Let me start by saying that I do not have an overwhelming knowledge of Peruvian food, but from the little experience I have with it, I established that the Peruvian cuisine is a very exciting one.
When consuming a good Peruvian dish you feel like your tastebuds have been taken on a joyride. The flavors are strong, but not heavy. Your dish can be creamy, but is fresh at the same time. A sudden twist of lime, or a flake of chili gives the food a surprise element, and its distinct wow-effect.
For quite a while I have been thinking of enriching my Amsterdam culinary experience by heading to a Peruvian restaurant. Casa Peru was the one I had in mind. As far as my knowledge goes, I believe that is the oldest Peruvian restaurant in Amsterdam. It is on the Leidsegracht, which gives it a great location while being just out of the sight of the tourist flocks.
Though this restaurant with traditional Peruvian food is on my restaurant to-do-list, it is not a place you an head to every day. Since I was going out for a casual dinner with a friend, I suggested to go to Mashua. I knew it was a Peruvian restaurant as well, and a friend of mine told me that her experience there was great. So why not?
Mashua - Peruvian fusion restaurant on Prinsengracht (crossing with Leidsestraat)
We went to the restaurant on a quiet Wednesday evening, so we did not have to wait or fight for a table :)
The waiter was very happy and welcoming, promptly got us a menu card and a wine card.
After looking at all the delicious choices, we picked.
The meal was delicious. I am rarely out of words...But "Oh my, God, this is delicious" was pretty much the only thing that my friend and I could say for about 15 minutes.
After finishing our dishes, we called the waiter and sent our compliments to the chef. I don't remember doing that in a very long time.
Delicious, delicious, delicious!
Next pleasant surprise - the bill. For a total of 70 euro (including a good tip) we had 2 mains and a bottle of Verdejo.
Main courses:
1) Lobster (whole) with cheese filled tortelloni (excuse me if I did not get the type right) with a delicious sauce, and a quinoa salad with beans, ruccola and chili on the side
2) Duck breast with rice, with lemon and vegetable sauce (this is a very simplistic description, which does not even come close to the deliciousness I had on my plate)
Would I come to eat here again? Absolutely!
And a interesting side note: Mashua and Casa Peru share the same owner. Casa Peru is traditional, while Mashua serves a slightly more affordable Peruvian fusion.
Xx
(p.s.: sorry for the pictures that do not do the food justice)
The morning fog lifted and the sun came by to say hello.
There are many ways of celebrating this fall rarity.
I chose some eggs Benedict and a fresh mint tea on the canal.
It has been a while since I visited a new place for lunch in my neighborhood. After a drunk conversation with a friend of mine about great lunch places, he pointed me to a place on the Cornelis Schytstraat. Though unsure about the name, after my morning class in criminal law, I decided to indulge myself with a nice brunch.
I drive up and down the Corbelis Schuyt, and decided to go to Brasserie De Joffers. I soon realized that I have been here before (I remember some quite nice scrambled eggs with salmon and kaviar after coming back from holidays sometime last year).
However, I have not sat inside. I ordered a coffee and started looking at the menu. After a tough decision between the Club Martini Deluxe sandwich (with chicken, avocado, tomato and basil mayonnaise), and a Hamburger Royal, I went for the Italian bun with beef and truffled egg and spicy cheddar cheese. At least I know that I will pick the club sandwich next time.
I ordered some French fries to accompany the burger and I one needs to eat a lot of fruit and veggies every day :)
My burger was great, the French fried were also nice. Overall, I am very satisfied with my choice and the preparation.
Hence - will be coming here again soon!
It has been 5 full days since I have not left my house (and I do not count the 20 seconds necessary for throwing my trash out yesterday evening). I have been mainly bed-bound, since I have contracted the chicken pox. Most people have this illness when they are in kindergarden or elementary school. The few others, people like me, have managed to successfully dodge it. At least until last weekend, when I most likely contracted it when I was doing some volunteer work at a farm for kids. My friend made a good comment about this "That's some weird karma right there". I must agree.
Anyways, since I am feeling much better now, I started thinking of all the things I can be doing out in Amsterdam, once I can actually get out of my house without being a health hazard to my surroundings.
So here is are some things that are on my list:
1. The Stedelijk Museum
I have been waiting for this for so long! The museum has been closed for ever, and not even the interns there knew when exactly it would be opening. I wish my friend Gala would be here, with whom we have discussed this museum countless times.
