Amsterdam is wonderful
Maryam and I are having a great weekend in Amsterdam. Just finished going through the Rijks and Van Gogh museums. I won’t be on the computer much until Wednesday.
But, having fun with the geeks in Amsterdam (Francine Hardaway’s daughter, Samantha, and her husband, showed us around, and invited Harry and his wife, who reads my blog, and we had a great time).
Anyway, anyone want to have dinner together tomorrow in Amsterdam? Say at 7 p.m.? Where should we meet? We’re staying at the Wiechmann hotel, which is a real thrill, right at the intersection of two canals.
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December 3rd, 2006 at 11:16 am
Well, I think I know some nice restaurants in Amsterdam. Perhaps link up somewhere and go for a dinner?
December 3rd, 2006 at 11:45 am
Robert great to have you in town.
Are you around for dinner on Wednesday or Thursday?
I cannot do tomorrow unfortunately and Tuesday we have Sinterklaas here - the big childrens party….and my son would not be happy not having me around….
December 3rd, 2006 at 12:38 pm
Are you going to see Tom Koch?
December 3rd, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Amsterdam is a bit far, unfortunately, but in case Switzerland is - or should get - on your schedule, please let me know.
Enjoy your stay and have a great trip, Reinhard
December 3rd, 2006 at 1:35 pm
Ah, too bad! Would I have know earlier, I would have made arrangements to be in Amsterdam tomorrow (and I would finally have finished the last chapters of Naked Conversations).
I’ll announce it on my (dutch) blog, it may get you some educational bloggers at the dinnertable.
December 3rd, 2006 at 1:43 pm
Scoble in Amsterdam
Robert Scoble is in Nederland (in Amsterdam natuurlijk) en voor morgen zoekt hij nog een restaurant en gezellige tafelgasten. Edubibliobloggers van Nederland, grijp je kans. [[scoble|]]
December 3rd, 2006 at 2:07 pm
Hey Robert: I’ve been to the same museum. Caught a concert nearby too.If you are migrating out of Amsterdam try to visit Delft (ever hear of Delft blue? Great Dutch souvenir beyong clogs and red district memories!). Gorgeous,university-based little town centered around a deep stone canal and cobblestone roads. It’s really great that you turn your occasional posts into Scoble GPS with invites. And tomorrow?
December 3rd, 2006 at 3:03 pm
@Gerard,
Niet met mij
@Scobble
Sorry I won’t be around.
Wouter
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:05 pm
Nancy, no, unfortunately I haven’t kept up with Tom. Do you have his email?
Unfortunately we leave Tuesday morning, so tomorrow night is the best choice.
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:10 pm
Hi Robert. I just lived in Amsterdam for a year and a bit and miss it very much. There are some wonderful places to eat. The Dutch have a word - ‘Gezelig’ - which does not directly translate but it means something like ‘Cozy’. To truly appreciate it you need to go into a classic Dutch cafe on a cold night. Gezelig is something they know how to do. For a cheap dose of Gezelig check out the Cafe Koh opposite my old house at the Leidseplein end of Marnixstraat, or for brilliant service, some of the nicest food I have ever tasted and heaps of Gezelig, head down to the Jordaan and go to Proverij on Princengracht. Its quite near the Anne Frank House if I remember correctly. Have fun!
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:37 pm
“Just finished going through the Riks and Van Gogh museum”
I think you typo’d on Rijksmuseum :)
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:58 pm
Hello Robert, do not miss coffe shops for some nice “flavours”! I am sure will find a lot of fun in this!
December 3rd, 2006 at 6:18 pm
Oh, and look out for Oliebollen stalls. There is one outside the Concertgebou normally - also around The Dam. They are like the fattiest, sweetest doughnut type things you have ever tasted. :-)
December 3rd, 2006 at 6:40 pm
Robert, head to the Jordaan neighborhood just west of the city center — great restaurants, cafes. Keep an eye out for a tiny Thai place … they serve Thai whiskey which is fascinating stuff.
