Oh my I have a lot to write about - here's a snippet...

I have been home almost five weeks and haven’t written since a couple weeks before I left Amsterdam.  First I have to say I am very glad to be home but I am really missing the wonderful friends that I made in Amsterdam…and I really don’t know when or if I will get to see them again.  So if any of you read this, if you ever come to San Diego, you better look me up!

The week before I left my friends threw me a fabulous going away party.  We started the day with a High Tea that was absolutely amazing.  The food, the tea and the company was marvelous!  There were 10 of us that went to the tea enjoying homemade goodies – two kinds of quiche, scones with delicious spreads and clotted cream, a variety of finger sandwiches, cakes and cookies to die for…along with several kinds of tea.  No wonder I came home weighing about 15 pounds heavier than when I got to Amsterdam!  After the tea we all got on the tram and headed up near Leidseplein to have a quick drink before boarding a canal boat for a cruise.  We all went into one of the most popular lounge/restaurants – Momo – hoping to be able to enjoy a drink before the cruise.  We were cutting it close with only about 20 minutes – so with only one bartender some of the girls ordered glasses of wine while the bartender worked as quickly as he could to make a few of their specialty mixed drinks for the rest of us.  After our quick drink we walked just across the street to board the boat for our cruise.  By this time 5 other friends were able to join us.  While on the boat we had a great time reminiscing and watching the canal view go by.  After our hour long cruise some of the women weren’t ready to go home yet so we headed to Leidseplein for a drink, coffee, snack – whatever you were hungry for.  We spent another couple of hours just enjoying each other’s company.  It was an afternoon and evening I will never forget and thanks to Cristina doing her “sun dance” we had the most fantastic weather to enjoy it all.

My flight home was uneventful, thankfully.  I got home late on Sunday, May 29^th.  Now coming home to your house you have not lived in for 8 months gives you a very odd feeling.  My son stayed in our home while we were gone and we told him to make it home for himself since we weren’t really sure how long we would be gone.  He didn’t move most of our furnishings but we did clean out one of the bedrooms so he had somewhere to set up a bedroom for himself.  He was able to find a new apartment before we came home so coming home to an empty room and things stored here and there I dug in Monday morning moving things around and setting up the house back to our likes.  Believe it or not I’m still not done.  Living in Amsterdam in a very small apartment makes you come home, look around and say…what the heck do I have all this junk for?  I didn’t need it the past 8 months!  Kind of like when you look in your closet and realize you have several outfits you haven’t worn for years?  Why am I saving this?  Anyway, Dave and I are kind of in a purge and clean mode.  Also, getting some household repairs done that have been needed for a while.

Since coming home we have spent a lot of time with our grandson, Joaquin.  Last Sunday we, Joaquin, Dave and I, took off with our Airstream in tow and headed to Joel and Tiffany’s in Victorville.  Yeah, the wonderful world of the high desert country of California – heat, wind, sandstorms, strip malls and track homes!  But we had a great time visiting with our two granddaughters and that’s what counts.  Then Wednesday morning we headed to Zion National Park to a family resort we found a couple years ago with lots of fun activities for kids.  We brought Joaquin to this same resort about 3 years ago and he asked his poppi if we could come again so here we are.  We have had fun horseback riding, playing putt-putt, climbing wall, ATVs and lots of swimming!  Tomorrow morning (Saturday) we are going to head home the opposite direction that we came and make a short stop at the Grand Canyon and then head towards home.  It’s been fun trip but I am anxious to get home to continue working on household projects, visit friends in San Diego, set up my felting area so I can start being creative again and of course how could I forget – go back to my job!

Hugs to all my friends out there.

P.S.  I will post photos when I get home and have better internet connection.

Israel - A Learning Trip...

So Dave and I took a quick trip to Israel before coming home to the states.  But before we left my body decided I needed to experience the ER here in Amsterdam.  I have to say it was not so bad except that the night nurse didn’t know how to insert an IV needle – after 4 tries she finally succeeded in the spot I told her to try!  Anyway, I apparently had a kidney stone attack – and I will say that the pain was worse than childbirth labor.  For one – labor pains don’t continue, you have intervals of relief between them and second you produce a wonderful gift at the end of the pain.  Also, your body naturally produces adrenaline and endorphins to get you through the pain.  Well none of this with kidney stones.  Anyway, after a stint in the ER, some meds and some home remedies I found on the web, I was well enough to go on our trip.

