Life between the canals

Escape to Zanzibar

2010-04-07T12:50:00.000-07:00

During January and February, given our northern longitude we are fearfully starved for sunlight and warmth. So each year I (Brent) plan a trip to the sun as somewhat of a surprise destination. Ruth is generally the travel planner for the family so this is my chance to treat her by doing the bulk of the work. And since my idea of vacation is to lay on perfect white, soft-sand beach hearing nothing but crashing turquoise waves-it's a treat for me too. But this year it was time to go a bit off the beaten path, with Zanzibar being the choice.

For all who suffer from a compulsion to travel, there is a thrill from a name that seems as far-fetched and faraway as Zanzibar. Known as the Spice Islands, it gained this name during the rule of the Sultan of Oman in the 1700's when traders would come for gold, silk, spices, and slaves. The Swahili people of Zanzibar have been ruled through the years by Greeks, Arabs, Persians, Portuguese, Indians, and Chinese; American and British ships have anchored offshore in the centuries since. It still has the remnants of an old slave market and underground chambers in which slaves were kept and forced to crouch on stone shelves less than two feet high. Zanzibar has this mix of African-Indian-Muslim influence that seems uniquely diverse. Nowhere is this diversity more evident than the food where traditional Indian dishes are served with a side of African red beans, with fresh-caught fish as only a tropical island can deliver.

Stone Town is the main hub of Zanzibar and we spent some time wandering it aimlessly. It’s beautiful in its decay; picturesque ruins now crumbling and winding alleys- similar to what I imagine Venice to be like. Lots of arched windows with shutters to capture the breeze. Stone Town is a famous for their old wooden doors which are often older than the building around it. Many of them date back to the 17th Century.

So far they seem to have been able to maintain the country’s natural beauty and their local culture. We didn’t see any women without headscarves anywhere on the island. It’s 98% Muslim, but we dressed modestly while in town and didn’t have any problems.

There is absolutely no rhyme or reason to how the city is laid out so you get lost almost immediately. I think that’s part of the charm though. It was incredibly hot while we were there, so we took refuge in a hotel with a fabulous outdoor patio on the third story to just sit at sunset and watch the world go by below. I felt like the character of a Graham Green novel.

One of our favorite activities was taking tour of a private spice plantation. It was a great way for us to see the countryside and rural communities. Our guide took us to a plantation where he would pick bunches of leaves, fruit and twigs from bushes then invite us to smell or taste them to guess what they are. Cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, garlic, chilies, black pepper, nutmeg, mase and vanilla: the list goes on and on. I was fascinated to learn how they harvest all of them. I guess I should have known this, but I had no idea that nutmeg was the dried pit of a fruit –similar to a plum. I always thought that is was just a nut! A local teenager seemed to be one of the “caretakers” for the farm and he followed us around, making us hats and a purse for me out of palm leaves. His friend then shimmed up a 7 story coconut tree with only a rope tied around this feet and brought us fresh coconut to drink. The watery coconut milk is very sweet and they call it Zanzibar-cola. We purchased some spices from them and one I'm curious to try is a mixture of coffee & cinnamon, sounds great!

Our next favorite memory was hiring some locals to take us out in a traditional Arab dhow –it’s a type of sail boat that traditionally is made without nails. With a sail in the shape of a crescent moon they are very picturesque and ingeniously crafted. We went out a sunset and it was incredible peaceful - except for the end when 8 foot swells battered us as we tried to get out of the boat at high tide...definitely a comical sight!

Despite its beauty, Zanzibar is still off the beaten track, I think in part because it is really remote. No matter where you come from, it’s not easy to get there. We flew from Amsterdam to London to Addis Ababa to Dar el Salem to Zanzibar. Phew! On the way back I think we realized our limit of how far are we are willing to go to feel the sun. In times like that I'm tempted to agree with the saying "Travel is a form of punishment".

Our hotel was fantastic, but as they say, this is Africa. The power was out in Zanzibar from early December until March 9 while the islands’ undersea power cable connecting to the Tanzanian mainland was repaired. Residents were without electricity and running water for more than 90 days. Even though most hotels had generators, the impact to the local economy and residential life was severe and may not be completely known for some time. Despite the smell of diesel throughout our time in Stone Town and a few other minor things, it was the African adventure we knew it would be. Almost nothing can dampen the beautiful sun and immaculate beaches. Residents here were among the friendliest and most welcoming we've ever met. There is a reason that the Swahili say "Hakuna Matata", 'No Worries'...they mean it. After returning home to Amsterdam from a holiday in the sun, our memories were singing the same refrain.

Christmas 2009

2010-03-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

Our Christmas Update!

Better late than never, right?!?

One of our annual Christmas traditions since living in Europe is going to a Christmas Market. Starting on the first day of Advent, wooden stalls are installed around cities to selling traditional hand crafted items and sell hot and warm drinks. It's a tradition through Europe, but was started in Germany and that is where the most famous ones are. After going to Cologne's last year where 2 million people visit in a 4 week period- we thought it might be nice to try a smaller town. So we chose Aachen, Germany.

At Aachen's center is Charlemagne's palace and his church.

This town has tons of historical significance as it is where Charlemagne ruled his empire in the late 700's. Aachen was the center of an Empire that stretched from the North Sea to Central Italy. To be honest, I really didn't remember much about Charlemagne from school, but the has become a legend in his former town, even thousands of years later. He united the different people living under his empire by introducing Christianity as the common faith, standardizing a written script and a common currency. The interconnection of science with art and culture was a fundamental principle of his rule. He documented the traditions of the enemies he conquered and called scholars from all over Europe to teach at the schools he founded here- astronomers, theologians, mathematicians, and architects. Charlemagne has been glorified as the epitome of an ideal ruler. After his death, Charlemagne became a legend and this legend has remained an integral part of the city's history to this very day.

It was extremely cold that weekend, but it still fun to browse all the stalls, stopping periodically for a mug of warm, spiced wine or a grilled bratwurst. After much debating, we bought a beautiful wooden nutcracker.

Christmas

Spending Christmas skiing in the Swiss Alps has always been an exotic dream for us. But now it is an hour long plane trip followed by a 2 hour train ride. We rented an apartment with friends in the little town of Engelberg. It was so quaint and such a hidden gem! Mount Titlis is the highest peak in Central Switzerland and Engelberg is nestled at it's base. The Swiss Alps truly have that WOW factor as evidenced from our apartment.

Brent had his skies tuned while he was there and boy was he fast! The conditions were a little unpredictable, but he really enjoyed himself. The Engelberg area is known as some of the best off-run (or off-piste in ski lingo) in Europe, and the reputation is well-deserved. I preferred to watch the snow from the warmth of the couch, where I made myself very comfortable with Swiss hot chocolate and several good books.

The views from the top of Titlis were even more incredible! 10,623 feet (and windy at the top)

We spent Christmas day snowshoeing on Titlis. I love when the snow falls gently and you feel like you are in a snow globe. Afterwards we warmed up in an igloo on Mt. Titlis that had taken 2,700 hours to build. Everything was made from ice except the wooden tables. We had cheese fondue and warm drinks. It was my favorite memory from the trip.

Snowshoeing at night was also a highlight. We had a young Swiss guy lead us snowshoeing around the mountain at dusk. He shared a lot about the area and we gleaned a little more insight into Swiss culture. He was excited to come study as a student in California! :) When it finally got too dark we made our way to a small mountain lodge for the most amazing cheese fondue. (Are you sensing a theme here with the fondue??) We used fire torches for our long trek back down. Skiing and spending the holiday with our friends Rob & Erika, and their visiting friend
Don, also made the holiday really memorable!

I had read that Engelberg is where they shoot all the Himalayan scenes for Bollywood movies (because it's easier to get permits here than in the actual Himalayas). I kept hoping that dancing and singing would spontaneously burst on the mountainside, but no such luck. We did get to see part of the World Cup for ski jumping. The event was being held in Engelberg so we got to watch a few of the jumps and it's incredible how they fly. A new world record was set while we were there. Later we went snowshoeing up by the actual ramp/jump. Just looking at it made my stomach lurch!

We also toured the towns of Lucerne (or Luzerne to the German-speaking) & Basel- towns that have amazingly managed to retain many of their medieval buildings. The most famous landmark in Lucerne is the wooden bridge called "Chapel Bridge" that is still standing from the 14th century (1330's). Inside the bridge are a series of paintings from the 17th century depicting events from Lucerne's history. Unfortunately, a lot of the bridge and these paintings, were destroyed in a 1993 fire, though it was quickly rebuilt.

Here's Ruth overlooking the Rhine, the major river running through Basel.

We were hoping for a relaxing Christmas holiday and it was!

Stay tuned for our next update, from a decidedly sunnier locale!

Friesland & Naarden

2009-09-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

Anywhere BUT Amsterdam!

While we love our apartment in the city, it is the most dense area in Europe. Like New Yorkers, Amsterdammers have a less than friendly reputation (totally warranted). Brent and I have been trying to make sure that we get out of the city and explore the Dutch countryside. This past summer we took two trips to completely unique parts of the Netherlands.

We borrowed a friend's car and went to Naarden on a quiet Saturday in between running errands. It's just 10 miles outside of Amsterdam, but not on the tourist circuit. It strategiclly situated between hills and marshlands it was the site of many battles between Hollanders and people from the east. Naarden has been a lookout post and fortification since 1350. It is still intact today and the walls date back from 1685. It is a lovely town with many historical buildings including its own town hall from 1601, a magnificent late-Gothic church started in 1380 and impressive ramparts. Naarden is an example of a Spanish 'star fort' complete with fortified walls and a moat.

The next notable event in the town’s history was undoubtedly the 80-year Spanish Civil War (beginning 1350). Spain was one of the most powerful countries in Europe at this time with a fleet of ships (the Spanish Armada) and ammunition to aid them in their quest to conquer other European countries. Despite fighting bravely many Dutch nationals died at the hands of the Spanish and their city was burned to the ground. It was rebuilt in 1400, 20 kilometers further north and the emphasis was on defense. Naarden was subsequently captured twice, by the French and by the Prussians, during the Napoleonic Wars.

Today, Naarden is one of the remaining bastions in the Netherlands and is the only fortification in Europe that has unique double walls and moats. Built in a 5-star shape (which can be best observed from the air) it ceased to be used as a fort in 1926.

Narden's Town Hall or Oude Stadhuis has retained its Dutch Renaissance charm. We even saw a huge wedding during the day, causing quite a traffic jam at what seemed to be the narrowest part of the road. Oh, and did we mention there was a classic car show going through the town at the same moment? It was priceless to just pull up a chair at the cafe and watch it all unfold before us!

Friesland - Northern Netherlands

Another weekend last summer, we rented a car with our friends Jennifer and Jonathon and made our way to the North of Holland. Friesland is a province of the Netherlands and actually has its own flag, language (Frisian), many of its own local customs, and a simple way of life that has lasted through the centuries.

