Amsterdam in 35mm

After Copenhagen, I hopped over to Amsterdam to meet up with my sister and best friend for Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), a four-day-long electronic music networking event that brings artists and industry professionals from around the world to Amsterdam. Although I’ve been to Amsterdam a few times before, nothing prepared me for what was to come over the next few days. It was truly an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime experience.

As soon as we landed in Amsterdam, we started our night at the Hoxton in De 9 Straatjes and then journeyed all the way to the infamous Gashouder Westergasfabriek to watch Adam Beyer perform. Over the weekend we attended Mystic Garden, a magical music festival in Westpoort where we danced all day and all night. Despite the long nights, we made the most of our days by exploring all that Amsterdam has to offer. My friend and I took a canal tour through the city; admired Rembrandts and Vermeers at the Rijksmuseum, which was absolutely phenomenal; and my sister and I spent quality time with kitties at KattenKabinet, an art museum dedicated solely to cats. The three of us drank coffee at notable cafes such as Cafe Baskets, Locals, and Salvo Bakehouse, and ate way too many servings of the classic Dutch fries (with curry sauce, mayo, and chopped onions, of course!). We ate stroopwafels larger than our heads at Melly’s StroopWafels and went Miffy-crazy at de winkel van nijntje and HEMA. On our final day, we celebrated the beautiful October weather by wandering the iconic streets of Jordaan and enjoying a perfect last meal at Turbo, a mid-century-modern lover’s dream. It was so fun being back in Amsterdam and I can’t wait to plan another trip.

Photographs were taken with my Canon ELAN 7 using a combination of Kodak ColourPlus 200 and Kodak Ektar 100 films developed and scanned at Downtown Camera.

Copenhagen in 35mm

I can’t believe I made it back to my favourite place on earth - Copenhagen, Denmark. A spur of the moment decision turned out to be one of the best I’ve made all year, as I forgot how much of my heart I had left in this city all those years ago. I hadn’t been back since 2016 and I’m upset with myself for waiting this long to make my what was once a yearly pilgrimage. The great thing about Copenhagen is that things never really change. The grocery store I used to live next to on Blegdamsvej is still there, albeit larger and more flashy; the local bar I would drag my friends to when they would come visit is still alive and kicking on Nørrebrogade; and the iconic buildings I remember so fondly are still proudly standing (except for beautiful Borsen, which sadly burnt down earlier this year). It was so great to be back and even a month later, my heart still hurts thinking about much I love it here.

Although I was only in Copenhagen for three days, I tried to fit in as much as humanly possible. I stayed at Babette Guldsmeden on Bredgade, one of my favourite streets in Indre By. It is steps away from Churchillparken and Marmorkirken, one of the most beautiful structures in the city. I made it a priority to visit Designmuseum Danmark, Det Nationale Fotomuseum in det Kongelige Bibliotek, and the Dansk Arkitektur Centre, all of which were phenomenal. I even caught the tail-end of Irma: A Design Story at the Designmuseum which was just amazing. I shopped at Posterland (an old favourite), Jazzcup (a jazz cafe and store, where I picked up a record by Plum and I), Storm, New Mags, Naked Copenhagen, HAY, and Flying Tiger. I stopped by the TikTok-famous Lidkøb, an incredible flea market in Østerbro, where I found a Stine Goya dress for 1/5th of the original price. I ate pastries at Hart Bageri and Apotek 57; drank øl at Warpigs in Kødbyen and vin at the Lille Blå Vinbar on Esplanaden where I met a new friend; and had delicious meals at Bottega Barlie, La Banchina, Hija de Sanchez, and Studio X Kitchen. I spent quality time with my Danish mor which healed my heart and soul. I visited her pilates studio, PWR 8 (absolutely gorgeous!), and we explored the new area of Copenhagen, Carlsbergbyen , and went to the Van Gogh Exhibit on Refshaløen. It truly was such a special trip and I am already longing to go back - if my soul was a city, it would be København.

Photographs were taken with my Canon ELAN 7 using a combination of Fujicolor 200, Kodak Portra 400, and Kodak ColourPlus 200 films developed and scanned at Downtown Camera.