Back to work...

I've had a couple long weekends in a row. It's hard to get back into the same routine again. Jules is helping make it a more enjoyable transition:

Jules: lada-da-dada-da...i want ice-cream...i want cake...ta-dada-da-dada... (twirl around in circles. hit corner of counter). ow!!! pain! pain! amana! pain!
Me: Oooh! Ow. Come here. Oh! Watch where you're going!
Jules: (step on toy) OW!
Me: Careful there kid!
Jules: Kus?! Kiss?
Me: (lean over to kiss)
Jules: (sees another toy; turns and walks away)
Me: (kiss the air)
Jules: (comes back with truck that latches shut). Dicht! Close it! Close!
Me: It is closed...
Jules: Dicht...mm-la-di-bla-bla-dicht-bla-mm-bla.
Me: Heh?
Jules: Mm-la-di-bla-bla-dicht-bla-mm-bla.
Me: Wha?
Jules: (holds up truck) Mm-bla-dicht!
Me: Oh. You want it open. (open hatch; Jules giggles contentedly, runs away).
Jules: (from other room) Aaagh! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Me: Uh oh. What now? Be careful Jules! (wait two seconds...)
Jules: (giggle) la-oooo-bi-got it-ooo-eat you up-la-di-ba-ma-ma-ma-cake-icecream-la-oooh!

Five minutes later:
Jules: (comes into room, holding plastic dishes) ik eb een ijsje! i got an icecream! 'mana, eat!
Me: mmm, yummy (make eating noises).
Jules: Nee! it hot! it hot!
Me: Ooh, ow. Hot! Ah.
Jules: (laughs really loud) Yah! Lekker? (runs away before i can answer; loud crash follows) Oooh! Ow! 'mana! Pain! Ow! (cries) mmm-bla-mmm-mean!-mmm-ta-mmumm-ow! (comes for a kiss).

Five minutes later:
Jules: 'Mana, count!
Me: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Jules: Nee! 1, 4, 8! 1, 4, 8!
Me: ok...1, 4, 8...
Jules: Yay! (runs away, giggling...crash...) Ow! Stupid! (something hard drops to floor) Mean! Ow! (silence...followed by giggle) Bla-mm-ma-ma-ma-la-da-da-cake-icecream...!

It's a good thing he seems to heal very quickly...

god bless royalty

there are times when i really love this country. queens day is one of those times. the entire country comes out to celebrate for two days in a row; crowds of orange flowing in hoards to the center of every big city, beer in hand, dutch flags and strange elaborate hats of all kinds everywhere; parties till the sun comes up, flee markets down every side stree, canals packed full of boats... 
ahhh... 
i can handle this place.

just a bit of bitching....

marrying internationally involves alot of annoying paperwork. which involves going from one embassy to some other foreign affairs building which isn't opened today you'll have to do it another time, and then back to the embassy then to a completely different city plus some stuff with the mail and then another stamp at another building...all of which includes paying for something at each stop of course...

planning a wedding on the other side of the world from that of where one's family lives is another nice little challenge. how hard could it possibly be to find somewhere to put 20-some people for a few days? apparently the competitive nature of the American hotel industry has it's advantages. less luxury, less expensive, more rooms, better deals...and of course, accomodation to the customers needs because he is always right. where is that when you need it?

word of advice: marry the boy next door...as long as he is a citizen in the same country as you are...and his family lives close by...and you have a big basement to stuff everyone into...

studying a masters in an other country than where one got one's masters also is apparently quite complicated. i got a nice reject email from the University of Amsterdam - "you do not have a sufficient educational background...". the international degree/diploma comparison site i looked at yesterday said that by Dutch standards i should do the last two years of a bachelor's somewhere, just to catch up.  can some one remind me why i studied for four years for a bachelors that put me in debt for like the rest of my life at a school that no one knows of and apparently doesn't quite prepare me for the future quite as well as was so consistently promised through the entire duration of my "educational career"?