2. Unseen Photo fair
First time I heard about this was around a month ago from a German friend of mine. I was immediately intrigued, and put a mental marker on it. In the last 2 weeks I constantly see posts related to it in my Facebook feed. All of my friends in Amsterdam seem to be going nuts about it. So there is only one this left to do - Go see it myself.
3. The Begijnhof
The last time I was here was probably one of the first times I visited Amsterdam. I would definitely describe it as the secret garden hidden in the most busy touristic area of the city. Right next to the busy Kalverstraat and the Dam square, you can find this beautiful, tranquil, and somehow magical garden. This time I am gonna go see it as a resident of Amsterdam.
Finally, here is one for wishful thinking - Inside Design, which was features in ELLE Decoration.
I was really hoping I could go see this one, but my chicken pox did not agree. In case I would look better on Sunday, I would love to catch the last day. But the realist in me, knows that it is probably something for next time.
Exactly a week ago I was leaving the P.C. Hooftstraat in Amsterdam, after a very nice evening dedicated to fashion. The little shopping and pretty-things addict in me was rejoicing the happening of that day, but definitely the happening of the month in Amsterdam - Vogue's Fashion's Night Out.
For the first time Vogue organized this evening, full of events happening in the famous Dutch department store De Bijenkorf (meaning 'beehive'), and on the renown high fashion shopping street P.C. Hooftstraat in the Museum District of Amsterdam.
The event started at 6pm and lasted until 10pm on the P.C. and until 11pm in the Bijenkorf. Needless to say, there was no realistic scenario in which 4 hours would be enough for me to go check out all the sports I wanted to. Therefore, I decided to calm down a little, and enjoy the things I can see to the fullest.
After trying on and tossing clothes to the side for about an hour and a half, I figured out what to wear and hurried to meet two of my friends at the Bijenkorf for the viewing of the fashion documentary "Diana Vreeland: The eye has to travel". Excited, but not with too many expectations, I joined my friends on the top floor of the Bijenkort where the first screening started at 18:45.
And OMG! The movie was so well done! It is made as an interview with Diana Vreeland, the figure who made Vogue Vogue. And there was one thing on my mind during the movie: "Wow, this woman is so funny!". This woman was the pioneer of crazy awesome fashion shoots and daring editorials. But I will not get into the detailed biography if this interesting woman, as I am sure I would not do better that Wikipedia. I will, however, post the official trailer to the documentary to spare you the YouTube search.
After watching the documentary, we made use of the cab service. There were three types of 'vehicles' - the Vogue FNO Mercedes, the Moet & Chandon tuk tuks, and the Tommy Hilfiger yellow cabs. Though the tuk tuk with a glass of champagne sounded awesome, we decided not to be picky (as the line was about 15 minutes of waiting, and it was quite cold outside), and hopped into one of the Vogue Mercedes cars with a sympathetic young driver who, though professional, did not manage to keep a straight face during the 15 minute ride. Not that he did not try. Let's just say that the conversation we were having was very girly and full of entertaining anecdotes, which did not start with "that one night, we decided to stay sober".
Finally, we arrived at the P.C. Hooftstraat. Almost every store had something going on. The huge line at Chanel made us suppress our desiree to see the special edition lipstick and nailpolish, so we continued down the street, and after a brief stop and the Frozz frozen yoghurt stand in front of the Italian luxury store Iceberg, we headed to Filippa K.
Filippa K did not not disappoint. We were greeted by the DJ's dancey tunes form the second floor of the store, which we sipped on a glass of champagne. To avoid the alcohol hitting the head, the guests were served finger-food (on a stick), which was delicious. A ball of goat cheese covered in pistachio and honey, or a trendy take on a simple meatball...it was delicious, and definitely excited the foodie in me as well. After browsing through the pretty clothes of the Scandinavian designer store, we decided to quickly check out some other spots on the street.
DJ at the Filipa K store
We entered the Diesel store, where the party was full power. Dimmer lighting, loud music. White wine, Russian Mules, Peroni, and Pellegrino. The whole shabang. It was definitely more about the Diesel motto, than about their clothes that evening :)
We continued to Hermes. My motto when entering the store "Indulge the eye, with what the wallet cannot buy". And we did. The experience was made even more magical by a handsome young gentleman who set a little paper on fire and turned it into a light-orange rose. Which he then turned into two...and that one in another two...until all the ladies watching had a rose to take home. And when you would look at it at home, you would dream of that Hermes bag.
