Upcoming Rotterdam visit

[Richard B]

Anything particularly worth seeing? I'm visiting a friend in a few days - not necessarily lfs but anything of interest at all

[Bas Pels]

Rotterdam is Europes largest port, so if you are interested in that, you might have something to look at

Further the Erasmus bridge is said to be something special. However, as it is in the very center of the city, it might be a lot of trouble, just to look at it.

There are a few things related to 'Dutch design' in Rotterdam, I do recall having seen something about it. However, I can not provide you with any details

In the part Katendrecht you can see a retired cruise ship - which took the job of a few politicians , not only local ones

@ fishes/lfs, the local zoo does have something to look at, but only salt water. see http://www.rotterdamzoo.nl/?lang=EN

lfs: Verduijn is good, but concentrates on Africa cichlids, http://www.verduijncichlids.com/index_eng.htm a few others can be found, but I would not recommend Eurofish and another sopecialist for malawi/tanganjican fish (I forgot their name), due to the long quarantaine period the fish requires

Should yo uintend to go further away, the working island Neeltje Jans - build to make the Oosterschelde dam might interest you - it is an exhibition about how we keep our land dry

[DutchFry]

you can visit the Euromast (a large tower) you can even run down it once you're at the top, guarded by a line (what's it called in english, abseilen?)

in the city centre there are some nice architect works, such as the cubus houses that are built like they are standing on a corner of the cubus! very nice!

i'd also recommend a visit to the port of rotterdam, it's so big and interesting!

make sure you visit 'de lachende paus' it's the best coffeeshop in town

[sidguppy]

I don't know how much time you have, or how your way of transport is, but if you got a fair bit of time and a car or a friend with one, you could visit the LFS in Poortugaal.

they have a wide variety of catfishes.
they have the TSN, the redtail youngsters and those godforsaken hybrids; wich is not good, BUT they also have Channallabes, oddball bycatch, loads of L numbers, wildcaught riverine Synodontis, lungfish, Acestorhynchus pike Characins, doradids and a whole list of other oddballs.

I got my Clarias pachynema from there, it was a by-catch in a shipment of Channallabes or Gymnallabes.

the store itself isn't impressive at all, and most of the fish they got are quite small, but at least they have them. wich I cannot say about most other LFS in the Netherlands.

btw WHEN are you coming?

[Richard B]

I land at Amsterdam at 08.20 on Thursday & plan to do Anne Frank's house, the diamond museum, vodka museum & Van Gogh museum before jumping on the train to Rotterdam.(i've been to Amstrdam many times before but this is the first chance to do things purely for myself). This is dependant upon whether or not i get a ticket for "kings of leon" on Thursday night.

Anyway once in Rotterdam i'm there until i need to get back to Amsterdam airport for a 15.25 flight on Sunday. Stopping with a friend who has transport so there is a vague possibility to get around a bit - providing we're sober.....

[L number Banana]

diamond museum, vodka museum

Heaven!

[Richard B]

diamond museum, vodka museum

Heaven!

Maybe...the diamond section of the Natural History Museum, London is quite good - better than the American Museum of Natural History, i think but my mate's house will surely surpass any vodka museum.....

[MatsP]

Talking of vodka, I've been to Nöbbelöv, which is where (amongst other things) they produce Absolut Vodka. I find the current adverts in the UK for "Smirnoff" a bit "interesting", because they claim that Smirnoff is triple distilled. The still that is used for Absolut Vodka is a single (albeit 6 meters tall) fractionating column - out of that comes 96% pure alcohol. As alcohol is azeotropic at 96%, further distillation is pointless - the remaining 4% is pure water. Question I have to ask is "Why do Smirnoff need to distill more than once?".

--
Mats

[Marc van Arc]

Anyway once in Rotterdam i'm there until i need to get back to Amsterdam airport for a 15.25 flight on Sunday.