Our first stop was the famous Afsluitdijk or the Enclosure dike, which is one of the most important dikes in the Netherlands to keeping the lowlands from being overtaken by the Sea. The Afsluitdijk in the north of Holland has actually created a huge lake of fresh water where there used to be sea, unbelievable even in person!

We stopped for lunch in Makkum, another idyllic little town with a quiet square and casual cafe. From there we wound our way through a historic driving tour which covered several tiny towns which are on the "Elfstedentocht" or the eleven cities tour. It's a skating race that occurs only when the countries' network of rivers are completely frozen (so in other words, not that often anymore).

We visited several small museums covering the regions' historic tile and brick-making, various exhibits of farm-life (Friesland is known for its livestock), and even tried our hand at rowing up the canal. Note: its harder than it looks and the wind is NOT helpful.

We visited several other towns along the winding highway and spent the night in Harlingen. It is a port town which also offers connections to the Northern islands of the Netherlands by ferry. It wasn't as sleepy as the rest of the towns we'd seen, being more of a industrial city for the region.

Our favorite place was probably Elberg, pictured to the right. The city is situated around a quaint marina and just seemed to resonate with us for some reason. We stopped for lunch and a coffee before heading south back towards Amsterdam.

On our way home, we drove around the south-east side of the IJsselmeer lake and visited the Appledorn region. There is a huge public park known as 'de Hoge Veluwe' which is over 250 hectares of open space park and wildlife preserve. The picture below shows us on the "white bikes" which are available throughout the park to just grab and go. The long tall grass looks more like we're on the Serengeti then in central Europe, the landscape was so diverse (I guess the bikes are the giveaway). Inside is a great museum which we definitely have plans to go back to check out!

We'll be updating our trips from the fall and winter very shortly! Take care and talk to you soon!

Fortis

2009-09-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

Breukelen: aka where the richies live!

Earlier this summer we received a letter from our Dutch bank inviting us for a day cruise in the countryside. It was free and sounded fun, so we thought why not! Little did we know we were getting a sneak peak into THE rich enclave of the Netherlands.

We arrive at this beautiful mansion turned Town Hall after a 45 min train and bus ride.

We hopped onto a small wood and brass cruise boat and we're surprised to discover that we were the only people under age 45 and two of a handful who did not have grey or white hair. Thankfully we had dressed up a little, as everyone was dressed very chic in very expensive clothes. We were kindly sat at the "Dutch is not your first language" table, where everyone spoke English.

After a typical Dutch lunch (rolls, sliced cheese, deli meats, and pate, in case you're curious- but don't even think about making it into a sandwich- that is NOT Dutch!). All along on the sides of the river were gorgeous homes on small estates. We could help but wonder- where are we?!?

Apparently, during the 17th century a number of Amsterdam merchant families built these opulent mansions along the Vecht River near Breukelen. The New York borough of Brooklyn was actually named after this area.

We disembarked at one of these amazing houses that also had several barns. In addition to thoroughbred horses there was another barn full of antique carriages. I think most of them were from the 18th and 19th centuries, I enjoyed seeing what Jane Austen called a barouche actually looked like! Everything was polished and even in the stables, there wasn't a piece of hay out of place.

We went inside a reception hall to a room with a concert grand and were treated to a private piano concert from a semi-famous (we think) Dutch pianist. While we were lisenting we heard this whirling in the background. In the pasture next to us a brand new private helicopter landed- we're still in the Netherlands right?!?

As we were walking back to the boat, we saw a beautiful classic Porsche (not pictured, Brent drooling).

I'll take this one....

One our way back we saw another of these beautiful mansions that actually had peacocks strutting on their lawn! Again.. where are we??? The peacocks were the cherry that put the whole experience over the top!

It was fascinating to see where the wealthy merchants of past (and present) live! And a wonderful experience all courtesy of our bank! I'm convinced that our name got on some list by mistake, but like the card in the Monopoly game, "Bank error in your favor" works for us.

Lake Como

2009-09-28T07:46:00.001-07:00

Lago di Como

We needed a little taste of Italian sunshine before Amsterdam's grey rainy fall commenced. Off we went to spend a long weekend in Lake Como in the most northern part of Italy. We stayed in the darling town of Varenna, a sleepy little village that is perfect for seeing how slow our pulse could get.

Lake Como is famous for its elegant 19th century villas which nestle at the foot of mountains. It hasn't changed much in the last 100 years and is full of charm. A visitor during that time wrote to a friend- "When you write the story of two happy lovers, let the story be set on the banks of Lake Como."

Cute promenade with a tiny harbor- there wasn't much to do here which was just fine by us.

We spent our days traveling by boat to other small towns around the lake, including Bellagio (yes-the same name as the hotel in Vegas and thankfully nothing like it!).

Bellagio

We also hiked up to a ruined castle and spent a heavenly afternoon wandering the grounds of a beautiful villa. In one of the gardens Brent had a cuppuccino and then a nap, lakeside while I had a glass of wine and read a book. It was so incredibly peaceful.

Villa Monastero

We stayed at a little hotel with sweeping views of the lake. Before it became a hotel was once an orphanage and then a convent.

The view from our hotel. There are lots of olive trees on the hills behind me. Supposedly it's the farthest north where olives grow in Europe.

One of our favorite memories was dinner at a little trattoria. The owner/chef picked us up in town and off we zoomed up the mountainside on crazy curvy roads, honking at every corner to warn cars flying down on the one lane road. Driving in a car with an Italian is a thrilling experience! We told the chef/owner "just make us happy" so he chose all the dishes for us. Silky pates, handmade ravioli, squash risotto, sage lamb chops... can you believe we were able to scarf down dessert too? It was an incredible meal and made even more special by the personalized service. When we were finished his wife drove us back to town.

The Villa at the end of 007: Casino Royal- my favorite movie!

Our time at Lago di Como was the perfect weekend antidote to stress. Poets have said "The precise location of heaven on earth has never been established but it may very well be right here." We couldn't agree more.. Ciao!

Seattle '09

2009-09-28T07:39:00.000-07:00

Seattle: Home Sweet Home

At the end of August, Brent and I finally went back to Seattle for a relatively quick visit. It had been almost a year since I was last in the US and I was ready for a shopping overdose in the land of plenty. Kaitlyn, my twin from jr. high & high school, got married and I was honored to be a bridesmaid. It was a blast catching up with girl friends from high school- definitely better than any 10 year reunion!

What a handsome guy!

It's always crazy when we do go back "home" with lots of Target runs, late night grocery shopping (just because we can) and trying to catch up with a few friends (never seeing everyone we had hoped to). Fortunately, we were able to slow down at my parent's cabin outside Leavenworth and relax.

Brent by the river

A scenic vista with my parents- it was a little hike up there and I had to borrow my Mom's shoes which were many sizes too small!

The Destination Shopping for Plain, WA. If you haven't been to Plain Hardware you are missing out. I'm not kidding! It's so much more than plywood and heating coils- I bought several chic bracelets.

While we were at the cabin our close friends from college, Steph & Tim, came to visit. It was so wonderful to see them and finally meet their adorable daughter Ava. Last time I was in the US, Ava waited until the morning I was flying back to Amsterdam to make her world debut. Nothing is more nourishing than laughing and reminiscing with old friends (especially when it's in person!).

What do we miss most about the US? Obviously family and friends. But also friendliness & Mexican food! It can be annoying not having a car sometimes, so it was a good reminder to sit in traffic on I-5 and remember how convenient it is to bike across Amsterdam in 15 minutes.

Now that I've stocked up on chocolate chips, pumpkin pie filling and microwave popcorn we won't be coming back until next summer when both my brother and sister get married! It was wonderful finally meeting my brother's fiancee, Jessica, and we're excited for all these new additions to the family.

London

2009-09-28T06:23:00.000-07:00

London

In August, Brent traveled to London to work in the Starbucks UK offices for several days and I got to tag along. I had such a fabulous time poking around the city on my own! Of course, travel is ALWAYS better with my wonderful husband, but I think it's good to explore on your own too sometimes. The last time I was in London was 15 years ago, as a junior higher so I was definitely ready for a refresher visit. Here are some my highlights:

We flew in the Sunday before so Brent got a chance to do a little sightseeing with me. We wandered Portobello road and Notting Hill, while popping into antique shop. My bought a pair of silver sugar tongs- what can I say? I love my afternoon tea!

We had beautiful weather for strolling London's fashionable neighborhoods!

London has such a fun, funky vibe that I think compliments its grandiose history. We chuckled over this particular bit of graffiti.

Known as “the local” London is filled with quirky, one of a kind pubs. They have a fascinating history and each one has a unique décor. I learned that signs have hung outside public houses since 1393 by the decree of King Richard II. As most citizens at that time were illiterate, names that could be easily illustrated were chosen, such as the Rose & Crown.

The Great Detective even has his own pub, which is not located at 44 Baker Street as you might think, but on Northumberland St where Doyle's best story was set- The Hounds of Baskervilles.

I kept a running list of all the unusual pubs names I came across- Fox & Anchor, Lamb & Flag, The Sun in Splendor, Crown & Anchor, Old Pack Horse, The Ship & Shovel and my personal favorite- Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese!

I loved visiting the Shakespearean theatre as it’s a perfect replica of the theatre that the Bard worked in from 1598 to 1611. It’s essentially a wooden O without a roof.

During Shakespeare's lifetime, London's population doubled and theatre was THE entertainment for everyone. Thousands visited theatres every day in the 17th century and most theatres performed a different play each afternoon. It cost 1¢ to see the show from the open air area in front of the stage, there the groundings would stand the entire time. Though the idea of "seeing the show" is a little bit of a misnomer are there were no props and the costumes in the same play might be from completely random time periods. The words were what told the story. It probably didn't help that a nobleman coming late to the show would walk directly in front of the actors on stage and wave to his friends while going to his seat. :)

It would have been sacrilegious to come to London and not visit the British Museum. Through savvy acquisition and controversial plundering from it’s days as an empire, the British Museum documents the story of human culture from its very beginning. Being so overwhelming, I focused on the Egyptian collection as the British Museum has the world's largest collection of Egyptian antiquities outside of Egypt. In fact, they can only display 4% of their pieces at any given time.

Ramesses II erected more statues of himself than any other Egyptian King and had no problem removing the name of his predecessors from temples and statues and adding his own name instead.

After reading about the most recent controversy surrounding the Parthenon Marbles, I was curious to see their condition. The Parthenon was built over 2,500 years ago in Athens as a temple. Over the centuries it suffered greatly from re-purposing as a church, a mosque and from war. At the beginning of the 1800's the British Ambassador to that area removed half of the remaining sculptures and took them back to England. The Greeks have been very vocal about asking for their return. Of course, England has no intention of giving them up.

A small section of marble panels that ran along the outside of the Parthenon walls

My most unusual museum was definitely the Petrie Museum. It’s a quiet, seemingly overlooked museum with some 80,000 Egyptian objects. There is an atmosphere of academia there- which is a polite way of saying it's a tad dusty and musty. Recently I've taken a genuine interest in Egyptian archeology and this museum was the personal collection of Professor William Flinders Petrie, the greatest Egyptian archeologist.