i'm crossing my fingers (and sending a lot of little helpless messages upwards) for the response from the University of Leiden. maybe they will have mercy on me. maybe they'll have a pre-master's program. maybe i'll have to resign myself to my fate as the eternal undergrad-student.

in other news: the netherlands is experiencing record warm and dry spring weather. generally around this time of year they get an average of 40cm of rain and now they have had only 3... or something like that. i don't remember the numbers. just the drastic difference. i'm enjoying the sun...but i'm slightly unnerved by the fact that holland is actually dusty. i didn't even know it could get dry here. very strange. in comparison to the spring of my nspice program, everything is much brighter, warmer, and prettier (no grey anywhere!). and of course, drier (is that a word, in this context?).

this weekend the entire country will celebrate the birthday of the queen (which actually is some time in the winter or something, but they just picked one day to celebrate instead of switching with each new queen/king)... so... this weekend, luuk, carmela, dane, and myself will be running around in the streets with half of holland drinking beer and singing songs in the queens honor. yay! 

Hmm....

This is an interesting one...
I think I'll choose to ignore the last paragraph and hope for the best. :)

Baa-aa-aah!

Yesterday, Camiel woke up giving his usual "I'm sick, I really am today" routine. He does this almost every day, and we have learned to ignore it (though I occasionally warn him that if he keeps lying, someday he'll actually be sick and we won't know and he'll get worse and dye or a wolf will eat him). He was sent off to school with his dad, despite all protests, and I began my peaceful morning routine of tea, dirty diapers, coffee, snacks, naps, etc., which was broken 30min later when they both came back. He'd thrown up on the way to school.
His dad wasn't convinced that he hadn't actually done it on purpose (kids are smart little buggers; it's like they instinctively know all this stuff about how to piss off the big people...maybe it's an evolutionary defense mechanism...actually...that doesn't make sense, cause that's the kinda stuff to cut the cycle...). Anywho... he got to spend the whole day laying in bed, watching movies. After the first movie, he told me he felt alot better and wanted to play with his little brother. I told him he was sick and sick people have to get alot of rest so he better stay in bed. For the first time since I've been here, he actually tried to convince me (constantly throughout the day) that he was better. Is it mean that I wanted to teach him that being sick is no fun and he shouldn't ever try to be it again? Anyway, he didn't particulary like it (he was bored as hell). 
He just complained all day.
Happily, I've learned how to tune whiny voices out of the sound waves before they reach me.

This morning he woke up with a fever.
His dad and I looked very sheepishly at each other when we found out.
Ah well. No harm done. If he was sick, then he really should have stayed in bed anyway.

So, today he didn't go to school, which means I don't have to pick him up at all...and since Wednesdays the kids go to the neighbors, I have the whole day off!
In the words of Jules: yippee! (He actually says that when he's happy. Super cute.)

Now, I'm gonna leave all you fools and enjoy my temporary freedom (which includes nap, coffee, and a trip to Rotterdam to hang out with a future-sister-in-law!).
Cheers!

i'm not me any more...

i feel like an old woman and a soccer-mom combined. living the life of a nanny has changed me. 
i run around after children all day. i can change diapers now without 
gagging at the smell.  i accept slobbery kisses all the time, semi-comfortably (why do kids insist on aiming for the mouth? what's wrong with the cheek?)
i drive back and forth with kids in the backseat and get unraveled about things like a forgotten diaper or a day out of routine, but sometimes don't even notice dirty faces, the smell of poo, crying in the backseat or the toys they leave strewn about everywhere they go.
i get sleepy at 10pm (sometimes earlier...). if i go to bed later than 11 for three nights in a row (like this week) i am exhausted by day 4 (like today) and naps don't even quite help. i need my regular bedtime. my 8hrs of laying in bed, trying to sleep and occasionally succeeding.
a regular observer could tell what day it is by the order of events and routines throughout the week. one thing never changes: coffee and tea. tea right away in the morning. coffee around 10. tea again when the kids are in bed for their nap/or on wed-fri, around 11. and again around 4, just to kill time. if this routine gets messed up, i'm uneasy and annoyed.
i understand the mom's who "lose their looks" after having kids... you stop caring everyday and save the looks for weekends or nights out. i wear the same clothes throughout the week - these are my nanny clothes, the clothes i don't mind getting spit up on, the clothes that are warm and comfortable and unflattering. make up is pointless. ponytail is standard (and since i cut half of it off, my life has been made so much easier!). showers are reserved for evenings, after all dirty hands and mouths are safely tucked away in bed. oh, and do not forget the ever present shadows under my eyes, which seem to be increasingly accompanied by wrinkles(!?).

and i'm only doing this for one year!

