Last weekend when I was in Amsterdam I was lucky enough to meet up with Joyce of Rosa Blu and her husband Andres. We met for coffee and then took a little tour around the city, which was just delightful. I always love having a local take me around, because even with so much on the web, nothing beats being there in person, face-to-face. They took me to so many charming places I never would have noticed otherwise. And in addition to creating her own homeware designs and doing consulting work, Joyce also gives her own tours around Amsterdam on a regular basis – which I highly recommend on your next trip! So I’m so pleased to have her star in today’s Boarding Pass – it’s a great look at America from a European perspective. {Thanks, Joyce!}
last trip taken:
USA: NYC, LA and San Francisco, via Pacific Coastal Highway.

{venice beach, ca}

next trip on deck:
We are making plans for a short trip to London this summer. It’s been a while since our last visit, way too long, actually.

{williamsburg, nyc}

one place you would go back to again and again:
If I can choose just one: NYC! But actually I love many places, mostly cities, to wander around and soak up street life and the atmosphere, to get ‘under the surface’ of a city. The better you get to know a city, the more interesting it becomes. We both are city people, because of the complexity of it. Cities like NYC, LA, London, Paris, Berlin have so many layers to discover, and the best way to get there is: go where the locals go…

place you’d most likely recommend a friend go visit:
I always love to show people around in Amsterdam, to show them why I love this city so much. Some people have no idea what a city is like, because they don’t go to any other place than the cliche ones. People often think Amsterdam is noisy, crowded and stressful, but when I take them on a trip through the city and show them the beautiful and quiet places I love to see their surprised faces.
preferred method of transportation:
By car, I LOVE road trips! But in a city we walk most of the time, because that’s the most wonderful way to explore a city and it’s neighbourhoods.

{muir woods, ca}

place you’ve never been but dying to go:
Hawaii, island hopping! But my list is pretty long… place you’d never go back: Pisa, Italy.

most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
When Andres told me to pack my bag for the weekend and took me on a trip to Paris, as a surprise, to the cutest little hotel.

{santa monica, ca – noe valley, ca}

how do you prepare for a trip?
We always buy a Lonely Planet, do lots of research on the internet, and ask some friends for their advice, as some of them are real globe trotters. And my husband has a talent to find the most wonderful places! On our last trip we had a list of 60+ espresso bars from the New York Times! As for packing, all my stuff must fit in my backpack and my hand luggage sized bag. If it doesn’t fit in it stays home… (which often results in re-packing a thousand times).

how do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
We take lots and lots of photos, and I always write a little day to day journal.

{nyc – meat packing district}

what is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place?
Street life and details. I always try to capture the atmosphere in my photos, love to play with the light.

{hayes valley, ca}

on an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
Depends on the number of days we’re travelling, but our last two week trip to the USA we shot almost 900 pictures!

{san fran}

what’s in your “designer travel kit” ?
I always take my Canon 450D with me, but often also a vintage camera, like the Ricoh 35 ZF. And since I have an iPhone I’m pretty much addicted to the ShakeIt app and the Lomo app. And that’s why I really want to buy a vintage Polaroid or Holga camera, so cool! I have a Moleskine with me for sketches and notes, as well.

{venice beach, ca}

what do you do after a trip? how long after a trip does this happen?
I write about our trips on my blog, and we make a nice selection of the best pictures, like eye candy which tells the story of the journey. To show to our friends and family.

favorite souvenir/thing to bring back?
As we both are coffee geeks we tend to visit the best coffee bars, especially in the USA, and we like to buy something in one of those places, like a mug or something else with their logo on it. But I’m also looking for nice interior books and vintage treasures as well.

{san fran}

is there anything you just can’t resist when you’re on a holiday?
Yes, flea markets! Such a good place to find the cutest souvenirs for our home.

links: website: rosa blu
blog: lovely things by rosa
online shop
on twitter

More Boarding Pass HERE or check the column on the right!