News from other websites

The latest issue of the Vogelvrije Fietser, the magazine of the Dutch cyclists’ union features workbikes, which basically means it features WorkCycles. Those are WorkCycles Fr8’s in use by customer Eurotank on the cover as well as in the two page spread that begins the article.

To translate the first part of the article:

“Everything you dare transport”

Somewhere in Azerbijan on the terrain of a cement factory ride bikes from WorkCycles, a bike builder from Amsterdam. Also in Latvia, Nigeria, Serbia and Finland they do their duties in factory halls.

Where the tough transport bikes land and at which companies, Henry Cutler of Workcycles often doesn’t know. “Purchasing organizations order the bikes from us. Sometimes that organization belongs to a concern and sometimes they’re hired in to purchase stuff.” In any case businesses that need tough bikes know where to find him. Cutler is from the US and nourishes the Dutch bicycle culture and history. So has he put the wind back in the sails of the old fashioned, indestructible bakfiets in Amsterdam. “I’m an American who maintains a Dutch tradition. For the Dutch is the bicycle apparently not so interesting. The bicycle is something to use, such as a pair of shoes or a refrigerator.”

For €3250 you can buy a brand new bakfiets from WorkCycles, based on a model that determined the street scene in the 1930’s, with stainless steel components, fat tires, and thick spokes. “On the bakfietsen sit 120 kilo guys who throw 400kg in the box. It really has to be strong.” The interest in all sorts of transport bikes for businesses has grown quickly in recent years, says Cutler. But why so suddenly? “The bicycle wasn’t hip, but now it is. I see that that improved status of bikes has made its way onto the work floor. What’s also handy is that you don’t need a driver’s license for a transport bike. And you can’t do much damage with a bicycle. But if you hit something with a big forklift something’s going to get broken.”

Naturally it’s also just fun to ride over the extended industrial terrain on a WorkCycles Fr8 Transport bike. About the maximum load capacity of the bikes you needn’t worry, assures Cutler. “Everything you dare transport on the bike, the Fr8 Transport bike can handle.”

Vogelvrije Fietser

Are you a “foodie”? Then the Haarlemmerstraat Food fair is for you. It’s on Saturday 4 September starting at 12.00 with foodstalls lining the Harlemmerstraat and Harlemmerdijk. You can walk from one to the other sampling food, learning about it’s preparation, and enjoying a nice wine. If you’re still hungry at 6pm the restaurants set up dining tables outside for everyone to dine al fresco.

It’s very social with all ages and types taking part – see last year’s photos to get an idea of the event.

Probably best to skip breakfast on Saturday morning.

photo from the foodfair site – I didn’t see a way on the site to ask permission for its use – please contact me via the comments if you own the photo and would like it credited or removed.

Tagged: food, food fair, harlemmerdijk, harlemmerstraat

Since the city is full of tourists, and the tourist industry is in full swing, here are five things that are free.

1) FerryTake a harbour cruise for free! You can cross the Ij to three destinations, NDSM Terrein, Buiksloterweg, and Ijplein.

As an added bonus you can take a bike with you – also for free – and cycle around North Amsterdam – taking a different boat back or crossing the bridge at the Zuiderzeeweg. 2) Churches

Most of Amsterdam’s churches are free to visit, and they’re a big part of the city’s history and some have interesting decoration or art. The photo shows the top of the Westertoren the highest of the city’s church towers.

The art in St Nicholas church opposite central station focuses on the city’s role as a port. 3) Walk the Historic Centre

The best way to see the city is to walk around the historic centre, which was recently declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

Spot the different gables, this one shown is a step gable. Look for gable stones showing the date of build or hinting at the occupation of the owner. Look out “gapers“, rare but there is at least one that is still above a pharmacy. 4) Markets

One of my favourite things to do in Amsterdam is to wander around the markets; Noordermarkt on Saturdays and Mondays, Albert Cuypmarkt, Waterlooplein.