Note to self: Read all notes and letters sent home from Camiel's school.

Apparently the kids were all supposed to take a lunch for someone else in their class, decorated and wrapped in traditional easter paper, flowers, bunnies, and all that other stuff. Camiel and I walked into the school building holding a plastic sandwich bag and a juice box with the girl's name on it, satisfied at having remembered to carry out this small task.
And everyone else walked in with baskets and boxes and gift bags full of ribbons and bows and flowers and chocolate eggs. 
Camiel was the only one who was not carrying a nicely prepared lunch.
Besides the shame of having missed such an important instruction probably sent home 
at some point, enhanced by the disapproving gaze of all the mothers who walked in with their kids proudly holding up their little easter offering, I felt terrible for the little girl who would 
probably be the only on in the class without pretty lunch.
As I left the building, I pictured her sitting in front of her meal, sniffling as the teacher explained to her that some people are forgetful and that life will present her with many more disappointments. I told myself it wasn't my fault (no one told me, after all, and besides, how in the world am I supposed to keep track of all these Dutch traditions that I have never heard of before?!), that it was too late, that it wasn't that big of a deal...until finally I decided that I had to do something, so I turned the car around and drove to the nearest store and bought some gift wrapping, tape, and scissors. I decorated the little bag in the car, wrote a nice probably grammatically incorrect note on the card, and rushed into the school building, hoping to sneak in before their snack time and put the sandwich and juice into the bag without being noticed, saving the day and making the little girl happy.
Instead, I was met by frantically busy mothers and a very frustrated looking teacher who were all trying to get the children in order for the picnic they were about to leave on. So much for secrecy. I looked for the food and couldn't find it. Finally I tapped on the teacher's shoulder, who turned and gave me a "don't bother me, I'm terribly busy" look, asked her where the food was, and she sent me off to one of the moms. The mom reacted similarly, then when I explained my mission she said in a tone that indicated nothing pleasant, "We wrapped it already." Oh. Right. Figures. So, I found the sandwich wrapped in yellow crepe paper and decorated with easter eggs, managed to squish it into the pink ribbon-dressed gift bag, then stood there feeling very disappointed and foolish, holding my good intentions in my hands.

As I left I realized that we had forgotten to pack a fruit snack.

What would I do without a fiancé to cheer me up?

Mrs. Bacciagalupe comes to visit her son Anthony for dinner. Anthony lives with a female roommate, Maria.
During the course of the meal, Momma can't help but notice how pretty Anthony's roommate was. She had long been suspicious of the relationship between the two, and this made her more curious.
Over the course of the evening, while watching the two interact, she started to wonder if there was more between Anthony and his roommate than meets the eye.
Reading his Mom's thoughts, Anthony volunteered, "I know what you must be thinking, but I assure you, Mama, Maria and I are just roommates."
About a week later, Maria comes to Anthony saying, "Ever since your mother came to dinner, I've been unable to find the silver sugar bowl. You don't suppose she took it, do you?"
"Well, I doubt it, but I'll e-mail her, just to be sure." So he sends his Mom an email:
"Dear Momma, I'm not saying that you took the sugar bowl from my house, and I'm not saying that you didn't take it. But the fact remains that it has been missing ever since you were here for dinner.
Love,
Anthony"
Several days later, Anthony receives an email response from his Momma.
"Figlio mio, I'm not saying that you 'do' sleep with Maria, and I'm not saying that you 'do not' sleep with her. But the fact remains that if she was sleeping in her own bed, she would have found the sugar bowl by now."