At what time do you need to check in? There's a nice fair in Belgium on Sunday, starting from 10 AM. I wouldn't mind taking you there, provided you can be in Eindhoven at around 9 AM (and sober pls ). From Eindhoven it's about 35 to 45 minutes to the fair. Eindhoven to Amsterdam would be 1.5 hours (maybe more under the current circumstances: national building site). Just think about it; if this is all too "difficult" you may certainly say no.

[sidguppy]

and it gets even better:

I will be at the Belgian fair as well.
it's not a problem driving with me on the way back and I can get you on a train to Amsterdam
after you've seen my collection of Madagascarian fishes ofcourse

or you might do that earlier, on saturday or friday.
there's lots of possibilities

I got a lot of spare time, BUT I need to know possible plans beforehand
cause we'll be painting walls in our new villa the next few days when there are no other things to do.
but I'm expecting a huge load of frozen fish foods on saturday and hence, at home ;)

[Bas Pels]

Question I have to ask is "Why do Smirnoff need to distill more than once?".
Mats

I think the answer can be found in Ireland. Whisky from scotland is distellied twice, Irish whiskey three times. Perhaps they know why they take the trouble

I don't know about causality, but I like Irish whiskey, being smoother to the tase, better.

Regardig your observation, in destillation (regardles what one distilles, spirits of crude oil are technically very similar) technicians speak aboput theoretical trays. Each theoretical tray compares to another plain destillation.

Take, for instance, a 10 % alcohol in water mixture. When it is boiling, the space above it will contain more than 10 % alcohol, as alcohol boils at 78 C and water at 100. However the alcohol will not be pure, or even 96 %.

Condensing this mixture, and boiling it again, one can get over 80 %, and the fthird or fourth step might reach the 96 %

Each step forms a theoretical tray.

If reading the above you thing 'but during the destillation the alcohol will drop to 9, 8 %' than you clearly understood the problem: in destillation one will (in a batch process) see the result decrease in content of low-boiling compound. In a technical setting, where low alcohol (or crude oil) is continuously supplied, and the products are continuously withdrawn, this is taken into account.

A mixture is fed halfway up a column, and the low boiling compound will raise through the column, coming into contact and establishing equelibrium with liquid (condensate) flowing down. The high boiling compound will condense, and flow down, towards the bottom exit.

The contact is made in trays, hence the name

Now my question is: is Irish whiskey (and Smirnoff vodka) distelled three times - thus in three theoretical trays, or does this refer to other procedures?

Destilling three theoretical trays will result in a purer product compared to twice, and therefore less tase resulting from the original components.

However, good vodka is supposed to be filtered over charcoal, and therefore tasteless anyway

Good question, Matt

[Richard B]

Ooooooo - surely there are many more (subjectively) "good" vodka's that aren't distilled over charcoal? Like Icelandic - distilled overLava rock.

[sidguppy]

bunch of Wodka drinkers

ugh

i'll take it, you guys loooove paracetamole and aspirines?

I'll stick to beer & mead ;)

[Richard B]

I'll drink almost anything .....

[Richard B]

Sid & Marc - PM sent

[L number Banana]

Richard B wrote:

Maybe...the diamond section of the Natural History Museum, London is quite good - better than the American Museum of Natural History, i think but my mate's house will surely surpass any vodka museum.....

I think Entwerp would have everyone beat on the diamond front as far as the cutters go but I think it may have been the jewel room in the V&A in London that knocked me out. Cases and cases of just rings..... Or that little silver shop where Eric Clapton shops somewhere near Picadilly or Soho. Not gem stuff but technically stunning creations! Next time you're in NY, you've got to check out the gold hand beaten bowl that quivers because it's so thin - mastery! I think the Guggenheim bought it.

Vodka distillation is pretty interesting but can one anyone explain why so called american 'beer' says that it's colder that other beer????? No offense to my American friends here...but beer is kind of yucky when it's too cold - good beer anyway.

You guys should try that new(?) polish beer zywiec. It's really old fashioned style and tastes like what it's made from! - yummy.