Dave and I had a wonderful experience.  We only had two full days and one half day but we squeezed as much as we could in that time.  Our first full day there we spent entirely in the Old Walled City.  There was so much to see and it was so interesting to see the small streets that, to me, were like a maze that the Israelites walked every day of their lives and still do to this day.  The Old Walled City is also divided into four areas – Christian, Israeli, Armenian and Muslim – which also made it quite interesting.  I won’t list everything we saw that day but it made for a very full day.  Towards the end of the day when we were on our way back to the hotel I did have one bout with pain in my back but, thankfully, the pain meds worked and within a couple hours I was good to go.  And go we did, we met up with our friends, Danny and Suzanna, and had a wonderful dinner in Jerusalem.  While walking back to the hotel we encountered the streets full of vendors, sparklers, lighted trinkets, bands playing and people partying – it was Israel’s Independence Day!  It was a fascinating walk back.

When we were headed back to the hotel from the Old Walled City on our first day we decided to take a cab – when we got in the cab driver was very friendly and asked if we were planning on touring the following day.  This is a usual occurrence – all the cab drivers ask you this when you get in their cab, it’s their business – anyway, Dave said, yes, would like to see Masada and the Dead Sea.  Later that evening I asked Dave if it was safe to hire a cab driver to take us – Dave talked to the hotel personnel and they acted like it is a normal thing to do.  So we hired Fouzi to take us the following day.

Fouzi was up front with us and told us that he was a Palestinian Muslim that was dedicated to his religion and his family.  So off we went into the countryside.  He was very knowledgeable about the Israeli sites and told us that his information was only 99% accurate.  We laughed and said that’s OK.  I have to say I learned much more about the West Bank, Palestinians and Muslims than I ever knew before.  We first headed to Qumran – this was not as impressive as hoped for – it was a little staged and presented for a tourist.  Dave and I recently were able to view the Dead Sea Scrolls at a museum in San Diego and Dave attended several of the lectures that were presented along with the exhibition so it was fun to see where Qumran is located but we did not spend an extended amount of time here.  Our next stop was Masada – now this was impressive!  Unbelievable how this community was built on the top of a mesa – I was lamenting for the Israelite slaves that had to build the structures.  Mind you for my California friends – this mesa is situated next to the Dead Sea which is 1,388 feet below sea level – think Death Valley – the sun beats down, no humidity and the temps get into the 100s.  While we were there I would say the temp was around 80 and we had a tram car to take us up the side of the mesa but just walking around viewing all the structures we were drinking our water, panting and sweating.  And it is huge!  I just could not believe the size of this city.  I was very impressed and really glad we went to see it.  After Masada we traveled back towards Jerusalem to the public beach on the Dead Sea.  Now I will say this was interesting and I understand the health benefits of the Dead Sea minerals but I did not enjoy this beach!  And most of you know I love the beach and water.  As you know the Dead Sea has a high salt content so nothing lives in it and you can float on top of the water without even trying…what you may not know is the bottom is all clay and muck…not enjoyable to walk in and there were holes – yes, I fell numerous times trying to get out!  Dave should have taken a movie; we may have won some money on America’s Funniest Home Videos!  I need not say more.  J  Fouzi also stopped at the Ahava Skin Care outlet and I had fun shopping there for Dead Sea mineral skin care.  On our drive home Fouzi’s five year old daughter called him and he put her on speaker phone so we listened to him talking to her – she was asking her daddy to bring her home a treat!  So cute.

I just realized I forgot to say something - the Dead Sea from a distance is absolutely gorgeous!  The bluest turquoise you can imagine and as the light of the day changed so did the water...from blues and greens to hues of pink from the mountain reflections.  Just beautiful.

The next day our flight did not leave until 5:00 PM so we again hired Fouzi to take us to a couple more places and then to the airport.  He took us to Bethlehem which is located in the Palestinian area.  Fouzi arranged a guide to take us into The Church of the Nativity, the church that is located on the area that Jesus was born.  This was a moving experience.  The church is divided into three sections – Catholic, Greek and Armenian – each of the three conducts mass each morning.  While we were there the Armenian priest and his attendants were having mass.  The mass is conducted down about 8 steps into a very small area where Jesus was born and the manger was located.  There were several tour groups waiting to go down to view the area after the mass was completed but since we had a “private” tour guide who has lived in Bethlehem his entire life, we were able to go down into the area and watch part of the mass.  Very interesting and just to be there was very moving.  We then walked quietly out and viewed the garden area of the church.  After leaving Bethlehem, we had to go through a check point but were not stopped.  We then went to the Garden of Gethsemane – beautiful with thousand year old olive trees – and then up to the top of the Mount of Olives.  What a beautiful view from there.  Fouzi told us he loves to come up there and sometimes bring his family because it is so beautiful.  While up here the view goes forever and you realize just how large the city Jerusalem is now in current times.  We then headed to the airport with one more check point going into the airport – this time we were pulled over and they just looked at our luggage and then let us go on.  As expected, there are many security points you and your luggage go through to leave the country but everything went OK for us.