I couldn't find the museum listed in any guidebooks and even armed with an address and map it was hopeless. I ended up popping into a book shop where they practically walked me to the door. The entrance was so obscure I doubt I could have found it without them. After winding my way through a working university science building I came to a very nondescript door that led to two rooms- that was the museum.

It was like those antique shops that are crammed full with small objects behind glass cases. The lights in the rooms were dimmed to protect the objects, so you needed to grab a complimentary flashlight to shine on cases you were interested in viewing! Despite it's lackluster presentation, they do have the world’s oldest dress dating from 2800 BC. Its essentially a tunic. Quite an unexpected experience, but cool in a geeky sort of way.

To round off my cultural education I also visited the museum at the British Library, where I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of important historical documents. It's incredibly powerful viewing the Magna Carta, a Gutenberg Bible from 1455, hand written lyrics from the Beatles, Leonardo da Vinci's notebook and Shakespeare’s first folio from 1623. I treasured most seeing some of Jane Austen’s books written in her own hand.

One requires refreshments after all these intellectual pursuits! I had afternoon tea in the Orangerie at Kensington Gardens. Cucumber sandwiches, cake and a pot of tea is the height of indulgence for me! Brent likes to tease me that I am his olde-timey girl, because I absolutely love refined traditions like afternoon tea. Its so civilized!

I fell in love with London! Listening to the original Westminster chimes, taking in a piano concert at St. Martin in the Fields and of course riding the tube every morning with the commuters only further enthralled me. London is truly the greatest city in the world. The amount of History is mind-blogging as it's been a major city for two millennia and has shaped the human experience like no other place on earth. It has been said "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life for there is in London all that life can afford.'" I, for one, cannot wait to go back!

Berlin!

2009-07-22T11:32:00.001-07:00

Birthday in Berlin!

We decided to go away to celebrate my birthday and being a museum enthusiast, I chose Berlin! This city is on the move. From Checkpoint Charlie to the evocative Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and the oft-photographed Brandenburg Gate, there is just so much to see in Berlin. Crane silhouettes in the sky everywhere are proof that this city is constantly changing.

You can’t help but enjoy a city that looks back and acknowledges its undisputed, awful past with great reflection, no more denial, and respect for the tragic events that either took place or were rooted here. At the same time Berliners are also sprinting toward the future with bold ideas and striking architecture.

90% of Berlin was destroyed during WWII and then it became a virtual island in a sea of communist East Germany and thus split in two for nearly thirty years by a big concrete wall. Here's some of the highlights of the infamous sights.

The Brandenburg Gate, Berlin's only remaining city gate from the 1700's, is the true symbol of the city. Because it was situated in the no man's land just behind the wall it also became symbolic of the division of the city. After the Fall of the Wall, the Gate was reopened in 1989.

An old photo showing the gate when it was situated in the death strip.

A City Divided

As you know, the 100-mile “Anti-Fascist Protective Rampart” (as it was called by the East German gov't) was erected almost overnight in 1961 to stop the outward flow of people into West Berlin as 3 million people poured out between 1949 and 1961.

The Wall was 13-feet high and had a 16-foot tank ditch. It was a no-man’s-land also known as the death strip with 300 watch towers. During its 28 years standing there were 5,043 documented successful escapes (565 of these were East German guards). In its progressive way of looking ahead but acknowledging the past, Berlin has laid down a double line of bricks all around the city marking the former site of the wall.

Ironically, the remaining sections of the Wall still standing are surrounded by a protective fence to keep tourists from taking pieces of it.

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is the central place for remembrance and a place of warning. 2,711 concrete blocks of different heights, structured in a grid pattern cover nearly 19,000 m2 of gently sloping ground. Since it is entirely open to all sides, the Memorial can be entered anywhere and as we walked through it the blocks seemed to form different wave-like patterns.

Another thought-provoking memorial recalling the infamous Nazi book burning in 1933. A plaque there reminds us of the prophetic quote by the German Jewish poet Heinrich Heine a hundred years earlier- "When you start by burning books, you'll end by burning people."

Can you make out the empty bookshelves?

My most favorite highlight was visiting the Pergamon Museum, which is possibly one of the most unique museums in Europe. First you come to the colossal room housing the monumentally reconstructed Pergamon Altar. The altar was built around 180 – 160 B.C in the ancient Greek city of Pergamon and it is huge! Running along the base of it is the original, marble frieze, depicting the struggle between the Greek Gods and the Giants.

In another room, they have a beautiful Babylonian Gate from 575 BC. The original tiles are gorgeous shades of blue and yellow.
This is just small section of what is on display- its an amazing, majestic piece of ancient architecture.

One of the many museums in Berlin has an installation on the outside that reads 'All Art Has Been Contemporary.' I love that!

Let her eat birthday cake!

The is the Ampelmännchen "the little traffic light man'. It was used in the former East Germany and is a beloved symbol, being one of the sole features of communist East Germany to have survived the end of the Iron Curtain. After the fall of the Wall, the Ampelmännchen acquired cult status. I love his perky hat!

Sunday Brunch in Berlin

I wasn't kidding about the cranes...

Berlin has taken the opportunity to reinvent itself and has done so in amazing ways. The city is full of impressive glass architecture. One of the most striking examples is their federal gov't building- the Reichstag. It played a pivotal role in Nazi Germany and then was ignored until 1999. A glass dome was built on top with spiral ramps that can be walked. The glass allows you to look directly down on their legislative chamber and to me it's moving- it says there will be no secrets in government.

Berlin is a testament to one of the great truths of traveling: The world will always surprise you. Even knowing some of the history of Berlin before the trip, we were still surprised by it's beauty, open and welcoming environment, and sheer determination to reinvent it's future both in spite of and enabled by it's past.

Till next time...

Ireland

2009-07-05T01:21:00.000-07:00

Ireland- Land of Brent’s Forefathers

In June Brent’s Dad and Step-mom, Tom & Peggy, flew from Riverton, Wyoming to spend a week with us. We had a wonderful time traveling to Ireland together to visit the Rock of Cashel and the Tipperary countryside.

Brent & Tom in front of the elegant Cashel Palace, a beautiful Bishop's house turned hotel built in 1730.

Yes- Cashel! The very same as our last name.

The Rock Of Cashel is a fortress that dates back to the 4th or 5th century AD. There is no written history, so everything that we know today was passed down from oral tradition. The main importance of Cashel in early times was that it was the seat and symbol of Munster and the inauguration of its kings. The King of Cashel controlled most of the southern half of the country.

It's also interesting that the Cashel kings were usually kings and bishops. Today, the remains of a 13th century Cathedral can be seen.

The Rock of Cashel from the remains of Hore Abbey

It is so impressive! It just happens that Cashel is situated in one of the most beautiful and fertile parts of the country. The surrounding pastureland is called the Golden Vale because of the richness of the soil.

While the collapse of Rome left Europe a mess, it meant nothing to Ireland. Ireland remained a relatively cohesive society based on monastic settlements rather than cities. Irish monks actually carried the torch of civilization back to Europe. Some of the greatest art from the Dark Ages of Europe are manuscripts richly illustrated by Irish monks.

While in Dublin, Brent and I got to see one of the most beautifully illuminated manuscripts in the world. The Book of Kells was written around the year 800 AD and it contains the four gospels written on vellum. It was written in Latin and the book is full of pain-staking, intricate decorations. As a lover of books, I was in heaven!

We couldn’t take pictures, but I found one of the pages online so we can give you an idea of how magnificent they are.

"May you always have a clean shirt, a clear conscience,
and enough coins in your pocket to buy a pint!"

One of our favorite memories was dinner in Dublin at The Brazen Head, which is possibly Ireland's oldest pub as it was built on the site of a tavern dating back to the 12th century. We lucked out that we happened to be there when local musicians started playing some Irish music. It was such fun! We tapped along with our feet, clapped and even joined in on a few songs we knew. I had to laugh when after some fast-paced songs they slowed down for a bit and played John Denver’s Country Roads. The whole bar joined in on that song!

A little clip from the pub

It was an amazing trip, especially to see first hand the family history with Brent’s parents. Thank you again Tom & Peggy! Ireland was one of those places where Brent and I looked at each other and both thought that it felt like “home.” We’re already planning our next trip!

Slainte! Cheers!

Summertime

2009-07-05T01:06:00.000-07:00

Sunny Days (sort of!)

Livin’ sure is easy in the summertime! We are enjoying beautiful sunshine and are spending lots of time on our boat. The weather has been in the 70-80s here, which is really unusual. I'm determined not to complain about the mugginess and the mosquitoes, since I know it won’t last.

While we've had great sun we've also had unexpected thundershowers that come out of nowhere. Recently we took some friends out on our boat for an afternoon cruise and after an hour it started raining..hard! We had to take refuge underneath a bridge and wait out!

We’ve been finding lots of unique ways to enjoy the There aren’t many English speaking churches in Amsterdam, so we’ve been attending a Scottish Church. Last weekend we participated in a céilí (pronounced KAY-lee), essentially an Scottish hoedown! High school musicians came over from from Scotland to play traditional Scottish music and teach us traditional dances. It was quite the workout! I definitely had my foot stepped on (not by Brent!), but it was hilarious.

We also went to a food festival- Taste of Amsterdam. Numerous restaurants put together different small plates for you to try. It was a great way for us to scope out new restaurants we want to go try their regular menu.

It was a beautiful evening and it felt like such a Dutch thing to do. We’ve been here a year now and it’s not easy finding ways to integrate into the Dutch culture. Anytime we can participate in something all Dutch it helps us feel like we are starting to belong.

You might be wondering how my Dutch language is going? Not well. I took some lessons before we left Seattle but I haven't been able to practice much here. I know enough to get me through polite greetings, ordering food and getting through my day to day errands. I don't have many opportunities to practice though, because the Dutch as so proficient in English that they hear me flounder and they talk back to me in my native tongue. I'm struggling with this issue right now because on one hand I'm a guest here and I want to particpate fully in their community. On the other hand, it's so not useful to know Dutch if we live anywhere else in the world besides the Netherlands. And if we only think we'll be here a few years...you see my point. I'm still trying to figure out what I want.

We kicked off our July 4th weekend with an outdoor concert. Jason Mraz was playing at a park near our apartment. Rather than paying we had a picnic outside the gates and were able to hear perfectly and see the screen/stage. We were the first people to picnic in this area because its really hidden behind some brush and a soccer field. Lots of of Dutch people joined us (as a society they are very thrifty so listening outside the concert is genius to them) and we were so pleased that we had out-Dutched the Dutch!

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July and a great kick off to summer! We are missing you all! This weekend we are traveling to Berlin so we'll have another update next week.

Croatia!

2009-07-04T07:54:00.000-07:00

10 days in Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina & Montenegro

Our main trip this year was to Croatia and we loved it! Not too long ago Croatia belonged to the former Yugoslavia, but it feels much more Mediterranean than Eastern Europe. The country hugs the coast and has a romantic old towns, sunshine bathed beaches and super friendly locals.