Four surgeons were sitting around discussing who they like to operate on.
The first surgeon said, "I like operating on librarians. When you open them up everything is in alphabetical order".
The second surgeon said, "I like operating on accountants. When you open them up everything is in numerical order".
The third surgeon said, "I like operating on electricians. When you open them up everything is color coded.
The fourth surgeon said, "I like operating on politicians."
The other three surgeons looked at each other in disbelief. One of them asked why.
The fourth surgeon replied, "Because they are heartless, gutless, spineless, and their ass and head are interchangeable".


And finally...How is a soyburger like a dildo?

They're both substitutes for meat.

sudden realization

i woke up this morning with the strong feeling of missing my family. this is the longest i have gone without seeing them. and i suppose the first time i have really missed them as much as i do now. i never really missed them alot before, sometimes a bit, but i always saw them every three to six months again for a re-charge and i talked often enough on the phone with them to satisfy my need for connection. but now the phone calls are a bit less and it's been over 8 months since my last re-charge.
perhaps the permance of this new situation is settling in for the first time. this is going to be part of my life for...well, the rest of my life, probably. both my parents have done this as well: moved far away from home, seeing family only once a year or sometimes less, not seeing family for years at a time. i suppose i grew up with the idea that this was normal, so being away from them for months before was not a big deal. but now, it will become more than a few months. i won't see my two youngest sisters grow up. i'll probably even miss a few important events, like graduations and weddings and babies...
not that i didn't know this when i decided to come here. nor does it make me wish to turn around and leave. for one thing, this would be the case no matter where i lived, unless i tried to start a global rotation, moving from sibling to sibling to parents to sibling every so often... 
so, despite the impossibility of getting my whole family in one place permanently and despite my
choice and desire to be here, i still will have days like this sometimes... 
and that's good i suppose.
luuk will just have to work on making those millions so we can afford random trips around the world every 6 weeks.  :)

More fun news...

- This guy thought it would be cool to swim the amazon. His journal is pretty interesting, actually.

- Three cheers for Sydney.

- I suppose I'm free to run around and have lots and lots of sex now... Just kidding! Drink green tea folks, it's good for you!

blissful despondency

The world is covered with a thick haze. Everything is weighted, slower, as if submerged in beautiful white water. Rowing the boat across the canal is a surreal experience. The water is dark and still as glass. I'm filled with an over-whelming urge to jump in. I feel lost in whiteness.
But I experience no panic, rather a sort of drowsy peace. The birds slept in today. All is quiet. I can actually stare at the sun, a big white ball glaring through the clouds, without my eyes hurting right away. I'll probably go blind some day just because of that one minute today. Suddenly the white becomes unbareably bright. I squint my eyes, burning and filling with tears. For some reason, I think it would feel good to let the tears keep falling. Instead, I look away from the white world, let my eyes settle on something dark for a few seconds.  "I will follow you into the dark" replays in my head...the time for sleep is now...

Geez....

what the monkey?

Of weddings and love and domestic things...

 We checked out reception/dinner locations this weekend. We have narrowed it down to three... now we have to compare prices and specific possibilities of each, and pick one. Luuk really like one, while I and his dad favored another. But, since all are good options, compromise won't be too much of a problem... (Right, Luuk? Did I ever mention how handsome and manly and wonderful and giving you are?) ;)

My future-mother-in-law paid us a compliment this weekend. She said that we seem like a couple that can make it.  We didn't have any doubts about that or anything... but it's still encouraging. 'specially coming from one of the most important critics - the mom.

We also went to a house-warming party for one of Luuk's friends this weekend.

(K...this kid next to me is licking the door. Wtf?)

Anyway...house-warming party... made me really want to have an apartment/house of our own. Man...I am turning domestic or something. Burgelijk... It makes sense though, I think. I feel out of place here. I need my own space.

You know, they say that women are more territorial than men. I wonder if that's true...?

