Amsterdam is such a classic city.  We found it to be a fantastic setting for riding our wooden cart through the lovely canal streets, playing our hot jazz song, Shine.

We met so many amazing people, young and old.  I had a wonderful conversation with a 70 year old Frenchman about hot jazz and that great era of music.

So many wonderful friends rode along with us through the canal streets, enjoying the wild scenery of the red light district and the idyllic, Vondelpark.  Our bike ride through Vondelpark while performing with a violinist while on the move was unforgettable.

Justin and I rode all around town and performed in a lot of different areas on the fly.  During our journey we came across a skatepark and hung out with some local kids.  Justin showed them some skate tricks up his sleeve and gave some skate lessons.

Unfortunately, the party never seemed to stop which took it’s toll on me.  The Flying Pig can be dangerous and the staff usually are the craziest in the party. Lots of drinking, shots, dancing, and smoke coming from the smoke room.

We met so many great people here from all over the world.  I had a nice dinner on the canal with Pernille and Marie from Bergen, Norway – we took a break from the wild nightlife and relaxed by the canals.

I have had some excellent conversations this weekend and am rejuvenated by my stay here in Amsterdam.  Goodbye Amsterdam.  We shall return soon in July.

Everyday in Amsterdam is a new adventure.  Pünamí found a new tour bus – so we hit these historic, canal streets gangsta style in our beat-wagon.

Justin and I are laughing through the streets as we love providing fresh beats for the city on the street while hauling tail along the canals. I got a visit from my amazing brother, Matthew, so I was stoked he could come along and enjoy a wild, dangerous ride with us through the Amsterdam.  Matthew and I are staying at the Bridge Hotel which has a lovely view of the canal.

However, the party still continues at the Flying Pig – but it’s really in the streets with every new friend we find along the way.

Our highlight has been making our way through Vondelpark and Canal streets together before we performed.  People here have been so welcoming and we are thrilled with our experience in Vondelpark.

We continue to celebrate a great stay here with my brother, Matthew – thought I’d share this moment with you over a glass of wine.

We will return to Amsterdam to play more shows along these canal streets in July.  The night is still young and the adventure is still wide open.

Our new friend from Toronto, Lyndsey, has proven to be a wonderful friend on the road.

She opened up and told us her dark secrets about her wild adventures in Amsterdam.  She watched a live sex show with some friends and sat next to a group of quiet Asians.

It was a real show with live sex and a little pulp fiction theme song strip tease.  Sounds hot, but then she tells us she did it while high on truffle mushrooms from the local shops.  Thank you for slamming beers with us Lyndsey and jamming with our sloppy songs in the canals of the red light district!  We road through the night on a bike taxi looking for food, good drinks, and good times.  To be continued…

I am now writing this from the smoke room in the Flying Pig hostal even though I am staying at the Van Gogh Hotel.  The Flying Pig is proving to be the atmosphere we are looking for during our travel.

There is a lounge that people interact and sit with eachother on cushions with shoes off.  Interaction of youth and discussing travel with other travelers is what’s most rewarding about traveling.

The Van Gogh Hotel is nicer, but the staff isn’t part of the party like the Flying Pig.  Today I slept in because last night we stayed out super late and were taken out by two local girls – Justin and I rode on the back of their bikes late night to the bar on one of the funnest rides i have had in my life.

These people know how to ride bikes and know how to carry a passenger better then anybody in the world.  We woke up late which was good because we are still exhausted from jet lag and lugging around our equipment and playing yesterday on little rest.

Nevertheless, today it was our second time to rock out in Vondelpark before the sun went down.  The locals needed some entertainment on this lovely Saturday.

We first had a great Salad with walnuts and goat cheese in the park and then made our way into the center of our favorite spot by the water.

Justin and I had a blast today playing music and we had a good response and connected with a massive amount of people.

The cops have been tolerant of us plugging into our battery powered amplifiers and blasting our music in the park.  So far so good.  Today I realized I was right where I needed to be – jamming music in the green grass with the sun on my face.

It has been wonderful to meet so many people in this town – sometimes when we walk around other parts of the city there are people that have seen us play in the park, the plaza, the canal in the red light district, and leidsquare Amsterdam.  Justin and I are super excited because the music and band is only going to get bigger and better.