[MatsP]

If you've ever had american beer that is not super-chilled, you'd know that it's lack of good flavours is even more obvious when it's not that cold.

Different styles of beer requires different temperatures - just like red wine generally should not be served ice-cold, but white wine does.

I have had Staropramen in Prague - nice!

--
Mats

[sidguppy]

If you've ever had american beer that is not super-chilled, you'd know that it's lack of good flavours is even more obvious when it's not that cold.

it's not just flavor it lacks......Ameriocan beer contains less than half the amount oif alcohol British Lager or mainland draftbeer (pils, bier, cervesa) has


when I was in Oz an Aussie said it better than I ever can:
'American beer is like F*ckin' in a canoo! too close to water!"

[L number Banana]

Sidguppy wrote:
'American beer is like F*ckin' in a canoo! too close to water!"

And I always thought that was a Canadian saying!

What's your mead of choice these days? There's not many good ones here, only homemade

[Richard B]

Uhhhh - hello everyone, i've just woken up but i am back at home.

Rotterdam - what can i say - i utterly love it & it is quite amazing. I also have the offer to go & stay any time i wanna therefore with a bit more notice & planning i might be able to meet up with people next time.

As it seems the thread has moved onto drinking, let me just say there are some great american beers but you have to search them out as they are few & far between, from microbreweries.

The heineken seemed to be brew of choice for the people i was drinking with but it was a bit bland for me. I forget what it's called but the dutch gin wasn't much kop either (however but that stage of the session it coulda been anything.....)

The fish seen ok for having been left for 4 days, but i knew they would....i think the b/n's have spawned again though......

[Bas Pels]

I don't like the Heineken either. in fact lager is not my thing at all. Ales or better the strong, dark stuff (9 % or more) after maturing for a few years, yes now we are talking

But, moving out of drinking, if you intend to to some fish-visits next time, feel free to ask.

[Phyllonemus]

you could visit the LFS in Poortugaal.

they have a wide variety of catfishes.
they have the TSN, the redtail youngsters and those godforsaken hybrids; wich is not good, BUT they also have Channallabes, oddball bycatch, loads of L numbers, wildcaught riverine Synodontis, lungfish, Acestorhynchus pike Characins, doradids and a whole list of other oddballs.

What's the name of that store Sid ?

[sidguppy]

hehe
don't make the assumption that just because we Dutchies don't like American beer, we as a rule drink Heineken....I'd rather skip it

heineken comes out of the wrong end of a horse, if you catch my drift.
"Paardepis" or "paardezeik" most of my friends call it (paard means horse in Dutch)

as regular beer goes, I prefer Grolsch or Bavaria. both are good. both can be pounded down in large quantities

for sheer taste there's a whole list of Belgian, Dutch and German beers that i like in lesser quantities, but better taste.
many of those have a lot more alcohol in em, so tossing 12 bottles down the hatch of -for example- Grolsch Kanon or La Trappe Triple Trappist or Hoegaarde Grand Cru would amoumnt to suicide, maddness, insanity or all three at the same time

beer like that is to be drunk slowly on occasions in a proper glass or mug; not binge style.

Grolsch beugels (0.5 liter bottles with a porcelain stopper on a piece of iron) are for hitting the piss

[Phyllonemus]

hehe
Grolsch beugels (0.5 liter bottles with a porcelain stopper on a piece of iron) are for hitting the piss

This is he Dutch brand that I like th most !
The only Dutch brand I'll buy, and sometimes Bavaria and from Belgium various brands.
Heineken and Amstel taste like Shit.

But Sid , what's the name of that LFS in Poortugaal ?

[sidguppy]

it hasn't got a name I'm aware of, it's just a local fish store and a small one at that.
but they try to get uncommon fish.

the fish in general are very small, but at least they have species that other stores won't even try to get.

check out marktplaats for 'poortugaal" and you'll find a loooot of adds ;)