I had a really sick dream last night, that I won't describe here for your sake...but everytime I think about it, I feel my throat tightening and my stomach starting to make the first movements of throwing up. I should stop thinking about it. But it keeps flashing across my brain.

(Seriously. Kids are kinda dumb...how hard is it to figure out that if something is too big its not going to fit in the little dump-truck and you should find something else to put into it instead of pushing and attempting to squish the big thing in and screaming and wailing when it repeatedly doesn't work?)

Sweet.

 This is pretty cool.

So sad...

The amazon is drying up...

Crashing into boats

Normally, the wind comes from one direction everyday. Sometimes it blows really hard, sometimes not. I generally don't even notice the wind anymore, except on really really windy days. I've gotten so used to rowing that I have learned to automatically compensate for the extra one-sided force by rowing harder against it.
Today, the wind came from the opposite direction. And I didn't know what to do with myself. 
I scrambled around in the middle of the canal, drifting in the completely wrong direction while I
fought the automatic urge to row in the same direction as usual. I ended up rushing at a surprising
speed toward the other docked boats.
Beautiful.
It's a good thing these boats are made of some sort of metal.

Two years is long enough to warm up any cold feet.

 Well, I passed the driving test. Not without incident. Of course. My driving instructor decided to drink coffee instead of ride along. No big deal. 'Cept, that left me to make conversation and drive on my own with this very intimidating exam-giver-person. When he met me, the first thing he said was (in a strong imitation American accent) "So, you are Canadian. And you think you can drive?" I smiled, tried to be nice, not too nice, ignoring the fact that he seemed incapable of smiling. "Where you were you born?" "Calgary." "Ah. I've been there." "Yes? It's a nice city, isn't it?" "No. Not really. It's too big. Everything is too far apart. I thought it was ugly." "Oh. Well, I suppose I can see that. It has it's charms though." "Nah. Only the stampede." "Right." Crap. Why is it that this makes me so nervous? Any other time I would find 
someone like him slightly amusing. Circumstances, I suppose. The entire ride was like this. Uncomfortable periods of silence, then attempts at conversation that somehow always ended up going back to my being American/Canadian...he wasn't mean, he just seemed incredibly unimpressed. Which is fine. But for some reason, uncomfortable.
So, anyway...driving. I started passing a truck at some point and the man sitting next to me gruffly said "No, stay in this lane, we're turning right." So, I quickly switched back to the right lane, then looked for the street. Ah, there, half a block past the green light. I moved toward the turning lane and kept driving, only to practically shit my pants when he slammed on the brake. "The turning light is red." Turning light? Where? Fuck. Right next to the green light I so happily was driving through. Shit. Who puts a turning light half a block before the street, anyway?! Ugh. This country! "Oh." Nervous giggle. "I didn't see that." Obviously. Pff. Shut up, Amanda!
He made absolutely no comment. That was worse than if he'd started yelling at me. We drove around for another 15 min., me trying to be more careful, more aware, and a better driver than I'll ever be in any real situation, him sitting next to me, staring out the window. I was absolutely certain that I'd failed. That's a really stupid, but somewhat important mistake to make. Fuck.
So, after the test, we went inside. We met my instructor who's smile immediately dropped when she saw us... Great. She knows. She whispered to me "how'd it go?" I shrugged and made a face. Dunno.
We sat down. "Well. Let's see... The biggest thing that you need to work on is
watching for bikes. You need to look for them more carefully when coming across a bike path." Heh? I tried so hard to do that. Way more than normal. I even exaggerated my head turns so he couldn't miss them. "Ok. I'll work on that." "It's really important that you look for bikes." "Yes, I know." Fake-American accent comes back, "It's one of the most important things to remember when driving in this country. Always look for bikes!" No smile. "Yes. I understand. I thought I was looking enough..." Crap. That's a stupid thing to say. Don't argue! "No. You didn't. So. Work on that." A couple seconds silence. No comment about the light at least. I suppose it wasn't really necessary though. Then, for the first time, he smiled. He stuck out his hand and said, "But for the rest, you drove just fine! So, congratulations. You passed!" What? No way. The bastard! He looked very pleased with himself. I had to admit to myself that this was quite funny. As I was leaving the room, I heard him chuckle quietly. I smiled to myself.
Ok. That wasn't too bad, after all.

