Articles on some of the world's most romantic destinations by
professional photographer Eleanor S. Morris

continued from page 1


Brown cafes are for conversation and conviviality. A Brown Cafe stands on almost every Amsterdam corner and on a cobbled corner along the Prinsengracht is the famous Café Papeneiland, the "Pope's Island," its tall two-story windows overlooking the canal. There is no music in Café Papeneiland, one of the oldest, dating from 1642. The only noise might be the tinkling of glasses and the buzz of conversation. The Brown Cafes are the Amsterdammers "living rooms"; instead of drinking at home they come to the cafe to relax for an hour or two with the perfect draft beer or coffee, conversation or a card game.

Groups of Amsterdammers enjoy "gezelling" around large round tables. Afternoons and evenings in Brown Cafes are lessons in what "gezelligheid" means: it most closely translates into "conviviality" or "coziness." Amsterdammers liked to talk to strangers in their native tongue and they are good at it, especially if it's English. At the drop of a word they'll drop their game of cards and enter heartily into an international conversation.

Why are they called "bruin" cafes? The dark wood interior, the traditional furniture, and most of all the centuries of cigarette smoke have stained the walls umber and sienna. But everything else is so bright--the shining windows, the clean white curtains, the gleaming wood and blue Delft tiles--that "brown" is almost a misnomer.

Early in the evening, before dinner, be sure to try a "proeflokaal," a tasting house, another convivial scene. Here customers gather around the bar for a sample of the tap house's spirits. The tradition of tasting stems from early tasting houses which began as annexes to the tap house. For those in need of a heart warmer they provided a free sample of the beverage before buying the whole bottle. Nowadays there's a charge for the pleasure, but at a tasting house like the Continental Bodega the tasting comes with the beat of lively entertainment.

By now it will be time for dinner, time to head along the narrow cobbled streets--by now alight with brilliant neon signs beckoning overhead--to indulge in yet another Amsterdam institution. This one is a legacy from the days of the Dutch East Indies: an Indonesian "rijsttafel."

How to get the most from experiencing a "ricetable?" Put a spoonful of rice in the middle of your plate. Make a selection of one or two of the many meat and vegetable dishes steaming on heated stands in a row up and down the middle of the table. Perhaps it will be beef in Bali sauce or traditional Padang festive beef and spicy fried cabbage or salad in peanut sauce. Add a little fried shrimp crispies, pickled cucumbers or fruits in chutney sauce from the side dishes and enjoy the taste. Then begin again, with as many servings as it takes to sample it all without mixing the flavors. Be careful with the sambal, the three hot chili sauces. Very spicy is a mild description of these tongue and throat scorchers!

Chocolate and coffee bars, pancake houses, brown cafes, tasting houses and rijsttafel, what a parade of exotic delights. This is what travel is all about, tasting another culture. In Amsterdam there is tasting to the fullest!Amsterdam's Culinary Delights:

If You Go:

* Pannekoekhuis "Welcome," Prinsengracht 332, hoek Looiersgracht, tel. 22-36-28. Open Wednesday to Sunday from 12 noon until 9 p.m.

* Cafe Papeneiland, Prinsengracht 2, tel. 24-19-89, open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

* Continental Bodega, Lijnbaansgracht 246. tel. 23 90 98. Open 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., closed Sundays.

* Restaurant Indonesia, Singel 550, tel. 23-20-35 and 23-17-58. Reservations recommended.