It's Cultural Sunday time again here in Utrecht, and this month's theme is jazz. There will be swing, bebop, big band, soul jazz and even some blues. You can catch the Tropi-jazz stylings of De Nazaten at various spots around town as they perform at the Neude (12:00), Stadhuis (13:15) and Domplein (14:15). Frommermann, a music and vocal ensemble with a sense of humor will be performing songs from the 1930s, including works by Duke Ellington, The Ramblers and The Mills Brothers, at Ottone (Kromme Nieuwegracht 62). At the Winkel van Sinkel, you can see the Hardest Swinging Orchestra in the Netherlands perform arrangements by Benny Goodman, while dancers do their best lindyhop.

There will be performances all over town, most free, this Sunday, February 7, so check the official Cultural Sunday website for a full list of events, times and locations.

Who doesn't love brunch. It's a chance to relax and enjoy a tasty meal while the sun (hopefully) shines. This Sunday, February 7, and every first Sunday of the month, is the Kok In Een Zok Brunch Café, where a variety of organic, vegetarian (with vegan options) foods are on offer. There are fruit, salads, sandwiches, waffles and more.

The cost of the meal is €12.50 per person, including drinks, and the opening hours are from 12-15:00. This monthly event is held at Stowis on Boothstraat 8, in Utrecht.

On January 21, 2010, Leiden's expat center officially opened to the public. If you're contemplating a move to Leiden or have just settled here, the dedicated expat officer on staff can answer questions and give advice on topics such as immigration formalities, living issues (like taxes, insurance, working, finding a house and schools), and well as tips for an active social life and information about Leiden as a region.

The expat center is located in the Visitor Centre Leiden, just across from the central station. They are open Monday to Friday from 8.00 to 18.00 hrs.

In cooperation with the University of Amsterdam, Leiden, and Wageningen, a new Center for Biodiversity (NCB Naturalis) was launched last week. As part of the Netherlands Year of Biodiversity, the center will focus on preserving and furthering research into the Netherlands' collection of natural history; in other words, the nation's part within the earth's biodiversity.

Along with the Netherlands, 168 countries are now participating in this initiative since 1992. Their collection consists of around 37 million objects, making it the 5th largest in the world. These objects include geological, zoological, and plant collections. Still expected to join these collections are insects from the University of Wageningen, and fish from the University of Amsterdam.

The goal of the center, which is now part of the National Museum of Natural History is for both national and international researchers to be able to make use of its content. A large part of its information will therefore be available online to both researchers as well as the general public. However, that part isn't available yet, nor is an english translation on their website.

This year's theme - roughly translated - is Little Titans: Growing Up In Literature. Unfortunately there aren't offerings available in English. At least not that I've been able to find. But if you can read Dutch, feel free to jump in. If not - well, be comforted to know that Dutch culture is still very much open to celebrating all things literary!

The Book Week poster was created by Piet Parra, a Dutch graphic designer and illustrator.

Take for example EkoPlaza, which boasts locations in the Hague, Bussum, and Veenendaal. I've only visited the Hague location (in fact I've never heard of the other two cities) and I can definitely recommend stopping by.

Located on the Grote Markstraat (115) quite near to the Central Station, the Hague's EkoPlaza is large and cheerfully lit. It contains everything you'd expect from a supermarket, and everything's organic. They have a produce section, fresh breads and pastries, cheese, canned and boxed goods and even a section with some clothing items and household cleaners.

I have to warn you - the bill will run considerably higher than at a normal supermarket. But sometimes organic is just the way to go.

Image taken from the EkoPlaza website.

Pardon me while I fast-forward 10 years. I've been watching a video from a recent meeting entitled 2020 Vision Forum on creative ideas for how Amsterdam could look and feel in 2020. Which, not to disturb you too much, is not that far away if you ask me.

As always with such designs and vision there are some pretty lofty goals for futuristic parks, buildings, and what materials will be gone from the urban landscape. Among the things I did enjoy was the idea that there would be a zeppelin service going from Museumplein (center of Amsterdam) to Waterland (traditional marshlands that the Netherlands is famous for). In addition, taxi's would all be electric by then.

I guess if you consider 10 years to be a long time, and 2020 seems so far away, its easier to imagine huge advancements in technology and design that would introduce all these radical changes to the city. Me, I think 2020 is closer than you think.

(here's a video from the event)

Are you a music and trivia buff? If so, you might want to head to Tivoli Oudegracht in Utrecht tomorrow night for the PopQuiz from Three Imaginary Boys. They'll take you through the history of pop music, with quizzes on music intros, musical connections, recognizing clips and more, with fun and banter to keep you entertained. There are prizes to be had, as well. Teams can be up to three people.