There wasn't a lot to "do" on this trip. It was all about slowing our pace and taking in the scene. At first I had a little bit of a hard time adjusting to that rhythm. I just wasn't expecting it to be so slow paced (I say "slow," Brent says "relaxed!"). Once I threw our agenda out, I found Croatia so enjoyable.

Besides, what's not to love about warm white stone towns with venetian bell towers and boat speckled harbors. Or twisted medieval lanes, draped with drying laundry.

In Croatia, we went to Split, Hvar Island and Dubrovnik and then branched out into Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina. All of whom were fighting one another a decade ago. People asked if we felt safe and we really did. It’s so peaceful and stable now. It wasn’t really until we went Bosnia-Herzegovina that we saw skeletal remains of destroyed homes and churches.

We weren't expecting such amazing weather. It ranged from the 70s-80s to the low 90s. Fortunately, we weren't doing anything strenuous! I love how weather reports in Croatia include a 'biometerološka prognoza' which indicates how the weather will affect your mood. Weather maps come with either a smiley face or frowny face. A frowny face forecast comes with a prediction such as: “People will be tired in the afternoon and not feel like working.” Too funny!

We were there before the tourist season started, so we felt like were guests and had many of the places to ourselves. Traveling as much as we’ve been able to this past year, we really search for those authentic moments. Where you’re off the beaten path and experience life as part of the community. One Sunday, while we were on Hvar Island, we rented a scooter. We pulled into this little town on the far side of the Island and it appeared that everyone was hanging out in the town's square. A nun in a habit was behind us at the ice cream counter. We couldn’t help but eavesdrop and were able to figure out that she really wanted strawberry, but that they didn’t have that flavor that particular day. She settled for chocolate after much discussion. How often do you see that?? It was memories like that which made us smile.

There are just way too many amazing memories to mention them all, so we've complied our Top Ten list of favorites:

10. Eating grilled Bosnian specialties while soaking up the view of the Old Bridge in Mostar. Mostar has a vibrant Muslim culture, mosques on every street, striking Turkish architecture, thought provoking war damage and the inspiring old bridge- it felt like a completely different world.

9. Walking Dubrovnik's Old Town Walls - we did it in the late afternoon and had the wall to ourselves- it was really peaceful.

8. Staying among the ruins of Diocletian's Palace. Split is famous for the palace that a Roman Emperor built as a retirement home around 300 AD. The palace ruins are now integrated into the city and the hotel we stayed at was built into the walls.

7. Dubrovnik's old movie theater where we saw new releases for $2.50 each! They showed only one movie a day and there were no concessions, no previews and it was in English with Croatian subtitles. For the curious- they showed Angels and Demons and Star Trek.

6. The secret restaurant nestled in the lush hillsides of Montenegro. We stopped here for afternoon tea (well tea for me- coffee for Brent!). We dubbed it the Baby Duck Kingdom because we saw 8 different groups of ducklings with their mamas.

5. Mostar- did we mention that already?? Well, it really was one of our favorites. We went inside a mosque, bartered shop keepers for a Turkish coffee set and explored a traditional Turkish home.

4. Zooming on a scooter around Hvar Island and stopping in small towns to watch Sunday life in the town square. We zipped along corkscrew twisty mountains roads for this panorama vista. I think this photo looks fake, but it's not!

3. Evening drink overlooking the Adriatic in Dubrovnik. Clinging to the outside of the city walls like a barnacle, this little bar was our favorite place to relax and watch ships sail into the sunset with Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra playing in the background. I could physically feel my pulse slow down!

2. Our Sobe in Hvar Island with a rooftop vista at sunset. Sobes are little apartments that locals rent out. We stayed in those throughout the trip and loved it! They were very clean and well kept and cheap- $50 a night!

And Number One is...Evening strolls with gelato!
This was our tradition every night no matter where we were- two scoops of gelato and a stroll around the town's square or main promenade. By our last night, we had a "gelato guy" who would give us extra since we came by so frequently! With a warm breeze coming off the Adriatic and the white stone catching the remaining light of the day, it's no wonder its a favorite pastime of the locals too.

We had too many good photos and not enough room on the blog, so if you're curious to see more of Croatia from our trip, click the link here where we've organize some additional ones. Na zdravje! Cheers!

Remembrance Day

2009-07-04T07:01:00.000-07:00

Remembrance Day- May 4

Immediately following Queen's Day is another National holiday- Remembrance Day. It commemorates all the civilians and members of the armed forces of the Netherlands who have died in wars or peacekeeping missions since the outbreak of World War II.

In my last post I mentioned the attack on the royal family's parade on Queen's Day when a driver killed several spectators in an apparent attempt on the Queen's life. There was a lot of speculation that their appearance at the Remembrance celebrations would be cancelled. People were very proud that she came after all. There was very heavy security obviously and the rooftops were lined with snipers.

The Queen with her son, the Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, attended a memorial service in Amsterdam and laid wreathes at a National War Memorial.

Across the country, church bells ring for a quarter of an hour till 8 pm, when there is a nationwide two-minute silence. My grandparents came to Amsterdam, for a few days after a trip to Paris, and happened to be here on Remembrance Day. With some local friends of theirs we went that night to the Amstel River where there was a special concert. The Queen arrived by boat and as she passed thousands of people applauded and cheered for her.

At the end of the evening everyone started singing this old song from World War II called "I'll Be Seeing You" to the Queen as she sails away. It was a favorite song during the war and is a reminder of when Queen Wilhemina had to go into hiding in London because of the Nazi invasion. It was all sung in English and you could tell it was very emotional for people around us. The nostalgia tugged on my heart even as a bystander.

It was pouring rain the evening of the concert, so I didn't get any pictures but found some for you of the Dutch Royals. They are very beloved here and are never involved in scandals like the British Royal Family! They keep a very low profile and as such get a lot of respect from the Dutch for being so down-to-earth. Which is really interesting given that I recently read that Queen Beatrix is one of the wealthiest royals in the world.

The House of Orange

Queen Beatrix in the middle, Crown Prince Willem Alexander on the left, next to his beautiful Brazilian wife, the Princess Maxima.

World War II has left scars on the hearts and minds of the Dutch that you can still see today. It was moving to share in this completely Dutch experience and have my grandparents here to enjoy it with us.

Queen's Day!

2009-07-04T02:24:00.000-07:00

Queen's Day!!

The biggest holiday is the Netherlands is one you've never heard of- Queen's Day! It's bigger than Christmas, New Years and anything else combined.

Queen's Day is a Dutch holiday that celebrates the birthday of the Queen of the Netherlands and is a day of national unity. It's 4th of July ratcheted up 50 times! I have never experienced anything like this, though I would guess that the fervor of Mardi Gras in Rio de Janiero would come close.

Since 1949, Queen's Day has been on April 30th which was Queen Juliana's birthday. Queen Beatrix, the current Queen, decided to keep it on April 30th since her birthday is in January. And who wants an outdoor party in January?

Queen's Night, evening before Queen's Day, is when the countrywide party really starts in The Hague. We went with our American expat friends, Jennifer and Jonathan, to soak up the festivities and listen to one of the many free concerts.

Apparently, people were so "orange-crazy" 15 years year ago that they were rioting. So the city started the free concerts to convince the rioters that a celebration is a much better way to spend Queen's Night. But going to The Hague for Queen's Night still has some of that connotation. Some of our Dutch colleagues were teasing us that we'd be out with all the hoodlums. :)

Queen's Night in the Hague draws tens of thousands of visitors every year. This holiday is definitely NOT for the claustrophobic!

The train ride back to Amsterdam

One key aspect of Queen's Day are all the "freemarkets" all over the country, where everybody is allowed to sell things in the streets. Practically everyone in the country is hosting their own garage sale. Days before people were taping off areas of the sidewalk for their blanket-booths. I had heard that you could find some amazing deals if you got up early, so after a night of partying in The Hague, Jennifer and I got up early to hit the streets.

It was worth getting up early-I'm in a Mah Jongg club and I found a vintage set for 8 euros!!

The calm before the chaos!

The largest celebration of Queen's Day is in Amsterdam. Sections of the Jordaan, our neighborhood, can become so full of pedestrian traffic that they become completely gridlocked, despite the absence of cars.

Have you noticed all the orange in the pictures? Everyone wears the color orange because that's the official color of the Royal family, the House of Orange-Nassau. Some fountains in Amsterdam even turn orange!

Look closely- this is a canal. It's so full of boats you can hardly see the water! We took our boat out for a little bit before deciding it was too insane. Sadly, our boat got a little banged up by some idiot boating drunk.

This Queen's Day was also marked by tragedy. It's tradition that the royal family visit a small town and participate in a parade. This year a car crashed through the crowd and slammed into a monument, just missing the open-topped bus carrying the royal family. Eight people died on the spot and nine suffered injuries. The driver died soon after and no one really knows why he did it.

For the most part we had a blast. It was such a unique Dutch experience and unlike anything we had ever seen! By about 5:00pm on Queen's Day we had enough though. It was just so many people that you were fighting crowds wherever you went and lots of people were pretty drunk at this point. We retreated to our apartment and watched the craziness from the refuge of our living room. Next year we're planning to be out of town!!

Vienna

2009-07-04T00:18:00.000-07:00

Vienna

This Spring we flew to Vienna for a 3 day weekend and got to see some old friends from our college days who are living in Austria. Once the grand capital of the powerful Hapsburg Empire for 640 years, Vienna is one of the most beautiful cities I've been to.

Our friends, Jeff and Bethany Stockett, were great hosts as they showed us the best places to eat. We had AMAZING chinese, burgers and The Best mexican food we’ve had on the continent. (We miss good mexican food more than anything!)

We quickly found out that people on the street and in shops greet you right away. It’s so refreshing after spending time in Amsterdam where no one makes eye contact and shop keepers can be immune to your presence.

We also spent some time just soaking up the atmosphere of some of their famous coffee salons. coffee- where they actually serve coffee (not marijuana!) The cafes are smoky, but elegant. One thing I absolutely love about Europe is that when you sit at a cafe you really can take all the time you want. It’s so civilized!

One of our favorite activities was the Haus der Muzik- House of Music. Brent, being the musician really enjoyed it. A lot of the exhibits were interactive- we found out that I could hear higher pitches than Brent (apparently most women do). We also heard what it sounds like inside the womb. It sounded like aliens were talking to us...

With virtual baton in hand, Brent conducted the Vienna philharmonic orchestra. When he got a little off tempo the musicians would put their instruments down and ridicule him in German!

The most interesting architecture I've seen so far was the Hundertwasserhaus. It’s an apartment complex that mixes the work and philosophy of local painter/environmentalist Friedensreich Hundertwasser.

He was against “window racism” (I’m not making this up), when neighborhoods require that houses look a certain way and only allow one type of window. The floors and sidewalks of his house are uneven to “stimulate” the brain” and also because “straight lines are godless.”

The apartments are low-income housing and wouldn’t you think that people on fixed incomes deserve better than wobbly furniture and sprained ankles??

