Shortly after my first visit to the Netherlands, I went to the New York Ren Faire in Tuxedo. It was a lot of fun – that was where I decided that my favorite beer (on tap at least) is Sam Adams cherry wheat. The mix of cherry and beer in the same concoction was actually rather good!
After a wait for a bus from the parking lot to the faire itself, we entered. One of the first things we came across came from the Netherlands…
So in other news, Marco’s fridge arrived yesterday. It will take some getting used to having the freezer on the bottom, but otherwise it looks very cool. Unfortunately, it’s a bit too tall to have the microwave on top… but at least this way I can also use the microwave without having to stand on my tiptoes!
Marco and I visited the Royal Palace of Amsterdam. It is sometimes used by Queen Beatrix during state affairs.
Prior to my visit, they had been renovating the interior of the palace, from 2005 to 2009. When I visited, they were working on the outside of the palace. They have since finished (last month).
Royal palace of Amsterdam, the facade hidden from view during renovations
I’ve never been a good cook. Heck, I’ve never been a cook. I have been known to believe the microwave was about to blow up, or the oven, or… So when I moved to the East coast to get my Masters at Rutgers University, I wasn’t too worried about not having anything but a fridge, freezer, and microwave.
I’ll admit it was an interesting arrangement, but the apartment was cheap enough. I lived off sandwiches most of my time there, generally PB&J or turkey with…LOTS of mustard. Most of my food and groceries came from the deli up the street. There really wasn’t a proper grocery store in New Brunswick. I could either walk a mile to K-Mart (a department store with some food) or Rite Aid in a completely different direction. Still far away.
During the first summer that I spent in the Netherlands, we did the expected canal ride in Amsterdam. It’s sort of like being a first time tourist in NYC and visiting the Statue of Liberty. I’ve managed to avoid going up to the top of Rockefeller and the Empire State building… somehow.
But I was definitely looking forward to the 1 hour canal ride. I went with Marco, his mother, and our friend Roger (the die hard NY Rangers fan… Let’s go Rangers!). Luckily we managed to be one of the first ones on the boat, so we had the pick of what seats we wanted.
In October of last year I received an unexpected card from Marco. It was a card in honor of our 5 year “anniversary” since meeting each other the night of October 19, 2006. It’s pretty easy for Marco to remember the date since he went out with a group to the Predators vs Devils hockey game. My flight arrived that night so I didn’t meet him until after the group returned.
The public library of Amsterdam is useful for more than just library related activities (or for borrowing a computer to let someone know your phone is currently dead). It also provides a great view of the city from the 6th floor.
Construction around Amsterdam public library
Well, I am not sure how lazy a Friday can be after working an 11 hour shift… but now that that is behind me, the night does seem lazy.
Madurodam figure, relaxing in the sun
The picture above is from Madurodam, a miniature city of typical Dutch places in a 1:25 scale. I have many, many pictures of it from the trip I took two summers ago… but I will save those for another blog post. But I did like the picture above, and it seems apt for a Friday. Even if it’s not summer currently.
In the Netherlands, land is at a premium. It’s a small country that still boasts about 17 million people, so you need to find a place for everyone and everything.
Including playgrounds for the little ones.
First, I want to mention how amusing it is to be subscribed to a dozen or so Dutch blogs and see how most of them talk about the weather. Snow, cold, and the prospect of elfstedentocht (elf-steden-tocht, 11 city tour). It’s a rare event where the canal ice freezes up enough for ice skating through 11 cities to take place. It hasn’t happened since 1997.
Over here, I am just glad we’ve only had two snowstorms: the Halloween one which knocked out my power for 5 days — just a few inches of snow — and one a few weeks ago, about 5 inches.
Today’s topic is de bogaard in Rijswijk, a shopping area near the Hague which you can get to by bus. I visited it twice. The first time I had someone with me, the second time I traveled there alone.
Life in the Hague 