December 4th, 2006 at 12:49 am
Robert,
I’m spending too much of my time Amsterdam at the moment…but when you’re there you should try out the fabulous Italian restaurant Casa di David (on Singel 426)
Enjoy
HJ
December 4th, 2006 at 1:18 am
Hi Robert,
Thanks for the fun night out! Was great meeting you and your wife.
Please let me know if I can be of any help for some other ‘must see’ places while you are still here.
http://iens.nl/english/ is a good start for lunch or diner locations.
Have fun!
Inez & Harrie
December 4th, 2006 at 4:52 am
Robert,
About your video bio.
2 Approaches on core video:
1. Lazy Susan/Quick Hack
You record your bio in mp3. You provide me with key photos. I insert image slide show on top of the mp3 audio.
2. Little bit more professional
You have your man to film you. Write and read your script. Plan the camera movement (angle and zooming) to save editing time. Repeat 2-3 times with different angles (since we don’t have mutliple camera and crew like movie set). May have to take 2-3 runs to get the best takes.
You provide me with key video clips that represent your career, profile, portfolio. You provide me with the rough cut so that I can extract the best sequence.
I call this a baby version of video bio. We can add more layers to the bio in the future.
Video Bio minimum 2 Parts:
1. Intro - Sexy entrance
2. Bio
My Homework:
1. Watch new bond movie - Done. Their introduction is not sexy in this casino version. I don’t like their illustration this time. Too serious.
2. Watch older bond movies
3. Draft 009 graphic
Your Homework:
1. Write your bio script. Or record it (I’ll be easy on you).
2. Prepare key images or video clips. I can download OR come by and pick up.
Timing:
I reserve 2 evening or weekend visits to Palo Alto to finish the video bio. We’ll do the rest online via blog, wiki, email etc. I like to wrap up early Jan after my X’mas very short London trip.
Things to keep me going and coming over to Palo Alto
1. Jokes
2. Free food. Love deserts, chocolate, and healthy snacks
3. Humor
4. No coffee. Prefer juice or tea. No drinking for me.
5. I’ll bring my ipod to provide upbeat and bumping music
6. If things fail, I can go shopping in Palo Alto or hit the campus.
Editing Platform:
I use PC for video editing due to many reasons. On PC, the primary video software is Adobe Premiere. I create music and graphics on PC. If you provide me with one of the following: .vob, .avi, .mov, .wmv, I can decode them to work on the PC. I’ll save the finished video in multiple formats including .flv.
Can you handle it? Or I am running too fast here?
December 4th, 2006 at 5:08 am
Bess, I just don’t have time to do this for the next five weeks, sorry. My schedule is completely full. I don’t know how I am going to answer email, much less do something like this.
December 4th, 2006 at 2:56 pm
Robert,
This is great (:
I have been in Amsterdam all day and did - not - read your post! #@#$#$%@
Tells me I need to keep up with my RSS reader more often. See you next time around. I really would have wanted to talk to you about internal weblogs etc.
Enjoy your dinner tonight and the rest of your stay in Holland!
Best regards,
Marcel
December 5th, 2006 at 12:00 am
He he… Editing the video bio is a gift from me. It does require me juggling my time.
The least is I did reserve my time and energy to offer my service before I get busy again. My offer is valid as long as I am around in town with no pressing deadlines.
My thought is you need a bio for press kit. Social Media Press Release SMPR consist of video and audio. Any way, you know where to find me :)
December 6th, 2006 at 1:27 pm
[...] Scoble may go to Amsterdam for the tourist sites - but I’m going for strictly business. Strictly business. [...]
January 11th, 2007 at 7:23 am
You were lucky I was on vacation in Cape Verde, so I’m only reading my feeds now.
For you I’d setup something really cool for your staying in Amsterdam (completely free-of-charge, just because I read your blog every day!). Next time let me know, I organize a lot of events here!
Cheers,
Vitor