Many consider Vienna as the world’s music capital. More famous composers have lived here than in any other city.

a Reception Hall in the Opera House

The Vienna Opera House was built in the 1860's and it is amazing that any of it survived World War II. It is the epitome of old-fashion elegance with gilt and marble. At the time though it wasn't impressive enough to the Viennese which led the architect to commit suicide shortly before it was finished. Today it's the home of the world renowned Vienna Philharmonic.

Boxed seats

Schonbrunn Palace was the Hapsburg family's summer residence, four miles from Vienna. They were obviously taking some notes from Versailles.

It's a beautiful palace, but the gardens surrounding it are most impressive. We went early in the morning, as the park is free and open to the public. Except for a few joggers, we had the grounds to ourselves. The beautiful gardens combined with the morning quiet was very magical.

St. Stephen's Cathedral is a massive church and is the heart of Vienna. It has survived many wars and today symbolizes the city's freedom.

We rode the underground metro everywhere- this was our stop Simmering/Rochusgasse. We always remembered it because it sounded like "simmering roaches!"

On that note, Vienna is a romantic city. For a big city it is very laid-back. People stroll as if every day were Sunday. It was so pleasant to enjoy chocolate torte while soaking up the opulent culture from their days as a Europe's greatest empire. I think Vienna definitely requires a second look!

Easter in Maastricht

2009-07-03T05:30:00.001-07:00

Maastricht

Easter Monday is a national holiday here, so we thought it was the perfect excuse to travel to the Southern most part of the Netherlands to a city called Maastricht. Its is the oldest city in the Netherlands and has had an unbroken chain of habitation since Roman times.

On the River Maas

Maastricht felt completely different than the rest of the Netherlands. Being so close to Belgium and historically having been in the hands of many different countries all contribute to it probably being the least "Dutch City." Least Dutch in that the architecture is completely different, the locals are super friendly and they are passionate about their cuisine.

Maastricht is known around the world as a mecca for food snobs. So we enjoyed some amazing meals eating the local specialties like lamb.

Vrijthof - the best-known square in the city.

Brent and I were just talking about this trip recently and he said that sitting outside at this particular cafe next to the River was one of his favorite memories.

In additional to all the wining and dining, we poked around some museums and several churches as well.

Gothic church dedicated to Saint John the Baptist with a distinctive tower and a Romanesque church of Saint Servatius on the right.

The Basilica of Saint Servatius, is the oldest church in the Netherlands dating back to the 6th Century.

It was a beautiful city and provided us with another side to this unique country we call home.

Update on the Spring!

2009-05-31T14:37:00.000-07:00

It's finally here - a massive update on what's been going on with us for the Spring from February to now.

Aruba!

We had a great time visiting Aruba for a much needed respite of sun to sustain us through the long Amsterdam winter. Why Aruba? Well, it's a direct flight from Amsterdam as they are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and we could count on sunshine. For a while, we were only getting 4-5 hours of sunlight, because we are so far north. Much worse than Seattle!

A perfect day

Divi-divi Tree

We stayed in a small fishing village at the south-end of the island away from the tourist area. It was quiet and quaint and exactly what we needed to be able to relax.
We saw some great sunsets and wildlife too - we had fun one day counting crabs and bird-life from our little dock.
Brent brought his golf clubs with him and we spent one day at a beautiful resort. Brent battled the sun and wind on a difficult course while Ruth got pampered in the spa. We had a great lunch poolside- an extremely relaxing day!
For those of you who know Brent's fascination with sunsets, it's no surprise that we spent most evenings relaxing with a cool drink and watching the sunset over the ocean.

Giver her two pina coladas!

Aruba has some of the best beaches we've seen anywhere in the world. There are long stretches of perfect white sand with no one around. Needless to say we spent quite a bit of time walking the coastline and enjoying the water. The water as warm as a bath!

So I'm sure you're wondering how we handled the re-entry into damp and chilly Amsterdam in February after being on the beach? Well, we felt the best way was to get out and enjoy the boat at the first sign of sunshine. We saw some really interesting bird life while out. This is probably the most unique bird we've seen and extra credit to anyone who can tell us what kind of bird it is (we have no clue)?

March - Flowers and Mom

We had Brent's mom (Shelly) to visit in March. It was the first visitor of the new year and we celebrated by checking out several new sights and places in the Netherlands together. Besides exploring Amsterdam, we also went to Leiden to tour the inside of a windmill. No trip would be complete without a visit to the city central square and some shopping of course.

We also went to Aalsmeer which is the largest flower auction in the world. The auction building itself is the second largest building int e world (10.6 million sq feet) and is full of carts of fresh cut flowers and plants. Flowers from all over the world (Europe, Columbia, Ethiopia, etc) are traded here on a daily basis. To see the flowers whirling around on long carts and elevated delivery systems was fascinating and the smell inside was amazing! Shelly is a flower and plant expert so it was really fun and unique to get to see this together.

One of the auction floors- where flowers are bought in bulk for distribution around the world

You can tour the faciliatied on elevated cat walks, so all the flowers are getting moved around beneath you on what look like baggage carts.

We celebrated St. Patrick's day in style by hosting our own party complete with our rowdy friends! Ruth made traditional Irish stew while our friends brought soda bread and potatoes colcannon and we all helped out with the Irish Whiskey. (from left our great friends Lara, Michael, Courtney, and Doug)

"May the hinges of our friendship never grow rusty.
And our ale never turn musty!"

We also took a day trip by car to Antwerp, Belgium. It has a cute downtown and we had a crip, but sunny day to take in the sights. A highlight was enjoying good Belgian beer at a little cafe in the town square. Unfortunately, we didn't come away with any new diamonds, but we did see some great Flemish art (Ruth's favorite) at the Royal Museum of Fine Art.

Never happier than when visiting a new place!

There are so many trips to update you on, that we'll have to do the April update all on it's own (we'll get to it this week- we promise!) We miss you all and would love to hear from you what's new in your lives as well!
Love Brent & Ruth

The Flu

2009-02-06T06:13:00.000-08:00

I am sorry to say we have nothing exciting to report this week as Brent and I have both been holed up in our apartment fighting the flu. I'll spare you the details. Thankfully we're on the up and up.

However, I am pleased to tell you that our next posting will be from Aruba! Brent surprised me by planning it all on the sly and we leave tomorrow for a week. Aruba probably seems a little random, considering it's not close to Europe at all. However, Brent chose it because its guaranteed to be in the mid 80s there and it's a part of the Netherlands Kingdom so we have a direct flight.

So more exciting stuff to come! Hope you are all well and staying healthy. Tulips are starting to appear in the flower markets, so Spring has got to be around the corner right?

Den Haag

2009-01-25T09:36:00.000-08:00

Last week, for a little change of scenery we took a train to The Hague (Den Haag). It's 50 mins from Amsterdam, but very different. Dutchies say that the money is made in Rotterdam (the largest port in the world), divided in The Hague (the seat of Government) and spent in Amsterdam (the capital city).

We both enjoy museums so we loved the Maurithuis, which is a musuem housed in a house for the governor of Dutch Brazil in the 1640s. We pondered Girl with the Peal Earring by Johannes Vermeer. The painting is sometimes called the Mona Lisa of the North as she too has a puzzling expression and her identity is a complete mystery.

The Hague is a charming city and more posh than Amsterdam, with a larger expat population. 40% of it's 500,000 inhabitants come from a different nation. We really enjoyed strolling the antique district and came away with some minature canal houses made of porcelain.

Unlike Amsterdam centrum, the main center of The Hague
has an interesting mix of old and modern architecture.

Our new favorite museum in all of the Netherlands is the Panorama Mesdag. It is a cylindrical painting, more than 45 feet high and 390 feet long. You stand in the middle of the room and the painting of the sea and a nearby beach town completely surrounds you. It feels like you're on top of a sand dune and have a 360 degree view of the seaside around you. The illusion is enhanced by real sand between you and the painting, so the sand looks like an extension of the beach.

Vincent van Gogh visited the panorama in his day and said it "is the most beautiful sensation of my life. It has just one tiny flaw and that is its flawlessness."

Sand in front of the painting

One of our New Year resolutions is to visit a new city each month. We want to see and experience lots of different parts of the Netherlands in addition to traveling to other European countries. We loved The Hague and definitely plan on going back when the weather is warmer.

The train ride home

In other exciting news- I am now a two-time guacamole champion! A group of gals from my American Women's Club decided to host a "guac-off." I had won a guacamole competition two years earlier and am so pleased to have another win under my belt! :) No, I'm not going to give out the receipe, but I will say that the secret ingredient is kosher salt.

The victor with all that remained of her winning guac

Some of you may also be wondering if Brent's job with Starbucks is secure here in Amsterdam, given all the press about upcoming lay-offs. Thankfully, we don't have anything to worry about as he is in a necessary and secure part of the company here (this region is still growing). It's obviously still a difficult time for the company and employee morale, so we are thankful to be overseas and a little bit removed from spotlight in Seattle.

Wishing you a happy Monday!

Searching for Gezellig

2009-01-23T06:28:00.000-08:00

Like everyone in the Northern Hemisphere, I have been fighting the winter blahs as the weather has been very crummy. I almost got blown off my bike it was so windy this week!

Being so dreary outside and without a car, it's easy to just stay inside our apartment, build a fire and watch movies. We've been doing a lot of that! But, the Netherlands is also known for it's brown cafes as a good place to stay warm during winter. "Brown" referring to their dark, cozy interiors- usually dark wood paneling with stained walls and ceilings from centuries of smoking inside. (Smoking inside became illegal this June. However, there is a cafe around the corner that at midnight pulls curtains across the front windows and everyone inside lights up!)

Typical brown cafe- if you moved a picture off the wall you'd see the
original white wall color behind it, contrasting with the smoke stained wall.

These brown cafes though have a great neighborhood vibe. Amsterdammers see their local bar ('kroeg' in Dutch slang) as an extension of their own living room. Whether you read the newspapers over your daily cup of coffee or have a few beers after work, for many their local bar inevitably becomes a home away from home. We've been trying out several in our neighborhood the past few weeks. I love meeting friends there during the day for fresh mint tea!

I can't imagine hanging out in one during the summer, but they really are so cozy and convivial in the winter. The feeling of gezelligheid is key to Dutch social life. Gezellig is often defined as "cozy", but the Dutch say there is no English equivalent. It's used to define an atmosphere that is relaxed and pleasant. You kind of just know it when you see it: Watching a movie at home in a living room (with warm colors, warm ambiance, full of books, plants, knick-knacks, and with a dog or cat) is gezellig. Eating dinner at MacDonald’s is not!

We've been finding other fun things to do around town too. Last week we went kart-racing at an indoor track. We had a blast racing for the best timed heats. The karts are quite speedy, going up to 45 mph. Needless to say we were all sore the next day from the strains of the track! I ended up with a large bruise. Jeff Gordon, I tip my hat to you!

