The Flying Pig Hostels Amsterdam Pig Multmedia

This spot is currently filled by our own local pig chat, but from next issue on we reserve this for your backpacker visuals! Have you got a funny, beautiful, embarrassing, brilliant, crazy, sweet or ridiculous picture in your collection? Send it to us by email accompanied with your name, nationality & 3 lines which tell the story behind the picture, and you might find your fame in our next issue!! INFO@FLYINGPIG.NL

Name: CJ St. Louis
I call home: Ottwaw, Ontairo, Canada Lays head currently at: The Flying Pig Beach hostel. “It’ s great: I go on bike-rides through the dunes, play beach volley ball just enjoying small town life. It’s nice to get away from the bright lights of the city to see what local Dutch life is like. To top it off everyone at the Pig Beach is fantastic.” She smiles and continues “no honestly, they just really make you feel at home. What else can I say than... ah…that sweet beach life”. Taking in this answer for a minute I proceed by asking CJ about what she believes her goal of traveling is. Her turn to be quiet now. …”Well I guess it’s more of a life style. A great one at that!” she adds happily. “I travel to see the things only some people dream of seeing. Yeah, I guess to actually get to experience your dream and to get the chance to live and love it. Hmm my long term goals you ask”... and she gives me a boyish grin “To have the best stories to tell, definitely”. CJ’s travel tip: “What ever you do, follow your instinct. It leads you to breathtaking adventure but keeps you out of trouble at the same time. It’s the one thing I know I can always rely on”. There she goes off to the beach department store -following her gut again I presume-.

Baguettes, red wine and a cozy corner of the Downtown Pierre Luc and Jonathan from Quebec city - Canada- are just about to have their dinner when I interrupt them for an interview. As I sit down to join them, Jonathan tells me they were just discussing the hostel cat who was passing by. “A cat in a hostel, it’s great, but this one is so quiet and slow”. “We think he’s been affected by too much smoke in here”. We all start laughing which breaks the ice and when the cat has left the building I ask them about their day. They tell me they have visited the Sex museum, they did the Heineken Experience and visited the Hemp museum. “We have had a great time so far”! As I accumulate a day filled of sex, alcohol and drugs the guys go on by saying “Amsterdam surprises us in many ways”. They talk about the colourful clothing of the people, the old, crappy bikes and the tiny, old houses & streets. Lastly they add they are amazed that there aren’t more dead people in the streets......... Excuse me, more dead people?? As I seriously start to doubt my hearing abilities Pierre Luc luckily explains; “Because of the traffic”. “There are cars, trams, bikes and people everywhere in those tiny, busy streets and no-one seems to get hurt, amazing”! Still, the main reason for these Canadians to come to Amsterdam are the coffee shops. “We are still stunned by the fact that you can buy and smoke marijuana in a coffee shop without getting arrested”. Quite some time has been spend by the guys in coffee shop Prix d’ Ami, because they liked the music and the people were really friendly to them. Tonight they will finish their dinner, the bottle of red wine and smoke a little before going out to find another nice coffee shop to spend the rest of the evening. “Smoke another one and enjoy life” says Pierre Luc a big smile as I’m leaving the table.

Rachel & Molly
Two beautiful blondes from the States. Rachel is a half Dutchie who can count to ten in this great language! -sorry, bit of nationalism there- Her family is from the north -Friesland- and Rachel has been in Holland several times before. She tells me how she had to convince Molly to go on a tour to Volendam and the Zaansche schans. “She did not want to go at first, but I put her on a bus anyway”! Molly smiles at her friend and adds “I was wrong, Its gorgeous. Everyone rides bikes and it’s so romantic”. They both agree ”Holland is such an interesting place but you hardly meet any Dutch people in Amsterdam”. “That’s what makes the countryside so interesting”. Moreover, Molly turns out to be a huge fan of bicycles. Back home she rides a low rider, A tough girl! But as she explains riding a Dutch bike is a different story. “It’s crazy here with all the bikes and the traffic”. “Nonetheless I really should rent one.... if only to be able to tell my friends back home that I rode a bike in Amsterdam!”

Daniel Piggie staff

Pig connection: Notorious, afro haircut barman -although he recently trimmed it- and receptionist at the Flying Pig Uptown Hostel. After having asked my question on partying and drinking in Amsterdam I’m wondering if I’m talking to the wrong person for this interview. It turns out that Daniel’s favourite bar is the Uptown Hostel Bar; “It’s small, cozy, there’s good music and there are always nice people about.” He explains, while seeming really comfy on his barstool in the Uptown basement. He starts to laugh and reassures me “Don’t worry, I do leave this bar occasionally ‘The Lux’ and ‘Weber’, located right next to each other on the Marnixstraat, are two quite trendy pubs I really like. Lux is a hip place which has DJ’s playing the table in the weekend. Weber is less hip, but a great place to start the evening. Close to the Leidsesquare you’ll find the ‘Ebeling’, this is also a very nice place. It’s a huge cafe/restaurant where besides having dinner, you can dance, talk or just relax.”

Daniel’s tip of the month? “For the best jazz club in town go to the ‘Alto’s’. Apart from the great jazz, this place is one of the few bars in Amsterdam that stays open late on weekdays.”

So in short; Enough cool places to check out, drinks to experiment with and food to be tasted. And who knows, you might run into Corine or Daniel in one of these places. Still can’t be bothered to leave the hostel? Than just take a seat on a stool next to Daniel, drink some fresh pints and stumble up those stairs to your room at the end of the night. Because I have to agree with Daniel, that Uptown bar is pretty cozy indeed!

Other tips of Daniel: Alto, Korte leidsedwarsstraat 115 Jazz cafe with live jazz every evening Beiaard, Spui 30 Beer café with a student crowd. Dansen bij Jansen, Handboogsteeg 11-13 Cheap beer. To party with Amsterdam students.

Cafe Ebeling, Overtoom 50-52 Nice place, something for everyone.
Lux, Marnixstraat 304 Hip cafe, dj’s but very busy Meander, Voetboogsteeg 3 Basically same atmosphere as Dansen bij Jansen, but occasional live music Tara, Rokin 89 Huge but warm Irish pub with students, locals and tourists Weber, Marnixstraat 397 Hip, young and beautiful crowd. Good music.