 

Now I am home and we are packing and getting ready for the trip home.  My friends here have made some plans for outings for me so I will probably be busy and will post more later about my last few weeks of this adventure of living in another country.

Hugs to all!

I’ve been quite busy…

Since we thought we would be here a year but now it’s going to be less and I am on the countdown to go home, I am trying to experience all that I can before I leave.  So I decided I would throw out emails to the women I have met and if any can join me, great, if not, then I’m heading out on my own.  Also, it is a very busy time for Dave with things he needs to accomplish and there are many employees from Taylor US coming over to help with setting up all the departments.  So we have been doing a little entertaining or dinners with them.

Last week was a quiet week because quite a few of the schools were out on holiday and quite a few of the women I know went on trips during this time.  So I did some venturing on my own since I had quite a few days to myself.  I went to two House Museums, to the Van Gogh Museum and on Thursday Maria and I took the train to Utrecht to walk around and have lunch.  Then on Saturday Dave, Rob Magargal (Taylor employee) and I took a driving trip to Breda, another beautiful Holland town.

So the House Museums – they are both on what is called Keizergracht which is a canal street.  So on one side of the canal traffic goes one way and the other side traffic goes the opposite direction.  If the name ends with gracht, it is a canal street.  Then there is straat (street), laan (lane), plein (plaza), weg (way) and several more.  So these two homes I toured are very Dutch and the décor was probably 1600s-1700s.  I would say the most interesting parts to me were their gardens and the kitchen in the one home.  The one garden has the largest fountain pond in the Amsterdam centrum.  Also, one of the homes had a collection displayed of a pastel artist from the 1800s.  Since Dave loves pastels I took him back to this home on Sunday.  He was quite impressed.

Thursday was when Maria and I went to Utrecht.  It was about a 30 minute train ride to another beautiful Dutch town.  We had fun just walking up and down the streets and then had lunch along one of the canals.  It’s always fun to see all the different towns.  Most are laid out the same – with a centrum that includes a beautiful cathedral and plaza – off from the plaza are usually little cobble streets and canals.  Lots of cafes and lots of shopping – most of the shops are modern clothing and shoe shops – and then you have some unique gift shops, cheese shops, bread shops and the typical souvenir shops with the same old stuff you see in every Dutch town.  Now, when it comes to shopping here – the Dutch women are just like the US women – they want the latest styles in clothing and shoes – and it seems that most women tourists are looking for those shops too.  Shopping here is not included in the “quaintness” of Europe.  If you want to find an antique relic you have to find those shops.  They’re in each town but not usually in the town centrum.  I didn’t elaborate on my lunch that day because it was good but not WOW but the surroundings were charming.

Friday I decided to go to the Van Gogh Museum again by myself.  I did this because Dave is not really a fan of Van Gogh and when we went to the museum the previous time, we were enthralled with the temporary exhibit which took up all of our time and we never made it to the Van Gogh section.  Well, I do enjoy Van Gogh and so I thought the best way for me to see the collection was by myself.  And I really enjoyed it.  I remember doing a report on Van Gogh when I was in elementary school and have been interested in him ever since.  There was also an exhibit on the old French artwork that was used for posters, music books, theater programs and the like – that was very interesting also.  I also ran out of time so did not get to view the current temporary exhibition of Picasso in Paris…I’m not a Picasso fan but I am intrigued just a little and am going to try and get back to go through that section.  I want to do another day at the Rijks Museum also so I have plenty to do before I leave.