Of course it’s only free until you spot a “must have” item. (No, the pink buddha was not a must-buy). 5) Begijnhof

There’s an oasis in the centre of Amsterdam, the Begijnhof, the entrance is a gate on the Gedempte Begjinensloot. It’s been part of Amsterdam since the 1100′s.

It’s still lived in today, and the chapel is still in use. 5 1/2) Opstapper

It’s free if you already have an GVB day pass or multi-day pass, otherwise it’s 1 euro for a ticket valid for an hour.

It traces a route from the library, past central station, loops around the Prinsengracht to Waterlooplein, so follows a great scenic route. Just signal the driver to stop, there aren’t fixed stops along the way.
Tagged: begijnhof, ferrry, opstapper

One of the Netherlands' most wanted men, Dino Soerel, has been arrested in Amsterdam, police said on Friday evening.

If we can believe these pictures (here and here), the world famous Anne Frank tree has blown over and is broken in two.

In 2007 we wrote about it being possibly saved by a judge and not cut down, but fate has decided otherwise.

The tree has been sick for years. It is famous for having been described in Anne Frank’s Diary.

Our first video report. It’s got a few glitches as we are trying to get used to a new medium. Enjoy.

Today Sail Amsterdam 2010 started with the traditional parade of tall ships. Led by the clipper Stad Amsterdam, 30 tall ships and a lot of small boats entered IJ harbour, which is wedged between Java Island and Piet Heinkade.

Sail Amsterdam was first organised in 1975 and has since been held every five years. The festivities will continue for the next three days, and include live music and theatre. On Friday a parade of barely floating home-built boats will be held in the canals of Amsterdam, the so-called Pieremachocheltocht. Most of the tall ships can be visited for free between 10 am and 4 pm.

This year’s event drew criticism from ship owners, who feel they have to pay the organisers too much money. They think it is wrong that so much of the proceeds of an event that is heavily sponsored by the government disappear in the pockets of a nebulous agency, Sail Arrangementen. The latter replied in newspaper De Pers that they do not understand what all the hoopla is about, as the ships’ owners still sell a lot of tickets.

This is Natasha Cloutier for 24oranges.nl.

The performance at the end of the video was by De Zingende Kapitein. Photo below by the Koninklijke Marine (featuring the frigate HMS Tromp).

Julie of Adeline Adeline, our brand-new dealer in Manhattan passed this photo along this evening. Not just one Bakfiets Cargobike in New York… but two Cargobike owners who don’t even know each other. Sure, there are a dozen Cargobikes in front of every day-care and nursery school school in Old Amsterdam… but in New Amsterdam, who’d a thunk? It’s about as statistically likely as having two grandmothers named “Adeline”.

Julie only laments that she couldn’t also be in the photo but she was (wo)manning the camera while transporting a stool on the rear carrier of her Workcycles Omafiets. So actually there were three Workcycles bikes present though two of the owners did actually know each other.

A couple things, though, suggest that there’s still lots more work to be done:

Firstly we have here two men on Cargobikes. That could just be coincidence but a smaller proportion of female (and elderly) cyclists suggests a less developed cycling culture. Women are basically less likely to ride when the perceived risk is higher. In the Netherlands there are apparently more women cycling than men while in most of the world the cyclists are overwhelmingly male. There are two Cargobikes but no children. In all fairness the kids might have just been dropped off at the daycare center but again, seeing people carrying their precious cargo around on bikes is the surest sign of the perceived danger being low. The cyclists in the picture are on a bicycle lane of sorts, but it’s just painted onto the car road. If New York is to make cycling for everybody: children, women, old folks… and young men separate bicycling infrastructure will be necessary.

Anyhow here’s to this sight becoming a regular occurrence. Like almost all Workcycles dealers Adeline Adeline (yes, it does get a little tiring writing that twice each time) isn’t a bike shop in the typical, recreational, tech/cult/guy-oriented sense. In their own words “Julie brings a well-edited selection of beautiful, functional bicycles paired with lines of unique accessories in a stylish, welcoming environment.” Translation: Timeless transportation bikes for normal people who don’t necessarily call themselves “cyclists”.