After exiting dream land, we went to Karen Millen, where we savored a nice glass of pink champagne while checking out the new collection. Soon we headed back to Filippa K. to meet the rest of our friends. By now the shops were closing and the quite tunes of the DJ in Filippa K. had tuned to a fun party, which everyone was enjoying outside.
For some the evening ended there, for others at the after-party in the Conservatorium. My evening ended up with some beers with a couple of my friends at a bar in the centre of Amsterdam.
Fun night!
Live music to close down the evening
The Zara Home store was ready for visitor since the morning
Old school ride
Tommy Hilfiger yellow cab is parked at the store at 4pm
The last preparations for the evening are going on
Nothing says festive as some gold and silver balloons - Nice job, Oger!
Since I got back to Amsterdam two weeks before school started again, and the weather was far more welcoming and summery than before I left for Bulgaria to enjoy and actual summer, I figured that I should do some nice things in my free time.
After having a coffee and a very nice beet soup and a delicious quiche at the Vlaamsch Broodhuys, I decided that I should join her and many other friend to VOLTT. It is one of the last festivals of the summer season, that I would recommend to any party goer in Amsterdam. Though we got wet a couple of times, the sun broke through and everyone enjoyed their time listening to the amazing DJs.
Every summer when I come to Bulgaria, I decide to jump into the car with some of my friends and spend a weekend in Sunny Beach and party like it is our high school grad trip again. Alternatively, we go to St. Vlas, in Bulgaria known as Sveti Vlas. I would say that St. Vlas is about 2 km north from Sunny Beach, but in the past years they have practically merged.
Sveti Vlas is a very bizarre place.
When you are passing the alcohol drenched, mostly teenage, tourists in Sunny Beach, luxury is the last concept that comes to your mind. As a tourist you also do not expect that only 2 km up the coast from the Bulgarian centre of debauchery, you can find the Saint Tropez, or the Orange County, if you will, of Bulgaria (these terms were also mentioned by some of my friends who came to visit me in Bulgaria). Rather than being flabbergasted by the group of Dutch or Scottish drunks who are trying to charm you after being thrown out of a cab in front of their hotel at 4:30 a.m., you will be amazed by the astonishing amounts of men in their 40ties dressed in expensive clothes getting out of their Bentleys and Maybachs in the company of not-so-natural blondes who are struggling to walk in their sky-high heels and tight mini dresses.
My name is...
Sveti Vlas (Bulgarian for Saint Vlas) is a rather small city, some would call it a village even, but officially since February 2006 it is listed as a city. It's history starts around the second century AD, and is called by the Greeks Larissa.
The village, now city, retained its Greek name up until the 14th century, when it was renamed Sveti Vlas (Bulgarian for Saint Vlas), as it is known until today.
It is documented that in the 14th century there were five monasteries in the area. The four male monasteries were St. Peter (Св. Петър), St. Ilija (Св. Илия), St. Andrei (Св. Андрей), and St. Vlas (Св. Влас), and the fifth was a female one named St. Ana ().
Therefore, when Bulgaria was under the Ottoman Empire it was registered as Manastir (Turkish for monastery).
View onto the marina and the Nesebar Bay from the residential complex Manastira, which means monastery in Bulgarian
Population then...
Since its establishment the population of St. Vlas was mainly Greek. After 1920 most of the Greek population migrated as part of the Greek-Turkish exchange. In the years after many Bulgarian families from Greece found their new homes in St. Vlas. Being at the feet of the mountain and on the seacoast, its excellent climate started attracting more and more people to the cozy village.
...and now
The city is a beloved place of many Russians who have purchased summer homes in St. Vlas, and soon might outnumber the Bulgarian population. The secret garden of Nesebar however, has not remained so secret, and has also been discovered by many Scots and Scandinavians.
St. Vlas is also known as a prominent summer destination among Bulgarian celebrities, who adore the beautiful marina. And why shouldn't they? I myself find it also very pretty. As a matter of fact, I also find it quite impressive. The marina of St. Vlas, also known as Marina Dinevi, is probably the biggest one on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast.
