Each year, thousands of people converge on the city of Amsterdam for the International Broadcasting Convention, or IBC, one of the industry's largest trade shows. Most attendees are already pretty familiar with what the RAI Convention Center has to offer: strong coffee, stale broodjies, confusing floor plans, and row after row after row of brightly lit exhibits showcasing all the latest and greatest technologies. Oh, and don't forget the beach!
What some convention-goers may forget is that Amsterdam, home of the internationally renowned Gerrit Rietveld Art Academy, is celebrated for its cutting-edge design, including art, fashion, architecture, furniture, and home accessories. And when I'm not geeking out over VFX or 3D workflows, I am obsessed with design. Each year after IBC, I try to stay on in the city for at least one extra day to explore and soak up some of that Dutch design goodness.
Friends and colleagues hit me up regularly for recommendations in Amsterdam, which over time has led to the compilation of an informal design guide. Thanks to leading design blog Design*Sponge, which provides design guides for cities around the world, among other design-related awesomeness, the guide has finally been formalized - complete with interactive Google map - and is now available to everyone on the Web.
The Amsterdam design guide covers the entire city, broken up by neighborhood, with recommendations for shopping, strolling and sightseeing, as well as restaurants, and even a few must-see hotels in each area. Check out the full guide HERE [http://www.designspongeonline.com/2009/10/amsterdam-guide.html], and get a head start on some extra-curricular planning for IBC 2010!