A few facts in case you’re wondering:

Nope, Workcycles bikes are not yet on Adeline’s site, but they’re definitely on the way… even Fr8’s! Adeline Adeline is at 147 Reade Street in Tribeca, 212-227-1150 http://www.adelineadeline.com/

Amsterdam's metro system between central station and Amstel station reopened on Monday morning.

Meet Amsterdam.

Perhaps all cities have photobloggers, but if that is the case, I seem to have missed them. However, the documentary photographers of Amsterdam pop up on my radar all the time. These men—always men?—aim to bring you at least one portrait of the city a day, slowly recording its history in extreme close-up.

Thomas Schlijper is perhaps their leader. A professional photographer, he nevertheless seems to find plenty of time for photographs taken just for fun. Shown here a fountain on Frederiksplein at dusk, and somebody else trying to capture the moment.

Marien van Os wants to become a better photographer, so he practises by publishing (at least) one photo a day at 1pictureaday.com. In this photo a heron stalks a fisherman on the Amstel river, waiting till the right moment.

This photo is by René Louman who often just leans out of his window to take a picture. I approve of this, because it would be a shame to waste a good window. Louman likes people. I don’t know exactly where this photo of a waitress wrestling a huge parasol was taken, but with all the fresh brick in Louman’s photos, I would guess the Oostelijk Havengebied (Eastern Harbour).

Others you may wish to check out:

• Milo Vermeulen
• Peter de Wit (Facemepls, whose Creative Commonsed photos we often use at 24 Oranges)
• Marc van Woudenberg makes things easy on himself by photographing people when they look their best: on stately Dutch bikes.

Did I miss anyone?

Amsterdammers like to think of their city as the international bicycle city number 1, which is true as far as Velo Mondial is concerned, but in fact nationally it is just bicycle city #259 of the Netherlands in terms of the percentage of trips locals make on bicycle. At least, that can be concluded from a study by Fietsberaad, which analyzed just that. According to the study, Amsterdammers use a bicycle in 21% of their trips. That is a bit more than Utrecht (20%) and The Hague (18%) and quite a bit more than Rotterdam, notorious for its bicycle-unfriendly traffic lights (14%). However, Amsterdam is doing considerably worse than Groningen (30%). Fietsberaad explains that large cities tend to have lower scores because they offer public transportation of a good quality. “Of course, it’s an excellent choice to offer good public transportation, but the consequence is that this does reduce bicycle use to some extent.” Bicycle use is highest at the West Frisian Islands Vlieland and Schiermonnikoog, where cars are not welcome. In Amsterdam, the share of bicycle use has risen by over a third over the past ten years, according to O+S data; something to be pretty proud of; in the center almost 60% of all trips is done on bike. A true World Champion Source Nieuws uit Amsterdam.

Once in every five years Amsterdam harbor -- one of Europe's busiest ports -- become the backdrop for one of the largest maritime manifestations in the world: SAIL

For five days, from August 19th through August 23rd, the whole IJ (pronounced as: Ay) harbor behind Amsterdam's Central Station will be filled with music, culture and some 600 boats, including many historic vessels and a huge number of impressive tall ships from all over the world.

Every year there’s a festival of classical music centred on Amsterdam’s canals known as the Grachtenfestival. It starts today.

Lots of the events are free, including the highlight event, when boats cram the canal outside the Pulitzer Hotel, and the canals are lined with music lovers for the Prinsengrachtconcert. The concert is free – but be early to find a space! It’s also broadcast live on a couple of TV channels. The last song of the night is always “Aan de Amsterdamse Grachten” which means “on the Amsterdam canals” which cute since most of the audience is literally on the canal.

For other events check the official Grachtenfestival site – it is available in English and tickets are sold online.

There’s a promotional video out, conceptually it’s an Opera flash mob in the reception of the Amstel Hotel.

Tagged: grachtenfestival, Music, opera, Prinsengracht, Prinsengracht concert

A car exploded in Amsterdam on Wednesday night and police are investigating whether it may have been a deliberate attack.