Besides offering a perfect place to find a parking spot for your beloved vehicle (yes, vehicle, because I do not only mean yachts), it hosts a couple of very delicious restaurants and a night club. The marina forms a part of the Dinevi Resort, which is named after the two brothers who built it. They have managed to cultivate the wild beaches and rocks of St. Vlas, and create what I would dare to call one of the most prominent and luxurious vacation spots in Bulgaria.
Sunset at the marina with Carole and Elena
Photo moment in the Marina Dinevi in St. Vlas with Deni and Elena in her chili peppers dress
Vamos a la playa!
Saint Vlas has many small beaches, all of them look in the south direction. Next to the marina, also forming a part of the Dinevi complex, is the Venid beach, which has been extended from its natural approximately 5 meters into a big beach full of umbrellas with sun-beds, volleyball courts, and beach bar and restaurants. During our stay here, we visited the beach bar La Playa. We liked it so much that we spent there four hours sipping on various summery cocktails from the menu.
Strawberry cocktail and an exotic lemonade to start with...while enjoying the beach
A little champagne - blue curacao - gin cokctail....it was quite intriguing, so resisting was pointless
This is probably one of the few times that I am ok with the weather not being nice. Admittedly, it started being cloudy and rainy yesterday already, but only today it made me stay at home the whole day.
Though it is very bad news for my tan, it is good new for my blog, which sadly, I have been neglecting again. I have been thinking about it a lot though, if that makes any difference. Either way, I will use this opportunity to post something :)
I have been spending my summer so far in Sozopol. I have been coming here for many years, and though it is not party central number 1 on the Black Sea coast, it still has a great charm.
Sozopol is one of the oldest seaside cities, located on the south coast of Bulgaria. It is also known as Appollonia (ΑΠΟΛΛΩΝΙΑ), which is its ancient Greek name. The name Sozopol started appearing in many forms since the first century AD when it was known as Sozopolis. I promise to elaborate more on Sozopol's hisory and post more pictures later.
Three of my friends - Elena, Deni and Carole are enjoying a night walk on the ancient fortification wall
Evening walk with Deni and Carole through the old town of Apollonia
Happy Carole and Elena in a beach bar in the 'New Town'
As already the title implies, I have not been very disciplined lately. I have opened my blogger account multiple times with the intention to compensate for my slacking. I did not manage. The Black Sea has charmed me.
During the day I lay on the beach, pondering upon things of inferior meanings, sometimes reading my book (which I have also been negligent towards since my second day at the beach), and admiring the beauty of nature. How great would it be to spend a lifetime doing exactly what I am doing right now?
After a couple of hours packing on Friday evening, a late night on one of Amsterdam's beautiful canals, and an almost 3 hour flight yesterday morning, I have arrived to Bulgaria.
Tomorrow I will be going to the seaside, which I am obviously excited about.
Besides enjoying the beach, nice food, and cocktails, I am finally going to be able to wear my summer clothes which have been impatiently waiting in my closet to be taken out and admired.
Packing, however, is always a tricky business. I am not a fan of traveling with a lot of luggage, so I get annoyed if my stuff does not fit in one suitcase.
I usually travel with a soft Samsonite suitcase that can be also carried as a backpack. It is ideal for any type of vacation, as you can take it as hand luggage, but is is also big enough to be filled with all your vacation purchases, and be checked in on your way back.
This time, however, it did not take too long for me to realize that I cannot fit everything in that suitcase. I wanted to take as many pretty summer clothes with me as I could...
Though summer has officially started a while ago, Amsterdam was not blessed with great sunny weather. Thunderstorms and rain...17 degrees...not my idea of summer.
After procrastinating for about a 2 weeks, I booked a flight to Bulgaria. So tomorrow it is going to be "Goodbye Amsterdam, and hello summer in Bulgaria!"
Though the weather in Amsterdam should be better in the coming week (think spring and 20 degrees), I am looking forward to sizzling on the beach and getting some tan.
Every once in a while when I am just laying in bed or sitting on my couch watching random series that I do not find particularly interesting, but I "have nothing better to do", I think to myself that I should find something better to do with my free time.
As I like trying out new things, I started flirting with the idea to follow the lead of some very creative people that I know and get a little bit acquainted with the world of blogging. After some research, I decided to follow my strong general belief that there is no better way to learn things than to actually do them. So in the spirit of "practice beats theory", here is my first post.
Here's a picture of me from summer 2011. It was taken on a beach in Bulgaria, where I hope to be tanning in less than a week :)