The rest of the weekend consisted of a disappointing dinner at a very interesting, well-decorated, charming Mexican restaurant. The food was good, but not Mexican really, and very expensive. Ah well. Luuk paid for my meal to celebrate my passing the exam. I paid for his meal to celebrate him popping the question two years ago. I suppose you could call that reverse-Dutch. Or something. 
We were going to go to Molly Mallones for St.Patty's and to further celebrate...but believe it or not, we actually forgot to go.
Don't ask.
The market on Saturday morning; an attempt at ceviché (which turned out quite well, if I can say so myself...); quesadillas for supper one day, fish, octopus, shrimp, and who knows what else, with rice the next day; some Settlers; a couple movies (Ghost World: good. Lost in Translation: I love it more each time. Eyes Wide Shut: meh.); attempts at sleeping in (I can't sleep; something
is wrong with me); and lots of great conversations with my hubby-to-be. (Sigh). I love that guy.

Gotta love them UV rays...

 Yesterday I had my last driving lesson. I had a different instructor. He thought it was super cool that he was "teaching" an American. He asked if I had any friends or sisters around here. I told him I actually did. He thought it was cool I could speak Dutch. He didn't want to speak English.
We talked about differences between US and Holland. He asked if I had any single female friends available. I laughed. Then told him not to try the long distance thing. It sucks. We talked 
more about differences between countries. He told me how much he 
LOVES the US.  He commented again that it would be great if I had any single girlfriends
around here. I smiled. He complimented me on my driving. Told me again how cool 
the US was. Then asked if I knew any single American girls. I didn't respond. He said he
was kidding. I half-smiled. 
He was nice. And talked alot. Which does make time go faster...Driving aimlessly 
for two hours isn't particularly fun, especially on a sunny day. And for all you single
female friends of mine, I'm sure he'll still be available in December if you come to the wedding and want an international fling.
Tomorrow is my driving exam. People keep telling me that the test is really hard and that I shouldn't be too sure that I'll do well. I can't help but think that my five years of driving would be somewhat of an advantage. But perhaps that's irrational and I should be extremely worried.
Meh.

This weekend: St. Patty's Day. A very important historic event occured on that day two years ago... anybody know?

sunlight: it does a body good.

 K. So, I tried, unsuccessfully, to post the pictures again. Not sure what the deal is. It's not the computer, cause last time I tried on a different one. I guess I am just a bit stupid with computers. Ah well. The pictures didn't really do Berlin justice, so I will leave the city to your imaginations instead of disappointing you with low-quality-cellphone-camera-shots. Plus, my face is in half of them, and we don't need to see that too much. ;)

Yesterday was sunny. Carmela, Dane, Luuk, and I took a nice long walk to some park I've never been to before in Groningen to sit in front of a pool of dirty water and soak in some desperately needed UV rays with many other like-minded and equally sun-deprived Dutch souls. I am not sure if I should be amused or worried by the fact that people rush out in hordes when ever the sun stays out for longer than 30 min. I like that people enjoy the sun so much. I fear what that desperate rush means in terms of days of sunlight in this country (or lack-thereof), and the effects on my future psychological health. I forget how much the sunlight affects my sense of contentment.

Today I put the kids down for a nap (which in itself deserves mention: Jules finished his sandwich, asked for milk, then said "Moe (tired). Slappen (sleep)," and walked to his room where he waited for me to put him to bed without complaint!), then I took a book (which also deserves mention...I'll elaborate later to prevent this from becoming a terribly confusing sentence), pulled out a lawn chair, sat down, and promptly fell asleep with the sun shining on my face. My cheeks are now slightly pink. I feel pleased and lazy as one of the chubby cats that wander around the yard. And I think if all days were like this, I could possibly enjoy my current state of affairs instead of grudgingly tolerate them.

