HOTEL UNIEK

In the autumn of 1963 I arrived in Amsterdam for a year of study at the Conservatory of Music. It was my first time there, and one of my gay friends in Boston suggested I stay at the Hotel Uniek, so I had reserved a room there for my first week to have a base while looking for a more permanent domicile in the City.

He had also given me the names of two gay clubs to visit, the COC and the DOK. After unpacking, showering, and changing clothes, I went off to explore Amsterdam and locate the clubs. When I arrived at the DOK, I was astonished to find an upscale, contemporary, beautifully designed and appointed space with a mirrored wall on one side reflecting the bar, a small dance floor, a restaurant with white napkins and tablecloths, and waiters wearing black trousers, white shirts, and bow ties, a far cry from the dirty, dingy, holes in the walls in San Francisco, New York, and Boston hidden away in the crummiest parts of town.

It didn’t take me long to learn it was perfectly all right to be openly gay in the Netherlands, with clubs which were friendly, clean, and happily international, populated with men from England, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy and elsewhere enjoying the freedoms and atmospheres not found at home. Genever, the world’s original gin, remains popular since Heer Bols, Rembrandt’s friend and neighbor, invented it in the 17th Century. It was as easy for me to develop a taste for Genever as for Rembrandt’s paintings in the Rijksmuseum.

By the end of my first evening at the DOK, I hooked up with a handsome Dutch boy who was willing to come back to the hotel with me. He stayed the night, and early in the morning there was a knock, the door opened, and a very cute, friendly waiter brought in a tray with two breakfasts for us. My first day there, and I was seduced by Dutch hospitality, and I’m still fond of Dutch breakfasts:  fresh coffee, a soft-boiled egg, and a hard roll with Gouda cheese and maybe a slice or two of ham.

During the first few days I looked for an apartment, visited museums, and walked endlessly, enchanted by the canals, architecture, ancient houses and buildings, and especially herring stands on the corners. For the first three nights I went to the club and returned to the hotel with a new friend, and each morning the waiter brought in breakfast for two.

By the fourth night, I was exhausted and returned to the hotel early for a good night’s sleep. Early in the morning, the knock came and the waiter arrived with two breakfasts. Surprised, he laughed, and I told him I was unable to eat two breakfasts alone and he had better get in bed and have breakfast with me.

He set down the tray, took off his clothes, and we had a bit more than breakfast in the bed, and I understood just how unique the hotel actually was, in fact. Its name is well deserved!