic and so stopped to capture few shots. I then took the ramp on the right to get onto the bridge itself.

After crossing the bridge, I followed onto Zuiderzeeweg and reached a spot near camping zeeburg. I often pass by this area when I am commuting to work on bike. Today I took time to stop by and explore

Then sunny backdrop was quite deceiving and it was quite cold all throughout my ride. My fingers were going numb and so I decided to call it a day started to circle back home.