Which brings me to this book... My mom told me a long time ago she thought I should read it. And then Luuk did just recently (unaware of my mom's comment). So, amused at this, I reluctantly accepted the book from Luuk. "The 7 Habits of Highly Affective People". I know. It's a self-help book. Which normally I hate. But perhaps I am allowing myself to be more open-minded. Or maybe my standards have dropped a bit. Ormaybe it's actually really not be that bad. In any case, I am not hating it as much as I expected and will admit to occasionally 
enjoying it. 
Mostly, it's one of those books that has basic good sense advice that you nod your head to and say "Of course, that's obvious", but would never have really considered unless someone pointed it out to you on paper.
Maybe it's cause I feel so lost sometimes that I'm even taking this book seriously. I dunno. I'm struggling.
Momentarily, I am considering: what point-of view do I see my life from at the moment and could it be better?  Before you scoff, understand this: I have been looking at this year as a transition year; my job as just a means to an end (somewhere to live, a house, food, bit of a spending cash, that's it); this whole situation as something to be tolerated until next year when things will inevitably get better. And, generally, that's what it's been. 
But, what if I looked at it differently? 
Mom keeps telling me that God was involved; that I am with this family for a reason; that there is some meaning to life, my life, right now...  This might sound like a really silly discussion. I dunno. But at the moment it's not, to me.

But now I am going to get some more sunlight. I'm trying to store up for then next couple of weeks until the next time he decides to come out.

Cheers.

Groeten

I tried to post pictures of Berlin, but they all showed up blank. Not sure what to do about that. So I deleted them from the blog cause a bunch of white spots on the page looked stupid.

Berlin: Very cool (I enjoy using that word, just because each time I do, I see Henderson cringe and Rose say "cool means cold!"). It was actually colder than here. Bit less windy. Saw the wall, of course. Well...the last bit that's left. There are pieces placed randomly around the city. Checkpoint Charlie (apparently well known...I'd never heard of it before...so the cool factor didn't really kick in till I read all there was to read about the place that was written on random boards around the area). Lots of old buildings - beautiful (I love old architecture. Could never tell you about the style or era built in or anything of artistic importance...but I like to look at them). Checked out a few museums. A monument to Jews (looked like a field of coffins, sorta like a maze of grey boxes...hard to explain). Enjoyed the sauna in the hotel (didn't know we were staying in a hotel with a sauna, so I didn't take a swimsuit, so I had to go in my underwear, which was fine cause actually most people there went naked...mostly older people...whatever...I'm cool with that... [k...who am I kidding? It's a little weird to sit in close hot sweaty quarters with middle and older aged people who shift positions without regard to what's...umm...showing]). We walked everywhere. I love walking through cities. And I loved the city of Berlin. It's very different from anything in the Netherlands - much bigger, and in some ways I suppose more American (there were ridiculous numbers of Dunkin Doughnuts and Starbucks to be found among the 17th century churches and government buildings), but in other ways completely different. The city exudes history. Even the way that newer buildings have been placed next to buildings centuries old speaks of its complicated past. I was momentarily sad each time I heard of or saw pictures of certain buildings that used to sit in this particular spot where that soviet style apartment block now sits or where that abnormally shaped modern office building is... War is so...scarring. I don't know what other word describes Berlin better. Scarred and beautiful.
Meh.
Getting a little melodramatic.
(Some where in the background I hear someone yawning..."Booooring!").

Funny highlight: We found a coffee shop called "Balzac Coffee". We checked it out, just to see what their coffee tasted like.
'twas good.

Other: We stopped in at the Guggenheim Musuem (much smaller than the New York version); filled with post-expressionist work. I loved it. Made me want to paint again. Some day.

Sidenote: Luuk and I are very different from each other in one very crucial manner - he is a goal-oriented person, and I am an experience-oriented person (is that a contradiction in terms?). This makes for walking together through cities and museums a very...ummm... interesting experience.
But love conquers all. (Which means: he walks slower).
:)