MY CITY

AMSTERDAM

BEN MUNRO SMITH

Ben Munro Smith doesn't stay still for long! Luckily, you can keep track of his travels on his Insta page, where his cheeky updates have earned him a big following.

The adventurous Australian hails from Sydney, but he now calls Amsterdam home, where he works with Nomad Academy - an intriguing organisation built on the premise that conventional careers hold us back from achieving all that we could.

Their programmes combine slow travel (think living in a different place!) with career learning (workshops, mentoring, you get the idea) to offer participants the opportunity to break out of their routines and create entrepreneurial careers.

We managed to track Ben down to discover some of his favourite places in Amsterdam...

SIR HUMMUS

@sirhummus

"Amsterdam is a city that loves vegetarians and vegans, happily catering to their culinary needs. Probably no secret if you've lived here for a while, but Sir Hummus is a great place to grab your next lunch, vegetarian or not. With a simple menu, mainly consisting of add-ons to go with their famous hummus (when it's all you do, you get REALLY good at it!), you'll leave feeling happy, full and maybe even a little bit eco.

My tip: Add the Magic Egg to your order, without question. They claim it will make you wake up the next morning with superpowers. I can't confirm that part, but it is certainly yummy."

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FULU MANDARIJN

@fulumandarijnamsterdam

"Szechuan in the Netherlands? I get it, it makes no sense! What am I even talking about?! Even less so when you find out it is in the touristy part of town. But hear me out... It's worth it!

Having had my fair share of Szechuan in my time, this would come pretty close to my best. The restaurant also has five commitments it makes to its customers. You'll read about them when you go, but a great one to know (if you're still on the fence) is if you don't like it, you can return it - no questions asked!"

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CONCERTO RECORD STORE

@concertorecordstore

"Only in Amsterdam is there still such a bustling record scene. The centre of this is Concerto - three shop fronts are connected to create a huge space selling CDs, records, books and a great café space in which to relax. The staff are laid back and cool, so will happily let you browse through without trying for the hard sell. They also do launches and events, and it's not uncommon for a familiar face to be seen in store."

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THE SCHOOL OF LIFE

@theschooloflife.amsterdam

"This store isn't unique to Amsterdam, but it's still worth a visit. If you haven't heard of it, even more so. Founded by Alain de Botton, famous for his book The Course of Love, the whole store is about helping you chase a more fulfilled life. It has great gifts, books to help you out, a café and chill out space - and they even run regular workshops."

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MARINETERREIN AMSTERDAM

@marineterreinamsterdam

"If you're looking for the perfect place to spend a hot afternoon, you've found it! A special area, with a boardwalk that goes into the water, special floating buoys to climb on (and maybe even jump off). Beautiful views, even more spectacular at sunset, allow you to look to Amsterdam with the VOC-schip De Amsterdam and the Nemo Science Museum right in front of you. Head in for free - but maybe try to get here early on really hot days as it'll be full of people with the same idea!"

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DETAILS

Follow Ben on Instagram:

@benagram_

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All photos are courtesy of Benjamin Munro Smith, except: Sir Hummus (Instagram @sirhummus); FuLu Mandarijn (Instagram @fulumandarijnamsterdam); Concerto Record Store (Instagram @concertorecordstore). This feature was not paid for in any way.