Democrats & Republicans Coming Together in Peace...

I was a bit nervous about entertaining such politically diverse dads, who'd only met once at our wedding 13 years ago, but I was worried for nothing. We enjoyed touring the Peace Palace (apologies for the lousy photo). This magnificient building is filled with amazing artwork from the many member nations and houses the International Court of Justice, which settles border and financial disputes between nations. After this inspirational tour you'd think we would have solved all the world's problems over lunch, but sadly we only unilaterally agreed that it should be illegal to marry your own grandmother.

Slumming it in Holland...

A week after my dad arrived, Jimmy's dad came out for a long weekend. We dragged the two of them to the Leiden market, our favorite Saturday hangout; the girls convinced Buddy into paddling into the centrum while Grandpa was relieved to ride in a city bus. In fact, we dragged both of them on many trains, trams and buses. For guys accustomed to the finer things in life, they never complained about slumming it with us in 2nd class. In this photo Veronica's showing Buddy how to tram surf.

Mother Nature Shows Off...

Just had to include this photo since it was one of the most spectacular sunsets I'd ever seen. Amazingly, it was from our front yard in late September. Not sure what the atmospheric conditions were to create such a show, but would love for it to happen again. While we do occasionally see sunsets and sunrises (sadly we wake up around here before the sun comes up about half the year), this was definitely a rare one.

Dutch Specialities...

We ate out a lot when my dad visited. While the girls were at school, he and I explored nearby towns in search for the best lunch. The runner up was an Uitsmijter (sunny side up eggs and cheese on toast) at a cafe in Haarlem. The winner was a Tuna Carpaccio sandwich at a Leiden canalside cafe. We skipped the Filet American which is raw hamburg.

We didn't eat out often for dinner because most restaurants offer multiple courses served over several hours and are quite expensive. The philosophy is that once you have a table, it's yours for the night. However, we did go out for some traditional meals-- Pannekoeken (Dutch pancakes which are similar to crepes), Rijstafel (Indonesian rice table) and the shown Mosselen (mussels steamed with wine and veggies). Eet smakelijk!

The World's Oldest Profession...

No tour of Amsterdam is complete without a walk through the infamous Red Light District dating back to the 1300's. Yes, the rumors are true, women legally sit in windows plying their trade while tourists walk by gawking. Strangely, there are even boat cruises advertised as "romantic" that specialize in the area. Not surprisingly, the area is quite sleazy with sex shows, shops and coffeehouses.

My, That's Funny Smelling Coffee...

If you're looking for a good cup of coffee, you'll want to avoid Amsterdam's coffeeshops and stick with a koffie house or cafe. As you walk through the streets of Amsterdam, it's hard to avoid the smell of marijuana pouring forth from the many coffeehouses where it's allowed (although still technically illegal) to buy and toke. As old hippies, my dad and I couldn't resist posing in front of Amsterdam's first coffeeshop, The Bulldog. Of course, we just liked the paintings.

Sharing Dutch Culture with Dad...

I must admit I was a bit nervous about hosting my dad for 10 days before my stepmom joined him for another 10 days. He's used to a lot of space and a 1st class lifestyle, but he adapted to our 2nd class existence brilliantly and we had a great time sharing father and daughter moments all over the Randstad. Here you see us at the Heineken Experience which is basically a giant ad for Heineken, but was lots of fun. Click here to check out the silly video we made.

Hanging at Schiphol...

It's an easy commute from our house on the train to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. Schiphol means "ship hole." Its original name was Schiphel meaning "ship hell," because many ships mysteriously got lost in the lake that existed until 1850 under its reclaimed land. Unfortunately, we haven't found those great flight tracker websites here like in the US, so we've spent many hours there this summer waiting for late flights. Luckily, there's a nice shopping center before security. There's also a giant observation deck that's smart enough to have a bar, but strangely no view of take-offs or landings. In this photo, we're meeting my father for his recent visit. The hamster is the mascot of the largest grocery store chain in Holland; personally I think anything close to a rodent doesn't make a good mascot, but it made for cute masks and a good laugh.

A View of the Royals...