It was very exciting to watch the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president. We gathered with other Americans and celebrated. The inauguration dominated the front pages of Dutch papers with headlines such as: ‘Good luck Obama,’ ‘Choose hope above fear,’ ‘Time for a better history’ and ‘Look, we are one people again.’

One free newspaper took a different approach. ‘Black Jesus has landed’ the paper said. ‘He is said to be able to perform miracles for all of us.’ The paper illustrates its article with a classical painting of Jesus in the heavens, with Obama’s head superimposed on top. We wouldn't go that far, but we're excited by the new leadership and the steps he has taken this first week.

Stay warm! Until next time!

Gelukkig Kerstfeest!

2009-01-07T12:49:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas (just pretend that it's still Christmas, since I'm posting this late)!

We were excited to have my (Ruth's) family come visit us for our first Christmas overseas. Derek, my brother, had spent the fall back-packing through Africa and finished his trip with us in Amsterdam. My parents and sister joined us two weeks later. To fully immerse ourselves in the Christmas festivities, we took a train to Cologne, Germany where the Christmas markets are in full swing. Every city in Germany hosts it own Christmas markets, which essentially are hundreds of outdoor booths that sell handmade items and the tastiest street food! Imagine the aromas of hot chestnuts, sugared almonds, grilled sausages among many others. We especially enjoyed the spiced wine, gulwein, a great way to keep warm while strolling the different booths. There were six different Christmas markets in Cologne itself, and the most impressive one was in the main square right in front of a Cathedral.

Katie & Ruth browsing

The main market in front of the Cathedral

Brent enjoying his sausage and potatoes.
He looks sad, but he's just serious about how good it is.

My favorite thing we bought at the markets was this smoker. What is a smoker, you ask? Well, in Germany a treasured holiday decoration is a wooden figurine that you put lit incense in so it looks like smoke is coming out of it's mouth. We bought a snowman one, but they have almost every type of profession represented (didn't see any accountants with a ten key, though). :)

You can almost make out the smoke coming through his mouth

Christmas itself was pretty low-key, which isn't a bad thing. We attended a Christmas eve service at the church Brent and I have been attending. Our congregation has met at that church building continuously since 1607! They are affiliated with the Church of Scotland, so it was interesting to sing Christmas carols to completely different tunes than the ones we are familiar with.

We also started a new tradition of a Christmas eve day boat ride. It was more than a little cold, but a wonderful way to show off our new hometown.

Brrr!!

We are lucky that we have a working fireplace in our apartment, so it makes for a cozy atmosphere. However, finding firewood in the city is not so easy. Brent found that a gas station in the city that sells packs of wood. A few times Brent has ridden his bike back from the gas station with several packages of wood precariously tied onto the back of his bike. He ended up renting a large werk fiets. Not so easy to navigate, but he did great and some Dutchies were impressed.

The day after Christmas we were off once again. This time to Prague in the Czech Republic. Prague was the only Central European capital to escape the bombs of the last century's wars, so it is well preserved. Looming atop the main hill is Prague Castle, the roost of Czech rulers for over a thousand years. It's huge and is considered to be biggest castle on earth. At the Castle is St. Vitus Cathedral which was built over 600 years starting in 1344.

St. Vitus

Prague is known as the golden city of 100 spires. Easy to see why- there are churches everywhere. We went into so many churches, we couldn't keep track of them all. Many of them were Baroque in style- so over the top.

St. Nicholas Church

The overall beauty of Prague is enhanced by its location, nestling on a sweeping bend in the river Vltava and dominated by a hill crowned with its huge castle and St. Vitus Cathedral. A classic, picture-postcard view that cannot fail to impress.

View of the city from the monastery

We visited a working monastery in Prague with some amazing treasures within its wall! There is a Cabinet of Curiosities that holds the remains of the now extinct Dodo bird. Trust me, it's grossly weird looking. They also have a library that holds over 160,000 old and rare volumes. In the picture below, at the end of hall, is a golden cage near the ceiling. In it was kept prohibited books. Only the abbot had the key, so you had to get his blessing to read these dangerous books- including works by Nicolas Copernicus and the French encyclopedia!

One of the monastery's libraries. I felt at home!

One of my favorite memories was Derek and I getting up before dawn to be on the Charles Bridge and see the sunrise over the city. The bridge was built by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV in 1357 and during the day can be packed with street vendors and tourists. Derek and I had the bridge to ourselves. I loving finding quiet moments on our travels for reflecting. This bridge has been standing for seven centuries. The first stone was laid in 1357, on the 9th of July at 5:31 (135797531).

Charles Bridge at Sunrise with the Castle in the background

Ruth, Brent & Derek pondering deep thoughts in a tea house

Another beautiful city. We had such a wonderful time with my family here and were sad to see them go! Missing you all and wishing you joy and peace in the upcoming year.

The Unspeakable Beauty of Scotland

2009-01-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

December was a busy travel month for us and we started off by taking a trip to Scotland for 5 days. We flew into Edinburgh (after a hour and 15 min flight) and fell in love with the city. It's so dramatic- the Castle sits upon a huge mound of rock, towering over the city. Because of the medieval and Georgian architecture it is considered by many to be one of the most picturesque cities in Europe and I have to agree:

Old Town

Edinburgh Castle at night

At the Castle are the Scottish crown jewels and the Stone of Scone (Destiny). It's basically a large chunk of rock that was used in crowning Scotland's ancient kings since the 9th century. It was swiped by the English and sat under the coronation chair at Westminster Abbey from 1296 until 1996. It has to be returned to Westminster Abbey for all future coronations and is very meaningful to the Scottish people.

From the Castle, the Royal miles leads away from it downhill, with little alleys on either side of the street, called closes or wynds. It's mostly all pedestrian so we enjoyed exploring. The city is affectionately nicknamed Auld Reekie, which is Scottish for Old Smoky, because when buildings were heated by coal and wood fires, chimneys would spew thick columns of smoke into the air. Apparently all the building use to be very dirty, but they have done a wonderful job of cleaning them up.

Lang may yer lum reek- Brent and I are trying to learn how to toast someone in every country we visit. This is the Scottish toast which means "Long may your chimney burn." :)

Though it was pretty cold, that was the perfect excuse to frequent tea hops and pubs. We had lunch at the cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books when she was a struggling writer. Being such huge Potter fans it was kinda neat! The Scots have a very distinguished literary history and are very proud of their writers and poets- Robert Burns and Robert Louis Stevenson to name two. One evening we went on a literary pub tour which consisted of actors performing bits of Scottish poetry and sharing how Edinburgh impacted the writers living there, all while visiting several different pubs for drinks! It was great way to get off the beaten track.

One of our favorite places we had tea was in this old bank that was completely decked out for Christmas.

Memorial to Sir Walter Scott

We took a day trip through the Highlands, which were covered in snow. It was absolutely beautiful- our pictures don't do it justice. Brent and I vowed to come back someday in late summer when the hills are covered in purple wildflowers. There is something almost magical in the air in the Highlands. It's funny to say that out loud, let alone write it, but I don't know how else to explain it. The history of battles and the Scots indomitable spirit permeates the air and you can just feel it.

Highlands Scenery

Highland Cow- isn't he cute?!

We ended up going to Loch Ness and were the only people there. The fact that is was freezing with snow on the ground probably had something to do with that, but we enjoyed having some solitude by the still waters. No Nessie that day!

Loch Ness

It was the perfect trip for a long weekend- though Brent was recovering from a cold during the first part of the trip and I had caught by the end after he was finished with it! Oh well. I think we were both surprised how much we loved Edinburgh. We can't wait to go back and to spend more time in the Highlands. Coming up next- German Christmas markets and Prague.

November Traditions: Thanksgiving & Sinterklaas

2009-01-06T12:06:00.000-08:00

Well, we've been remiss in our blogging duties (as many of you nicely reminded us). So, even though it's after the fact we wanted to post our goings-on from November. It was a busy month, with a mixture of both American and Dutch holidays.

We started off attending a charity premiere for the new Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. The event was hosted by a company that Brent works with and held at an art deco theatre from the 1920s. We got to see the movie a full two weeks before the US release! Ruth's cousin, Elizabeth, was our first house-guest here in Amsterdam and attended with us. It was a great excuse to dress up and we had a blast.

Giving Bond a run for his money!

Another event in November was the arrival of Sinterklaas, essentially St. Nick. We find him to be similar to Santa Claus (though any Dutchie would passionately disagree). He arrives by boat and parades through large cities in the Netherlands on his horse. His helpers, called "Zwarte Piets," meaning "Black Petes," throw cookies and generally goof around. We won't even get into how un-PC they are, but yes, it really is as bad as it looks.

Zwarte Piets

Each year he arrives in late November and stays until Dec 5th, which is when most presents are exchanged (along with poems written by parents for their children). If this all sounds a bit hard to believe, there's a really funny bit by David Sedaris that you should check out. You can watch at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjUFl1mEpX8. Suffice to say it was a hilarious new experience and we had fun cheering for his arrival with thousands of kids also dressed at Zwarte Piet.

Sinterklaas

Thanksgiving in the Netherlands was truly a celebration in the spirit to thrive despite all odds! It's challenging enough in the US, but here we had to search all over town for even the most basic thanksgiving items. Pumpkin pie filling, sweet potatoes, graham crackers, and most importantly- turkey are all hard to come by. Don't even think about finding stuffing. Luckily, being the type-A planner that I am, I brought back many key ingredients from the US from my September visit.

Turkeys are not raised in the Netherlands and aren't part of any holiday meals, so we had to special order one several weeks in advance. It was a beautiful bird, but still had feathers on it! Brent had to use needle-nose pliers to get it ready.

The turkey ended up being bigger than what we ordered, it was over 16 lbs and just barely fit in our tiny oven. Even being on the lowest rack, there was only half an inch between the bird and the top of the oven...

My brother Derek and his friend Jake arrived from their backpacking trip across Africa just in time to join our Thanksgiving feast. Since they hadn't exactly been eating 3 square meals on their trip, they were the most appreciative dinner guests one could ask for!

That's a wrap-up of November and hope you all had a wonderful time as well. We've been particularly missing all our friends and family and hope to catch up more now that we're on facebook. Coming up next, highlights from our December travels to Scotland, Germany, and Prague!

Halloween Nederlands

2008-11-06T11:27:00.000-08:00

Halloween isn't celebrated in the Netherlands, but we thought we'd represent. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day!

Thought you might enjoy. :-)

New pictures of our place!

2008-11-03T12:13:00.000-08:00

After promising them for quite some time, we're happy to finally post some updated pictures apartment. The main blogger is on hiatus, so the maverick blogger (Brent) is posting today. :)

Ruth has done a fabulous job of picking colors and patterns to go with our new apartment, if you ask me. Here is our entry way (dare I say a very fun "Starbucks green")?

Next is the view to our dining room and kitchen. We designed the chandelier ourselves and I especially like the way it fills the room with warm light. Our kitchen turned out great, very functional and I think we finally have everything in it's place.