I went passed Anne Frank House this morning, a little after 9am so it was already open. The queue stretched across the road and down Westermarkt alongside the church. I suppose there were more than a hundred people waiting. Space is limited inside the museum so the people who had just joined the queue probably had a nice 60 minute wait.

So my suggestions to avoid the long wait;

Go late – the museum is open until 9pm until 15 September.

Buy tickets online – you have to choose a date and time but you then enter through a door to the left of the main door – and don’t have to queue.

It’s the same advice as last year.

Frankly I think the museum should move to selling more tickets online and stop the queuing. Other museums have done it – you have too book months ahead to see the Last Supper in Milan and tourists manage to sort it out.

Visitors to the Van Gogh museum and the Rijksmusem can do the same trick.

Tagged: Anne Frank, museum tickets, rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum

Beer-bikes are no longer allowed to roam the streets of Amsterdam, a judge has ruled.

The judge reached his decision in a case related to a May, 2009, accident with a beer-bike in Amsterdam-North. Three women were injured when the beer bike they had rented for a hen party proved too tall for a bike tunnel they tried to enter.

A few days ago I found this bike parked in one of the racks outside our home. Usually these stickers get stuck by customers and friends on wrecked, orphaned bikes around the city, thus several of the ironic statements on them. Thus to find one on a new-ish bike is unexpected, especially when its a rather chic but not exactly hip aluminium Batavus with suspension front fork and seat post. Eight of them is even stranger and I assume that’s the owner’s joke. Regardless of the intention I certainly appreciate the promotion. Thanks whoever you are!

The various stickers say…

Een goede fietsenmaker is goud waard.
“A good mechanic is worth gold”, very true for those who depend on their bikes practically every day of the year.

Wrak This! You deserve a good bike.
“Wrak this!” sounds almost like “F__k this!” Maybe you have to live in a small city with a half million orphaned, broken bikes on the streets to understand.

Oud-ijzer boer gezocht.
“Scrap metal collector sought.”

Hug a bike today.
Rather straightforward

Zorg voor je fiets.
“Care for your bike.” In Amsterdam most people simply wait for their bikes to cease functioning before bringing it to the shop, a practice we’re trying to wean our customers from. With regular service a quality bike will run amazingly long for minimal cost. Letting parts grind themselves into oblivion will result in big repair bills.

My other bike is a Workcycles.
Remember the American bumper stickers “My other car is a Rolls Royce”?… which eventually morphed into such silliness as “My other car is a I heart dog’s head” etc. You get the idea.

A bike is a terrible thing to waste.
Back in the day, back in the ‘hood one of the TV stations ran public service ads with “A mind is a terrible thing to waste”. I don’t exactly remember who was wasting their minds or how then but I have the same sentiment about bikes.

Tijd voor een goeie fiets.
“Time for a good bike.” Usually stuck on a wreck. As far as we’re concerned it’s always time for a good bike.

Workcycles has been nominated “Best Bike Shop of Amsterdam”. We certainly believe that’s true so if you’d like to make this an official reality we’d really appreciate your vote. And there’s a bonus: Voting enters you to win a specially built Workcycles bike!

Click here to vote and register to win the Workcycles bike. “Best bike shop” appears on page 10 so you can either vote for all of your Amsterdam favorites or just skip to the important part.

Of course you needn’t live in Amsterdam to vote but you probably will need to visit to pick up the bike… not that visiting Amsterdam is such a bad thing. You’ll already have a bike to use here too!

Amsterdam’s historic grachtengordel (literally, belt of canals) around the city’s center has been added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites.

Many Amsterdammers view the listing as a mixed blessing. On the one hand they hope that strict Unesco rules will prevent the city council from further damaging the city. On the other hand they fear those same rules could turn Amsterdam in a 'sleepy village.'

Average house prices in Amsterdam rose by 0.7% in the second quarter of 2010 but in the Netherlands as a whole, prices were down 2%, the national statistics office CBS said on Monday.

Amsterdam's 17th century canal rings have been placed on the Unesco world heritage list, the UN organisation announced on Sunday.