On Saturday, Dave, Rob, Liam and I jumped in the car and Dave drove us to Breda.  Another beautiful Dutch town that Dave used to stay in when he had to come over here for business in the past years.  He wanted me to see it before I left.  It was really a nice town…although Dave was a little disappointed that the very quaint hotel that he used to stay at was bought and is now an updated, modern hotel.  He said when he would stay there the hotel staff would set up a little table and chair at the window for him because they knew he was an artist and liked the light from the window to draw.  So it is a memory that he can hold onto but is no longer physically there.  We walked around the town and viewed the sites and then sat in the one of the pleins and had a beer and a yummy lunch.  First cafe I’ve seen over here that serves “curly fries” which was a disappointment because the Dutch and the Flemish make the best fries in the world.  I don’t ever eat fries in the states but over here I’ve had more fries in the past 6 months than probably the last 10 years!  I don’t know what they do different to cook them but every US person I talk to agree that fries are way better over here.  Now, they typically serve them with mayonnaise (that’s their traditional topping) but you can ask for ketchup.  If you go to a Frites stand you can get any number of toppings other than mayo and ketchup.  Dave loves the fries with mayonnaise and I think it’s something you fall in love with or you say ICK!  I personally like to mix a little mayo with my ketchup.  OK, so enough about fries!  We finished the day off with some homemade gelato cones and then headed home.  We had a wonderful day in Breda.

This is going to be a long post…

So on Tuesday this week I went on an Epicurean Dutch Walkabout with five other ladies in the AWCA.  We had a lot of fun and I made new friends that day.  We started at Central Station and started out on our walk – first we went to a butcher who won awards for his smoked sausage that he makes, next stop was a cheese shop – and I got the coolest cheese “guillotine” there!  It will slice through the very hard, aged cheeses like butter – love it!  Across the street from the cheese shop is a very exclusive hand-dipped chocolate shop – yes, I spent a few euros in there.  Next stop was a bakery/ice cream shop that made their own stroopwafels – this is the traditional Dutch cookie that is two very thin, buttery waffles with a very thin buttery, caramel/honey filling, yes, they are YUM!  The way this little bakery made them was a little different, very crispy but oh so good!  Next stop – Yep – couldn’t miss the Frites – which I already described to you above.  Then, our final stop was a Brown Bar – these are everywhere in Europe and is a very old pub that serves several types of beer.  This one had something like 15 beers on tap from all around Europe.  I cannot remember the name of the one I had but it was very tasty.  I also tasted cider for the first time – not apple cider, hard cider.  It was quite tasty too.  It was a fun day of tastings.

 

Yesterday was one of the highlights of being here in Holland.  I got to go see the tulip fields while in bloom.  One of the women I met at AWCA was gracious enough to drive me and one of our other friends to the town where they are.  The weather turned a little chillier than any of us expected but we had a beautiful day.  No rain!  It is so hard to describe this because there is color everywhere and oh so many types of tulips – you cannot imagine.  Driving to the Gardens are fields and fields of color – some were green as some types of tulips have already come and gone but there was still so much color.  The season runs from the end of March to the middle of May and depending on the climate and rainfall the peak week can be different each year.  I think we got there just in time.  There were some fields that were “spent” and others that were on their way out and then so many still vibrant.  The place we went to is called Keukenhof Gardens (you can Google it) which is like an amusement park for anyone who loves color and nature.  I think we spent about five hours walking around with a few breaks here and there for eats and drink.  I took lots of pictures – some came out great – some not so great – but I have a memory I will not forget.

Well, today I am catching up on some paperwork and need to run a few errands…but I will write again before I leave because I still have things I have to do and see!

Hugs!

Look at the size of this tulip!  That's my fist.

Another Epic Post...

Spring is here and I have been too busy to write!  So right up front I’m going to apologize – I’m not the best blogger.  I seem to go too long between posts and then end up with a huge post.  I even had to go back to my last post to see what I wrote about.  So I’m sorry that this one is another long one.

Since the last time I wrote I have been to the Concertgebouw for two lunch concerts and two evening concerts.  I have to say that I was never a real lover of classic music until now when I have heard a full orchestra play pieces.  The Concertgebouw is a world-renown concert hall and to have the opportunity to sit in the red velvet seats, admiring the architecture and listen to amazing music is unbelievable.  The lunch concerts are free half hour rehearsals of whatever orchestra is playing in the hall that week.  So this past month I have seen and heard the Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra.  Both fantastic.

Dave had to go back to the states on March 19^th for a week and Liam pretty much kept me busy.  We would get up in the morning, get dressed and go for a long walk in the beautiful Beatrixpark.  There is a huge field in the middle of the park where the dogs can run free – and run free is what they do.  It is so cute to watch all of them romp together.  And so many puppies right now – Liam has a Soft Coated Wheaton puppy and a Beagle puppy that he loves to play with.  We also have a neighbor above us who has a Teckle (Dutch name for a Wire-Haired Dachshund) that is his buddy!  Quite often, we are both heading down the stairs at the same time in the morning to go for our walks.  After the morning walk we come home for some breakfast and a long nap for Liam.  This is when I can head out and run errands or meet up with the “girls” for coffee or lunch.  Then after coming back from wherever I have gone for the day, it’s another walk.  Usually not quite as long but long enough.  The rest of the afternoon I usually catch up on laundry, clean, read and I have to admit sometimes be lazy.  Then after dinner we go out for a short walk to do our “business” before heading to bed.  During this week while Dave was gone, Maria invited Liam and me over for dinner.  Very yummy Risotto and Crème Brulee.