Ruth has certainly made great use of the "American style" oven that we pushed hard for when looking for a place. I think that in square inches, she puts most bakers to shame by what she's able to do with an oven that would be small in comparison to anything in the States. Suffice to say that I'm definitely not going hungry here and we've been able to find the equivalent of most cooking and baking products by now through a variety of stores.

Next is our cozy living room. We weren't sure how our place would feel after getting our furniture in place, and couldn't be happier with how it all fits together. Having all our things in place made a huge impact for me while things were so busy at work. Having a perfect place to come home and just relax after work has been such a great respite.

Even more cozy is when we build a roaring fire...we have yet to break out and roast marshmallows, but it won't be long!

Heading up to our top level, we have the 2nd bathroom, master bedroom, and guest room. Ruth chose a fantastic yellow to help us combat the long winters with our own sunshine! It gets dark during the winter at 4:30pm or earlier, and even in the fall we are already missing the "sunbreaks" from Seattle.

Bathroom and Master Bedroom

The Guest Suite - Please, note that reservations must be made in advance, and our 48 hr cancellation policy is quite strict. Just kidding...about the cancellation policy. :)

Last but not least of course is the music area in the loft above the guest bedroom, and my coffee station (a requirement obviously).

I really can't say enough about how good it is to have our home set up, and to start to feel settled. In the beginning, its easy to think that being apart from "all that stuff" should be easy, even beneficial. And one could easily make the argument that missing it is just another example of the materialism so pervasive in Western culture. And while there are certainly things that I can go without, it does give me even more empathy for those who spend their lives without a home, a place to really feel secure, either by choice or circumstance. More than anything though, I think it just makes me thankful!

We hope you are all doing well! Please drop us a line and let us know how you're doing. We'd love to hear from you. Fijne avond (have a nice evening).

120 days- Time for a Check Up

2008-10-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

The chief blogger of the family (Ruth) was on vacation the past few weeks, hence no updates. This past month has been Brent's busiest time at work, so he surprised me with a ticket back to the states for a three week visit. He is so thoughtful! I had a wonderful time visiting family. I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to connect with so many dear friends too. Being away from Amsterdam also gave me the opportunity to assess my time here thus far. While in the US I was pleasantly surprised to feel that "home" is now Amsterdam. Here's a little taste of the up side and the not so up side about living here.

Things I like here in Amsterdam:

Windmills that grace the landscape like a painting out of time past.
Swans who live on the canals and swim by our apartment every morning.
The quaint, small store shopping atmosphere. The butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker.
Feeling safe walking alone at night.
The abundance of beautiful inexpensive flowers. A bouquet of 20 roses will set you back $5 euros.
Our neighborhood Saturday market- strolling the variety of stalls is one of our favorite weekend activities.
The amazing cheese and bread selection!
Cruising the picturesque canals by boat. Need I say more?
Beautiful architecture, especially the gables and cornices on the old canal houses.
The sense of history that permeates everything.
The ease of riding bikes everywhere and the on-time trams. US cities could take note.
Traveling to other countries in Europe- many countries are less than 2 hours by train and you don't have to go through security or show your passport- it's so convenient!

Things I miss from the US or don't always agree with here:

Due to the size of the country and how large the population is everything in the Netherlands is...small.
Stylish clothing can be very expensive and is often made for tall, thin women (the Dutch are considered among the tallest people in the world).
Television shows from America which are broadcast here are usually only MTV, Dr. Phil-esque shows and soap operas.
How expensive books are!
Products labeled "American" yet I have never even seen these products on the North American continent.
The graffiti on the old buildings. Don't people know how special some old buildings are?
Bicycles are stolen easily. Sometimes the thieves don't even care if the bike is locked to prevent theft. They want it, they take it.
¿Dónde están los auténticos restaurantes mexicanos?
Affordable prices- everything is more expensive.
Being able to jump in the car and dash off to the grocery store at 10pm on a Sunday evening. Most stores are only open past 6pm on Thursdays nights, when they stay open until 9pm!
Grocery stores big enough to have grocery carts and having a selection of items that would shock most Europeans.
Raisins are located in the candy aisle! What is that about??? We definitely miss American junk food- popcorn, chocolate chips, marshmallows...
And of course- all of our family and friends who aren't here.

Obviously visiting family was the highlight of my trip back, but I did indulge in some shopping! I took back two empty suitcases so I would have plenty of room for cheap American goods (or more likely goods made in China) but either way it was still cheap! One night while I was there, I did some shopping at Safeway grocer at 10:30pm just because I could. I got a shopping cart and cruised every aisle- it was heavenly. While we have managed without 50 choices of cereal, we do have some "essentials" that I stocked up on...

So after our first few months here we have begun to see the essence of what it means to live in a completely new environment. No, we haven't figured it all out yet; but we have learned that for everything we miss there is something else to surprise or encourage us. Fall is definitely here and winter is on the way. We'll be posting pics soon of the scenery and our fully decorate apartment. Till then, love you all!

Home Sweet Home

2008-09-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Our sea freight finally arrived!!! Our belongings were packed up in May, so we are thrilled to have our own comfy couch and sleep on our luxurious queen bed. I know that a queen bed may not sound very luxurious to you, but in the Netherlands more often than not a queen bed consists of two single mattresses pushed together. And we had quite the ordeal getting that queen bed inside...

Because we live in a very old canal house, the staircases are extremely steep and narrow. There are 37 steps just to reach our apartment door. Thus everything came through our living room window! All of our furniture and boxes were moved into our apartment by large lift/elevator that would be loaded with boxes and then would move it all up to the 3rd floor which is the first floor of our apartment.

We found out at the end of the day that the stairs inside our apartment to our second floor were too narrow for the box springs and the window to that room wasn't large enough to use the lift. So we unexpectedly slept in a hotel that first night and tried not to worry about what we'd do if it didn't work out. We have quickly learned that "not possible" is a favorite phrase of the Dutch and they said that a lot regarding that queen bed! But good ol' American gumption prevailed and Brent figured out that if they took apart a window in the ground floor hallway of the building the box springs would just barley fit and then it could be lifted by rope to our back patio and then through our patio door. Phew!!

After all our stuff arrived we decided to go to IKEA for some storage units and it hit home how much of our life has already changed. We went with another expat friend who happens to live on a small canal with the water only a few feet from her window. So we left the boat there and caught the metro train and then had a 10 minute walk to IKEA. Because we had several heavy flat packed items between the three of us we took a taxi from IKEA back to our friend's place. There we loaded our purchases into the boat from her living room and drove the boat back to our place. You get pretty creative when you don't have a car!

We are very close to having all our boxes unpacked. Once we get everything settled we will post more pictures of our place. Ella, our kitty, is VERY happy to have her own furniture too. Until last week she would sleep in the corner of a closet, but now she is back to sprawling on our couch like she owns it! Her new favorite perch is the ceiling beams in our office...

It does feel like home now. Not just because we are surrounded by our own things, but we really have fallen in love with the city. It's beautiful and we are meeting new friends and feeling more connected. Ruth joined a club for expat American women and now plays in a mah jongg group each week.

We've met lots of other expats and recently went on a last minute weekend getaway with 4 other American couples. We drove 2 and half hours to Northern France and stayed at Château de la Motte in the historic city of Cambrai.

This castle was built in 1850 by a famous Parisian architect. Cambrai's claim to fame is that it was the location of the very first tank battle. We also spent a day in Lille, which Ruth really enjoyed. It's not touristy, but has a beautiful center district. It was so nice to have a change of scenery while enjoying wonderful French cuisine again.

Fall has definitely arrived in Amsterdam. The change of the season is bittersweet as we continue to adjust to our new life, but reflect on our family and friends back home as well. This time of year is also even busier for Brent at work (if that's even possible). Stay tuned for our next posting with pics of the fully decorated apartment and thanks for reading!

La Vie en Rose

2008-08-31T10:08:00.000-07:00

We actually escaped to Paris for 5 wonderful days...2 weeks ago! C'est la vie! We haven't been very faithful in updating this blog lately, but we had an absolutely beautiful summer week here in Amsterdam and frankly, we couldn't be bothered with blogging when there was boating weather!

So, though this is a little late we hope you enjoy reading about a few of our Paris highlights.

Eiffel Tower- It's the focal point of the city, and it's impossible to visit Paris without strolling through its shadow. On our first evening in the city we walked the length of the Eiffel park just taking in the beautiful surroundings. We also ended our trip with a picnic lunch on the lawn before catching our train. The history and scale of something so grand colors the experiences of tourists and native Parisians alike.

Our first evening we wasted no time diving into the French cuisine by visiting a tiny bistro in the lovely Rue Cler neighborhood. Brent had brushed up on his French enough to make sure we didn't order anything we'd regret. He had a fun using his language skills the whole week and he did wonderful! People seemed genuinely glad someone was making an effort to speak their language.

Versailles- We both really enjoyed the splendor of Versailles, the palace of French kings and cultural center of Europe in the 1700s. It's over the top in every imaginable way, every surface covered in marble or gilt. All other palaces in Europe are Versailles wannabes!

With 700 rooms it is definitely overwhelming and it's easy to imagine how all that extravagance kept the Monarchy immune to the real world that was crumbling at their feet.

The grounds were equally impressive and this is us at one of 50 fountains throughout the gardens. Louis had his engineers re-route a river to fuel them. It took over an hour to walk across the length of the grounds, but it was so relaxing pausing next to statues and fountains while listening to classical music.

Notre Dame in the background-
We went on a walking tour of the city starting at Notre Dame. The oldest part of Paris is actually on a tiny island in the center, called Ile de la Cite (or Isle of the City). This was where the city was actually founded and houses some fantastic historic buildings from the early formations of the French monarchy.

The walking tour criss-crossed back and forth between the old parts of the Ile and the newer sections of the city like the Latin Quarter. We could not have asked for better weather and its easy to lose oneself while meandering along centuries old passageways and the beautiful river.

Musee de l'Orangerie- We took in a lot of famous art, especially as we also managed to squeeze in the Louvre Museum and Musee d'Orsay. Brent's favorite though was the Orangerie Museum. Inside a pair of oval rooms host eight water lily murals by Claude Monet.

Before you enter the oval rooms you go through a small white room that is completely empty. The effect was to remove the memory of the outdoor colors of the day and reset our eyes to allow for the full-color impact of what was to come in the following rooms. The murals show different reflections of his garden throughout the day, from sunrise to sunset. While Monet created more than 250 paintings with water lilies as the subject, these murals are HUGE.

Sainte Chapelle- This Gothic church was built in 1242 by Louis IX to house the supposed Crown of Thorns worn by Christ. We actually gasped when we stepped into this room, it was like the inside of a jewelry box. Our picture hardly does this relatively tiny Cathedral justice- 6,500 square feet of stain glass composing over 1,100 different scenes from the Bible. Amazingly, the supposed Crown of Thorns cost King Louis three times as much as it did to build this entire church. This was Ruth's favorite visit as she had just finished reading a book about Louis IX's wife, Marguerite. Throughout Europe when you spoke of "the King" everyone knew you were referring to the King of France. He ruled the largest and most wealthy kingdom of Europe, the center of culture. This Cathedral was obviously meant to be the triumphant jewel for the greatest country during that age and we couldn't help but be struck with awe.

