Instagram top 10 September
Check out Amsterdam Cycle Chic’s top 10 Instagram pics of September.
1. Van Gogh’s Sunflowers
2. Birthday flowers delivery (AP Bloem)
3. Wedding guests
4. Doggy cycling
5. Super daddy
6. Super mummy
7. Urban racing
8. Little girls will grow up
9. Super green
10. No chance to go incognito
Instamonth
Are you already following us on Instagram? You should, if you want to learn more about Amsterdam’s cycling culture and enjoy the diversity of cyclists and bikes in Amsterdam’s streets. Every month we will post the most liked Instagram shots here on our blog.
Riding through the fields
Sometimes you need a little break from the city..doesn’t mean you can’t take your wheels! The gorgeous town of Zaanse Schans is a perfectly picturesque town to visit and ride around in nature. Pack a lunch, take a camera and see a little bit of what our Dutch nature has to offer. 250 years ago the windmills here formed the first industrial site in the world and some of the mills are still functioning! Happy cycling!
By Mel
Flowers in front or at the back?
If we take those pictures as a generality I would defintely recommend to carry them on your bikeluggagerack… on the back! Especially if it is windy …
by Aude
National Tulip Day 2015
This past weekend was the much anticipated start of the Tulip season. 200,000 colourful Tulips were ‘planted’ in front of The Royal Palace of Amsterdam in Dam Square as part of an annual pop-up celebration held to celebrate our national symbol. The best part of it all was that the general public were invited to pick their own bouquet of fresh tulips! (if you were patient enough to cue up for hours!)
Bikes of course were out in full force, with their crates swinging with gorgeous towering tulips. The red colour represented Red Cross who was a sponsor of the event. They want this to be “a reason to share and give flowers to your neighbour, to show you care”. Let’s hope there was some sharing done here as it’s easy to take home beauties like these just for yourself.
Couldn’t get any more Dutch than this!
Happy Tulip Day!
By Mel.
Cyclist of the Month..Alexander, Owner of A.P Bloem florist
Alexander is a true Amsterdammer. He owns a beautiful flower shop in the speigelquartier in the centre of the city. His customers cycle up to his store on the Prinsengracht canal and cycle away with handfuls of gorgeous flowers neatly tucked away in their arms, bike crates or panniers. He lives and breaths flowers – he even lives on a street called the Bloemgracht! (flower canal). You may have seen Alexander or his staff zipping through Amsterdam on their bikes delivering daily flowers to locals in the sunshine, rain or even snow.
Why did you become a florist?
The story all started in the area of Nieuwendammerdijk, in Amsterdams North where I grew up. This area provided my inspiration as a small child where I played in the forest behind my family home, building huts and creating my own garden. I used to make floral necklaces for my grandmother in my little secret hideaway. Floristry came naturally as I love working with my hands and creating special and unique things and getting to know all different kinds people. I love it.
Where are your favourite places to ride?
In the Summertime I love riding my racebike to the fishing village of Marken. This 45km cycle route is the best way to spend a summer day and it is also a popular route amongst locals and tourists. You can take a quick ferry ride from Amsterdam, cycle along the picturesque dyke houses all the way through Durgedam. Its a beautiful cycle route. In Spring and Fall I love cycling through forests such as Amsterdamse Bos or Hoge Veluwe which is outside of Amsterdam. I even take my bike to other cities such as Brussels when I have weekends away. It’s the only way to travel.
What bike do you own?
I have an original Gazelle that my Grandfather used to own, a racebike, an opa fiets (Grandpa bike) which has a big wooden crate to make my flower deliveries with – and I recently received a beautiful hybrid bike for my birthday which is half race-bike, half mountain bike. Each one has it’s own purpose.
A.P Bloem
A.P Bloem services Amsterdam and across the Netherlands with their arrangements and displays for local homes, birthdays, weddings and special events. Their signature style draws inspiration from the Golden Age and wild fields in the true essence of nature. “We genuinely love what we do and we wish for people to share and experience the beauty of the special things we source and create” says Alexander. You can keep up to date with their flowery adventures here.
Cycle Chic Spotlight: Our new team member, Mel
Mel traded her sunscreen for an umbrella when she moved from Sydney to Amsterdam. It was love at first sight! Mel works at Marcel Wanders, has a Dutch florist boyfriend and is now part of our team!
Why did you move to Amsterdam?
“It kinda all started with the bikes. That fateful day in May when I stepped out at Schiphol and placed my feet on the ground it was love. There and then. Wheels, blonde-coloured locks and the sounds of bells whizzed by me as I walked along busy Leidseplein, transfixed by the beautiful ornate shapes of the buildings that surrounded me…the winding canals and the verdant tufts of grass in every park – a sight living in the often drought-stricken Sydney that you’d sometimes take for granted.
60 minutes later, I decided to stay. So I quit my job, cancelled my return ticket home, survived on tuna and cookies and started accumulating my new wardrobe at Ij Hallen each month looking forward to my new life (in killer 50 cents pumps). Sometimes you just know.”
What do you do in your daily life?
“I spend my time working as a project manager at Marcel Wanders, being surround by inspiring design all day, Learning Dutch (ik ben Nederlands aan het leren), travelling, crafting, shooting and of course my favourite pastime, cycling around town and exploring”
Did you cycle in Sydney too?
Yes! However a girl needs gears in Sydney to get around all those hills we have. Amsterdam is a joy to ride in – super flat terrain.
What is your bike like?
It is a classic Amsterdam ‘Oma Fiets’ (Granny Bike). I bought it as a present to myself for landing my first job. I attached a vintage wooden crate from the flower markets and hand-tied loads of flowers (naturally). I often catch tourists sitting on her taking pictures! Flowers and bikes. Born to be together.
Why do you want to be a blogger at Amsterdam Cycle Chic?
“I shoot as much as I can – capturing how amazing this city is. As a foreigner I see things in such a fresh and optimistic light – the snow, the rain, the mode of daily transport, the people, the bars, the language and the truly unique way of living here.
To cut a long story short. I’m keen. I moved here to be part of something, this blog post facilitates me to do that and to share my view.”
We are happy to have you in our team, Mel!
Amsterdam is blooming
Amsterdam Cycle Chic 