First Felt Scarf

My Teacher, Cristina

On the Sunday Dave was to come home from the states I had my first felting class.  It was a “landscape” class which you were “painting” with wool and then wet felting it into a picture.  After doing the wet felting you then do needle felting to put on the finishing touches.  Mine still needs a few more “finishing touches” so I will post a photo when I get it done.  It is, of course, a landscape of beach, water and sky.  I also signed up immediately for the class two weeks later to learn Nuno felting which is a thinner type of felting onto silk to make scarves, shawls, etc.  As my teacher said “I have caught the virus but it is a good one.”  She is Italian and just a doll.  Her dress always looks like she just came out of a fairytale with one of her shawls on and lots of lace, ruffles and flowers in her hair.  And her creations are just beautiful.  She is planning on having one more class before I leave that will show me how to do 3D felting – so then I will have learned 3 different types of felting and I will be able to “experiment” when I get home to the states.  I have found a fiber artist in San Diego and she has told me where I will be able to get supplies.  I know wool scarves are not something we need a lot of in Southern California but there is so much more you can do with felting and fiber art.  Yes, I am hooked.

The day after Dave got back from the states Rachel and Joaquin arrived for Joaquin’s Spring Break from school.  We had a week of eating, going to markets, a concert, playing at Vondelpark and Beatrixpark, going to the movies, going on a canal ride and losing a tooth!  So the Dutch Tooth Fairy had to come and she left him a Five Euro Bill!  Joaquin was so excited – and at the Sunday Market he bought himself a handmade metal bicycle model from Africa.  He was so excited.

Rachel and Joaquin left for home on Tuesday and then Dave headed to Frankfurt for the Musikmesse.  While Dave was gone, Liam and I had our daytime routine and one of the evenings I went out to dinner with some of the couples from the American Women’s Club – this time we went to a Brazilian restaurant where there is plenty of meat.  I wouldn’t say the food was great but I had a fun time with new friends.

On the Sunday that Dave was gone I had my all day Nuno felting class.  Since I was worried about leaving Liam the whole day, Barbara, one of the Taylor employees that came back from Frankfurt to stay at the downstairs apartment, was gracious to come up and take Liam for a walk while I was gone.  After I got back Barbara, Ted (another Taylor employee) and I went to a wonderful French restaurant that fed you too much food.  But – oh so yummy – their poached salmon melts in your mouth.

Dave got home on Monday and brought with him – Bob Taylor, Larry Breedlove and Andy Powers.  So another evening out to dinner – this time at Dave’s favorite Dutch restaurant, Haesje Claes.  I think I’ve talked about it before with the traditional Dutch food.  Very yummy again.  The following evening we went to the Concertgebouw to hear the Netherland Philharmonic Orchestra – amazing.  And Wednesday evening with Barbara, Ted, Larry and Andy, we rented a boat again and had so much fun cruising the canals having wine, bread, cheese, meats, smoked salmon and olives.  It was an enjoyable evening had by all.

Yesterday I went to the American Women’s Club monthly coffee and then came back home and worked on a project for my work in San Diego.  Last Saturday I had a Skype call with my boss and she gave me a project to work on while I was here and also, said she can’t wait for me to come back and work for them again.  I am very happy about this – it will be part time at first but that’s OK with me.

Today I am headed to an American Women’s Club lunch at an Indian restaurant I haven’t been to – so I will give you a report the next time.

Hugs to all and I will be seeing you soon.  Oh, for those of you that do not do Facebook – I have my ticket bought and will be home May 29^th.  Dave and Liam will follow me on June 6^th.  It will be a bittersweet ending to a fantastic adventure.  I will miss my new friends I have met over here but so happy to be back home with my children, grandchildren and friends.  However, I have told my friends here that I will be back to visit!

Canal Cruise

Joaquin having fun!

Lunch with American Women's Club

Out with our friends, Joe and Maria.  Was I really saying something that interesting?

Cheese Scale in Gouda