The quiz is Thursday, February 11, at Tivoli Oudegracht (Oudegracht 245 ) in Utrecht. Doors open at 20:00 and the quiz begins at 20:45. Entrance is €5.

If you're a fan of ska music, head to Tivoli this Saturday for DutchSka 2010, where you'll get everything from old-school '60s ska to up-tempo ska with a punk rock edge. The lineup features Rude Rich and the High Notes, The Upsessions, Bazzookas, and The Shenanigans. Tickets are €14. The show is Saturday, February 14, at Tivoli de Helling (De Helling 7) in Utrecht. Doors open at 19:00 and the show starts at 19:30.

The following week, Babylon Circus hits the stage at Tivoli Oudegracht. This 10-piece band from France is the kind of band you must see live, with their high-energy show combining ska, reggae, and a bit of folk. You're bound to hear some of their influences, which range from Manu Chao to The Clash. Tickets are €15. The show is Thursday, February 18 at Tivoli Oudegracht (Oudegracht 245), Utrecht. The doors open at 19:30 and the show starts at 20:30.

Ticket information for both shows can be found on the Tivoli website.

The Winter Olympics have begun over in Vancouver, and as a nation that loves its speedskating and other assorted winter sports, a lot of eyes are on the games right now.

While browsing around the web for more details about the Dutch athletes competing in Vancouver, I came across a little web project called "The Holland Heineken House". No they're not paying me to mention them, but taking a closer look I noticed this place is an actual house in Vancouver where the Dutch olympic team is staying or at least checking in regularly. In addition, they're rocking a twitter feed, a flickr photo stream, a youtube channel, facebook page; all the essentials so that we back here in the Netherlands can watch, read, and listen to what happens with team Holland.

Currently the games have barely started and the site is having some trouble with their international (english) page. But if you click on the regular house page you'll see the cute design and an array of features from everything going over there.

Looking for something to do tonight? You can head to The Hague for the ABC (American Book Center) Treehut's Open Mike Night, held from 8-10pm. About once a month (on the 2nd Friday of each month), the ABC Treehut encourages performers of all types to come out and show off their talent. All are welcome, from poets to comedians to short story writers.

They even provide a clear list of Open Mike Night Rules:

1) Performers: please be present at 8 pm at the ABC Treehut to confirm your slot
2) No entry fee (or free drinks) for performers
3) Your first performance of the evening should be 10 minutes long, or less
4) If there is still time, you might be able to perform again
5) Performances can be in any language
6) You may offer your work (book, cd, etc) for sale to the audience

As stated, entrance is free for performers, but if you prefer just to watch, there's a EUR 3 entrance fee. The ABC Treehut is located at Lange Poten 23 in The Hague.

Get there early - almost every time I've peered inside in the afternoons it's packed. It's also possible to hold a private event - in fact, when I walked by later in the day last Saturday, I noticed the whole café was reserved for a private party starting at 5:30pm.

Caffe Esprit is located at Spui 10. They are open on Sunday - Wednesday and Friday from 10am to 6pm, Thursdays from 10am to 8pm, and Saturdays from 10am to 7pm.

A recent article in NRC Handelsblad's English section: "So many bikes, so little space." It discusses incredible statistics on the number of bikes in the Netherlands, particularly the problem at major train stations:

Last year alone, Utrecht removed 9,000 bikes, almost twice as many as the year before. In Nijmegen, the numbers went up from 5,474 to 6,331 in 2009. In the same year, The Hague took 7,141 of its citizens' bicycles off the street, nearly 2,000 more than in 2008. Rotterdam was the only major city where the number removed remained stable at 12,000. Amsterdam, however, is in a league of its own. Last year, 45,000 bicycles were removed there, 6,000 more than in 2008.

The article mentions the problems of "orphaned" bicycles, and taught me about a number of interesting methods used to deal with these forgotten two-wheeled friends:

Bicycle removal teams have developed a special method to determine whether a bike has been abandoned: they put little stickers on a pre-determined position on the bicycle's wheels. If they return and the stickers are no longer in the same place, this means the wheel has turned and the bike has been used. If it hasn't, the civil servants put a large orange sticker on the bike announcing it will be removed by the city if the owner does not do so himself within a month.

It's great reading, and a good education into what happens to all that metal piled up in every Dutch city.

