“Riding into Zuidas, I always think: wow, what an amazing place to live!”

Nynke Popma has lived in Amsterdam for most of her life. She spent lots of time in the city as a child at her father’s shop on Ceintuurbaan, or visiting the Rijksmuseum in weekends. Though she left her beloved Amsterdam a few times in the intervening years – including for an adventure in another world capital, Singapore – she and her son have lived in Zuidas for two years now, and she couldn’t be happier.

Nynke, can you tell us about yourself?
“I work for an IT firm, where I’m in charge of field marketing for Northern Europe. I work from home a lot and used to travel quite a bit as part of my job. That slowed down during the pandemic, but fortunately it’s picking up again. I will be going to Copenhagen shortly, and trips like that really make my job great fun. My company is headquartered in Den Bosch and I try to go there physically at least once a week. That’s where my teammates are, after all, and although I love my house and have a lovely office at home, it’s also nice to see people in real life.”

Did you always want to live in this area?
“Not necessarily, no. But, moving from place to place, I have crossed through Amsterdam-Zuid quite a few times over the years. My winding up here was actually totally spontaneous and not some long-held dream that suddenly came true. Zuidas was definitely an option, but one of several. In fact, this house was already sold and only awaiting mortgage approval, but my son urged me to phone the property agent anyway. We lucked out, because the other party’s financing hadn’t come through, so then we got a chance to view it. The instant we stepped inside, I thought: ‘wow, this is really nice’. Especially because the apartment is so high and spacious, and my son feels completely at home here.”

If there were things in Zuidas you could change, what would it be?
“What really bothers me, to be honest, is all the litter in the streets. Fortunately, we don’t have that problem here in our building because it all goes underground. Another thing that can sometimes get under my skin are when people let their dogs pee on the side of buildings and the spots this can leave on walls. Of course, we live in a big city and things like that may just be part of the deal, but it’s still an unpleasant sight, haha.”

What’s your favourite spot in Zuidas?
“Obviously, there are a ton of great restaurants and other hotspots here, but, to be honest, the most magical moment of my day is after a workout, riding my bike home into Zuidas down Gustav Mahlerlaan. I look around and just marvel at the architecture and at how amazing this place is. There’s a really great vibe and there are always things happening in the area and people about. I love coming home to that, and it’s my favourite spot for that reason. And despite the fact that a lot of people live here, the houses are well insulated, so that keeps the noise out. It’s like living in a cocoon in the middle of the city.”

Favourite spot at home Probably the kitchen, as I love cooking and having friends over to share it with. Add some music and drinks, and I’m happy.

Hobbies Working out, having nice meals with friends, travelling and skiing.