Bridge along the Seine River- one of the most beautiful aspects of the City of Light is the river slicing a path through its center. If there is a bad view from one of it's many bridges we didn't see it. Each bridge has its own style and unique view of Paris. We really enjoyed crossing the different bridges during our walks and taking an evening cruise along the Seine.

Notre Dame de Paris- we got up close and personal with the famous gargoyles. We jokingly called Notre Dame the 'Tower of Terror' as the crowds were terrible and it took forever to actually get to the top. You have to climb lots and lots of dizzying spiral stairs to get there, but this incredible view of Paris is the reward.

Paris is not a place you can visit once, so we plan on going again soon to continue exploring.

In other news- our shipment with all our furniture and worldly possessions arrives this week. It's been 3 months since we've last seen it so we have no idea what we actually brought. With each passing week we feel more adjusted and are finding a new, more relaxed daily rhythm. Ciao from this side of the pond!

Anchors Away

2008-08-10T10:39:00.000-07:00

Ahoy Captain!

We bought a boat! One of the most distinctive aspects of Amsterdam are the canals that crisscross the city. In fact, a tour of the waterways on our first trip here was one of the things that got us really excited about moving.

Some other Expat friends who we've met were selling a boat, and it gave us the idea to get one earlier than we originally thought. While we didn't buy the boat they were selling, it was a good impetus to start searching for one to enjoy for the rest of the summer. Similar to Seattle, August and September are sometimes the driest months. We found this one on the "Dutch eBay" Marktplaats. It's a copy of the popular Boston Whaler, with a small 9 hp outboard motor, and enough room to easily fit 6 people.

The day Brent brought the boat home, hapned to also be the day of the largest annual boat parade. Boats were everywhere, and being first-timers, we were happy to just get the boat home and get it tied up before the madness kicked off! We found a place to moor along the canal just outside our apartment, so the location couldn't be more convenient.

The best part about having the boat and living along the canal is that it takes virtually no time to get down to the boat and take her out for a spin. Unlike most cities where we'd have to take it to the water, unload it from a trailer (and don't forget gathering all the snacks), here we just grab a Coke, stroll down to the boat, and we're off in a flash. We've had the boat out twice in the evenings after work for picnics and both days this weekend. While we haven't had very many true summer days, its easy to be content down on the canals (as long as it's not raining!).

We've found that the views from the canals, and the slow cruising speed, make for great people watching and checking out the beautiful scenery. We find it hilarious that we are now playing a starring role in at least 20 family vacation videos, from all the tourists who like to snap pictures of the boats on the water. Everyone on the water is friendly, with the exception of the HUGE canal boats who give tours of the city. They pretty much go wherever they want and barely notice the smaller boats as they always have he right of way. Luckily our boat is very agile so we're able to zip out of the way of the lumbering giants.

The boat has really helped us to find some joy in the midst of all the transition. As we celebrated our wedding anniversary today (yep, 6 years goes fast!) we felt lucky that we were accomplishing our goals together, ones we had set in the months before getting married. Marriage definitely makes the bad times easier and the good times even better, and we've been experiencing that through the last several months of this adventure.

Thank you so much for all the comments and messages, keep them coming! We're off to Paris next weekend to celebrate our anniversary in style (like anyone needs a reason to visit Paris).

Is there a place you've visited and loved in Europe? Drop us a note and give us the inside scoop on your favorite European destinations!

2008-07-24T12:08:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Belgium!

This last weekend was Ruth's birthday, so to celebrate we escaped to Belgium for a for a four day weekend. We stayed in Brugge (pronounced BROO-ghah in Dutch or Broozh in French & English). It is a beautifully preserved Gothic city with canals, gilded architecture and lots of chocolate!

The Belfort (the tower in the background) offers the best views over Brugge. We climbed the 366 steps to the top and were rewarded with a beautiful view of the city. The medieval tower, finished in 1300, houses the former city treasury and its chimes are famous around Europe thanks to the 47 bells in the tower.

We took a canal boat cruise. The city is very lovely, and looks like a movie set. The canals were not as prominent as we had anticipated, since it competes with Amsterdam for the title "Venice of the North". In Brugge, the canals are more hidden and tucked away, rather than in Amsterdam were they truly shape the city. However, we agreed we can't award that title until we have actually seen Venice for ourselves.

We tasted lots and lots of chocolate!!! On our first night in Brugge we counted over 25 different chocolate shops on our walk to dinner. We were able to narrow down our favorites to two family owned chocolate shops and managed to visit them both every day. Until last Friday, I did not think it was possible to overdose on Chocolate- but it is!

Here we are enjoying our favorite: amaretto and marshmallow chocolate. A fancy s'more!

The Church of Our Lady is evidence of Brugge's wealth and power during it's heyday in the 14th century. Inside is Michelangelo's Madonna & Child which he worked on in between his masterpiece David. It is the only work of Michelangelo's to leave Italy during his lifetime.

We also toured the Groeninge Museum, consisting of Flemish masterpieces. All the artwork from that area was a result of the patronage of the Catholic church. The majority of works were on the cusp of the Renaissance period, and you could see its origins in the Flemish art.

The Basilica of the Holy Blood is another church we visited that was built in 1150 by a crusader to house the drops of Christ's blood, which he had brought back from Jerusalem. Regardless of whether the legend is accurate, it was humbling to visit a site of pilgrimage for many people.

Outside of the historic political and civic heart of the city. Surrounding us is 10 centuries of different architecture.

One of our days we took a train to the nearby town of Gent, Belgium, which is larger than Brugge but smaller than Brussels. They also are known for having beautiful canals and architecture. Unfortunately the day we were there was like a Seattle winter's day. We took refuge in their historic bell tower. They rang their largest bell, which is nearly 15 feet across, while we were standing next to it. It is one of the purest ways to hear the full overtone series of sounds made by nature, and was truly a unique experience. You can see Brent standing next to some of the smaller bells on display in the tower.

In Gent, we also visited the Castle of the Counts, a forbidding, gray fortress which was built by the count of Flanders, Philip of Alsace, in 1180. The castle contains a crypt, a dungeon, and an exhibition of historical weapons and medieval torture methods...very enlightening. Unfortunately, our camera battery died hence no pictures. :)

We really needed a change of scenery, and this was a great first European getaway, being only a 4 hour train ride away. We're still awaiting our internet connection and hope it will arrive within a couple weeks. We're posting from the library, and they've asked us to leave. Sorry for the brevity of this post. More on Amsterdam to come!

Americans in Amsterdam

2008-07-07T05:04:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Brent & Ruth's overseas blog! The last 8 weeks have been quite a whirlwind, so to make sure everyone is up-to-date here's what we've been up to...and why we're writing from Amsterdam.

It has always been a shared dream of ours to live in another country. This Spring, a position with Starbucks opened in their Amsterdam office that fit well with Brent's career goals. Brent would be managing Accounting for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region. We thought about it for about 3 nano-seconds before immediately jumping on this incredible opportunity. The duration of the contract is indefinite, so we're here for as long as we enjoy it. And what's not to enjoy you may ask? Well, we'll get to that.

For the last couple of months our motto has been "If you feel like things are in control, then you're just not going fast enough." (Mario Andretti) While Brent started his new role the first week of June, Ruth stayed in Seattle to finish up her job with the MS Society and get us moved out. Needless to say that Ruth was in desperate need of a sleeping pill, a pedicure, and a long vacation by the time our house was finally packed up. She arrived at the end of June, along with our cat, Ella.

We found a beautiful apartment along a canal in the center of the city, the quintessential Amsterdam experience. It's a lovely neighborhood, and you can see pictures in the link along the right hand of the blog page. Our building dates from the early 1700's and it is incredible to be surrounded by such rich history. Brent had to pick out a place on his own before Ruth arrived, and thank goodness he got it right! The only downside is that we currently are living with very basic rental furniture as all our household goods and furniture is being sent by sea freight. It's not scheduled to arrive until late August, so we feel a bit like we're camping for several months. Our bed is basically a futon mattress, but we are trying not to count down the day until our things arrive. We are also waiting for our internet to get connected and so Ruth spends a good portion of her day at a nearby cafe with wifi. We don't expect to feel fully settled until our things arrive, but we are determined to explore our new city and do all the tourist things this Summer.

Here are some of our recent activities and highlights:

Visiting the Rijks museum to see paintings by Vermeer, Rembrandt and others from the Netherland's golden age in the 1600s.

Meeting Brent's Starbucks colleagues- For the 4th of July went went to a BBQ hosted by a Canadian who also works at Starbucks. In honor of our Seattle roots, it was raining- of course the day before had been beautiful! We had small charcoal grills set up across the street from her apartment under one of the huge Dutch elms that line the canals. It was a loud and rowdy group. Because of the rain people either congregated under the trees across the street or stood lurking in the open doorway of our friend's apartment. Several times people off the street thought we were having a gallery party- one guy stood outside the door thinking that he was queuing up to get into a pub! :)

Exploring which Albert Hijn (the main grocery store) is closest, and whether they have a decent ice cream selection (results: 3 in walking distance, 0 with adequate flavor selection). The one we use most is about a 6 min. walk.

We got our bikes this weekend, old rickety things that make us blend in with the locals. Amsterdam does not have a crime problem, but bike thefts are notorious. You can't leave your bike out with any thing less than two locks.

Our first bike ride was to Museumplein, a large park and plaza that is surrounded by several museums. We hazard cars, scooters, other cyclists and tourists for a test ride across the city. The ride was thankfully uneventful, though it is going to take some getting use to the crazy bike and foot traffic as there is no right of way. P.S. They don't use helmets. In fact, its a sure sign that you're a tourist if you wear one.

Listening to a concert in a church that dates from the 16th century.

Toured the Anne Frank house, where we were very moved to see firsthand what her life in hiding was like. We are amazed that such a insightful and eloquent diary was written by a 14 year old girl.

First Embarrassing Moment: Ruth was at the Albert Hijn doing her daily shopping during the dinner rush. Her new PIN card wouldn't work and she didn't have enough cash for the purchases. The clerk's command of English was minimal and Ruth's command of Dutch is almost non-existent, so there was definitely some confusion as to Of course, there was a long line behind her. Amazingly enough our neighbors, whom we had just met the day before, were in that long line behind Ruth and came to see if she needed help. They paid for our food and Ruth made a quick exit. So at least we didn't starve that night!

We hope to keep this updated every week so you can share in our adventures. We miss our family and friend terribly, so drop us a line of how you are doing. We'd love to hear from you! Here are some contact methods for us (we'll be able to use the Skype more when our internet gets set up in ~3 weeks).

USA Number (via Skype): +1.206.734.4653
SKYPE Username: bandrcashell
Brent Work Direct: +31.20.407.6533
Brent Mobile: +31.62.151.7189
Ruth email: ruthcashell@yahoo.com
Brent email: cashman_112@yahoo.com