Before moving here, I didn't even realize that The Netherlands had a Queen. I still don't know much about the Royal Family, but was excited about my first chance to see them even if it was from afar. On Prinsjesdag (Day of the Princes) the 3rd Tuesday of each September, Queen Beatrix, Prince Willem-Alexander (next in line to the throne) and his wife Princess Maxima ride in a golden carriage through the streets of Den Haag. They travel from the working palace to the parliament so the Queen can deliver the opening speech for the new parliamentary year. I kept the girls out of school so they could join me for lunch at a friend's apartment on a prime viewing corner. She was told there was a marine sharpshooter posted on the 5th floor balcony, but when we got permission to go up there we discovered instead of an uzi, he was armed with a very nice Nikon.

And On the Right We Have Some Crazy Americans...

Yes, it's true. Our house is actually on a tour boat route. We feel so famous. It's quite funny to look out our dining room windows and see a big old tour boat going by. This particular one specializes in dinner parties. The smaller flat roofed tour boats that Holland is known for stick to the canals in the center of Leiden. This photo also shows our favorite spot to hang out--our dock. It's a great place for snacks, after-dinner drinks, feeding the ducks and watching the sunset.

Wacky Summer Weather...

There's a saying here in Holland: If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes cuz it'll change (ok, they don't really say "cuz", but you get the gist). After a beautiful spring, our first summer here was filled with weather extremes. July 2006 was the hottest July on record. Luckily we were in Sweden during the week filled with days over 90°. While that's a normal summer temperature in NC, it's scorching in a country without air conditioning. We were relieved the temperatures dropped when we returned, but not so thrilled about the 3+ weeks of constant rain (especially tricky with a broken dryer). August 2006 was the wettest August on record with over 7 inches of rain (keep in mind that's without the help of a tropical storm). This photo was taken from our yard of the only rainbow we've seen here so far. Things finally dried out in September and it went on to be the hottest September on record, which meant gorgeous days around 72°. It's now October and it's swinging back to wet. I'm stubbornly refusing to take out my winter clothes in hopes of one last bit of good weather, but have learned my lesson about leaving the house without an umbrella.

Valuable Lessons Learned - Part 5

* Don't forget to bring snacks along if you ever do a race without an entry fee. Imagine our surprise when we finished a recent 5K that we were offered water and radishes at the end. Guessing the mastermind that had the brainstorm 0f giving runners 1-calorie radishes has never run in his life. Of course, you get what you pay for.

* Unless you enjoy waiting needlessly for hours at an airport or train station, it's best not to try surprising travellers who don't carry a cell phone. Somehow Jimmy managed to sneak out another door from customs at the airport and we managed to duck into a cab at a British train station thus leaving the other to wait.

Ready to Cut the Cheese?

(Come on--you knew that I'd eventually have to write that living in the Land of Cheese.)

* The Dutch are often called "Kaaskoppen" or "Cheese Heads." There's a rumor that during the Middle Ages farmers used the wooden cheese molds as helmets, thus the enemy would see an army of "Cheese Heads" approaching.

* Over 5 billion liters of milk winds up as cheese annually.

* Holland was the world's first exporter of cheese. It exports over $2 billion of cheese annually.

* Our favorite Dutch cheese is Old Amsterdam. Ask for it at the cheese counter at Whole Foods (if they don't have it, they'll recommend something similar) and think of us. Or better yet, come visit and feel free to try all 150+ cheeses carried at the Kaas Specialist.

Alkmaar Cheese Market...

Every summer a few cities famous for their Dutch cheeses hold weekly cheese markets for the tourists. The girls and I went to Alkmaar with a friend in August. We could barely squeeze through the crowds to get a glimpse of the action that has been conducted in this same square since 1593 -- the carriers dressed in the colors of their guild have a peculiar waddle while running with wheels of cheese to the scales (each wheel weighs approx 44 pounds). This photo was taken when I went back with a friend to the final market in mid-September and knew where to go to avoid the crowds. The photo in the posting above was taken from the window of the Cheese Museum, which is upstairs in the 600-year-old weighing house.