Construction has begun on the new Vredenburg Music Palace in Utrecht. The music center with dedicated halls for pop, jazz, classical, crossover and chamber music isn't expected to host its first concert until 2013, but to celebrate the start of construction, there will be a concert this afternoon, 18 February, at 17:30. Trumpeters Eric Vloeimans (jazz), Kyteman (pop) and Hans van Loenen (classical) will be performing, while Ingmar Heytze will be performing a poem written for the occasion. Mulled wine and hot chocolate will be on hand to keep the crowd warm for the outdoor performance in Vredenburg Square.

According to Wiki, the muisjes are actually sugared anise seeds, and anise "was good for the mother's milk, that it would ease the contractions in the womb, and that it would drive away evil spirits."

An interesting tradition. If you are ever offered one of these treats, now you know why.

Though they're often hard to find, in many places in the Netherlands expats have made a big effort to make cities more internationally friendly for others in the same boat. I recently discovered one of these efforts, in a website called Home in Leiden.

Now most of the Trippist readership may not be interested in family activities (which Home in Leiden specializes in) but the site has so much more. Are you an international student looking for work? Offer your babysitting services. Want to read up on Dutch festivals and traditions? No problem. Interested in getting the inside scoop on the Dutch recycling system? It's here.

There's plenty of other information helpful to any Leiden resident. There are lists of B&Bs and hotels, information on public transport, and interesting options for learning Dutch.

Any expat in Leiden should be aware of this site. Enjoy!

This Saturday, February 27, the Rumor Festival takes place in Utrecht. The festival is a night of adventurous music, with performances by three groups in three different locations, for one set price. Tickets are €15/10 (U-pas, student, CJP).

Led Bib, a punk jazz outfit, will be performing at EKKO at 20:30. At RASA Theater, György Ligeti's Mechanical Works will be performed at 21:45. Ligeti was an avant-garde composer famous for his music that appeared in some of Stanley Kubrick's most famous films. Finally, at 23:00, at Theater Kikker, Ansatz der Maschine will be performing a mix of subtle electronica mixed in with horns, violins, saxophones and more to create an adventurous form of pop music.

When I first heard about the street that Swissôtel is located on, Damrak, I figured it would be a bad option because that is the main thoroughfare leading directly to Central Station. As someone who prefers the out-of-the-way type hotels, being located practically on Dam Square with all the people, trams, and hoopla, did not sound comfortable.

Then I went there to see family members who were spending a weekend in Amsterdam, and over the course of three days I walked around, chatted with the friendly staff, and got the feel for this busy hotel.

Like all Swissôtels, there are a number of things you can count on: efficiency, 24 hour service, functional though small rooms, and cleanliness. In the case of Amsterdam's Swissôtel you get all of this, plus a very advantageous location if you want to see the different parts of the city while doing it mostly on foot or public transport. If you've ever fretted about getting from the train station to the place you're staying when you arrive in a new city, staying here eliminates that concern.

That said, everything is quite small. Facilities are not quite and functional and shiny as they probably were 10 years ago. And since it is so small and centrally located, there's not much in terms of extras and it is never not busy.

So if you seek reliable, convenient, comfortable, and predictable, Swissôtel should be on your short list.

This Sunday, February 28, the Mooie-Plaatjes group exhibition in Utrecht showcases the work of young, up-and-coming artists. The work of Rutger Lastdrager, L-Tuziasm, and Chiel will be on display, showcasing their mix of modern art, street art and photography. DJs Shameless and Jeremy Soze will be providing a musical backdrop for the artwork.

Rutger Lastdrager is a photographer using both raw images as well as digitally manipulated images to make people look at normal scenes in new ways. L-Tuziasm, along with being one of the founders of the exhibition, is a painter working with color and rough forms to explore both city life and nature. Chiel is a graffiti artist at heart who now does more of his work on canvas, while still frequently using spray paint.

The exhibit runs from 13:00-19:00 at Van Sijpensteinkade 11, Utrecht.

Fratelli has been completely refurbished, and is now a modern, inviting restaurant. Its dark wooden chairs have been replaced with sleek leather armchairs. The décor is fabulous and they've added a bar that just asks to be frequented. They even have a quieter seating area tucked behind the brand new wardrobe.

The food has also been upgraded - it's still Italian but of much higher quality. They are now open from 11.30 for lunch and serve a lunch menu until 4pm. The dinner menu is wonderful - salads and pastas, and very delicious pizzas.

I haven't figured out why Fratelli hasn't raised its prices, but hurry in and visit before they do. Fratelli is located at Lange Mare 112 and is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 11.30.

It's a boy! News out of the Artis Zoo is that a baby Madril monkey was born last weekend. His name is Yaro (son in Swahili) and he is doing well along with his mother (Ndoki). According to officials everything went fine and the two are enjoying themselves in the new Monkey Shelter area of the zoo.