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I arrived from Amsterdam on a direct flight from San Francisco.  When I arrived in the baggage area I united with my bandmate, Justin who arrived directly from Los Angeles.

My second suitcase-guitar did not make the flight and is still missing.  It was boxed up and checked in as baggage along with some other batteries and electronics.  Buggers.  However, Justin and I were happy to see each other and start exploring.

We stopped at the 420 smoke shop on the lost trek to our hostel to see what all the fuss was about.

We then stumbled into the Flying pig Hostal and were hurting with jet lag. I didn’t get much sleep the night prior either ’cause i was prepping for this trip.

My favorite places to busk are in front of live peep shows.  For some reason all the men in there throw euros out at you.  Justin and I are the weirdos and play in front of the live sex show theaters, but we feel an unease when the local gangsters question are affect with their businesses.

We still had to explore our first night and Justin couldn’t help but play his guitar in the bar that night either. Somehow our first night we stayed out meeting new friends at different spots and along the canal and ended up at a house party until 6 am.

I almost collapsed when the sun came out and we saw the rabbits hopping next to the birds chirping.  We overdid ourselves and today we woke up hurting, but this would need to officially be our first day of hitting the streets with our amps plugged in.  WE haven’t rehearsed much together, but we connect fast and our first day we gathered a large crowd in front of a plaza playing all my original tunes which will be available online next week.

We also played the plaza for two hours and then we played in a quiet section of the Canals in the Red Light district.

WE then took a short ride on a train to the Van Gogh Hotel where I will be staying tonight.  It is right across the Van Gogh museum and near Vondelpark.  Vondelpark was bustling today with people playing music and large groups cooking and drinking freely.

It was extremely busy with bike traffic and cops on bicycle grouped in different areas.  Justin and I charged in and looked for a quiet spot to play, but as soon as I saw a percussionist alone i bolted towards him.  The percussionist teamed up with us and they shut of the techno music so a large crowd could hear.

We had a great jam in that section of the park and I had a great time dancing with some locals.  We then hit another chill spot in front of the water on the park and made some new friends. A jazz singer joined randomly joined us and justin threw down some jazz standards for her.

All in all I am jet-lagged and hungover, but Amsterdam is proving to be an energetic city.  People have been wonderful, giving us free beer in the park with warm welcomes – such lively, fun and intelligent people.

We are meeting more musicians on the road and our band will grow.  The website will be up next week with the album available for streaming, free download, and the full album for sale.  Today was such a wonderful day of sharing my music and hanging out with my musical brother.  The road is coming to us.

Finally getting back in the recording studio… Then finishing my day off with some good, old fashion live music… Devendra Banhart at The Observatory over dinner. Stoked to be on dry land.

Santa Barbara Channel fever… shiver me timbers no more grog left!!! Fortunately, a beautiful Sunday filled with sunshine and cool winds sailing down the coast of California. Land Ho – ly crap i’ve been at sea too long!!!

Departed Qingdao, China… now in Yellow Sea Southbound for Kwangyang, South Korea.  Dodging lots of fishing boats as usual while navigating through a hazy horizon. Korean Immigration is having each crewmember sign paperwork now before entry stating that we do not have Avian flu Virus H7N9 because we are coming from China. If we lie then it is up to a year imprisonment and a huge fine. I don’t think I’d make it a year in prison if I had bird flu – just sayin’. :p

I’ve been on a container ship, the Sea-Land Comet, since January 7th 2013.  I’m in the middle of my third and last voyage… exhausted and ready for vacation. Each voyage is 42 days long and each voyage schedule takes us to –> Los Angeles –> Oakland –> Dutch Harbor, Alaska –> Yokohama, Japan –> Kobe, Japan –> Busan, South Korea –> Qingdao, China –> Kwangyang, South Korea –> Busan, South Korea –> Hakata, Japan –> Nagoya, Japan –> Yokohama, Japan –> Los Angeles.  The crew is unhappy as there is no shore leave today in Korea due to “Strengthened immigration policy by Korea Ministry Justice department.”  The Justice Dept should know if war breaks out sailors are much safer with beer in hand. :p  Next stop Qingdao, China for grog refill.