Ready to go- (21/04)

'I’m surrounded by my packed-up room that was once sufficiently accessorised to feel like a home from home. The silence is making my mind wander and it’s wandering back to the very start of my time here...

I’m remembering the feeling of summer, the hope, the sun, the beach, the hopelessness, reunion. Then the new start. The anticipation, the nights out, the friends, the bike, the festivities, returning. 

Then the New Year. The optimism, the snow, the routine, the injuries, the questions, exploration. Then going home. There my mind rests. It stops fluttering and it makes peace. It relaxes. It knows that it’ll be ready.'

Just something I wrote 2 weeks ago...

I’m back in the UK now but I’m not finished with NL just yet ;)

Watch this space!!     

Back to the Capital- (13/04)

It was only fair to give Amsterdam another whirl for my last weekend in NL. I and my 2 closest friends here even booked a hostel for Saturday night to make sure we didn’t miss out on anything in order to get back for the last train! We spent the Saturday walking around in the lovely weather (just as I did on my first visit to Amsterdam!), having a look at the street performers of Dam Square and relaxing. We’d also booked ourselves an hour long canal boat tour of Amsterdam which was awesome. Unlike last time I wasn’t in control of steering the thing so I could really soak up the canal atmosphere from the outside seating area. We even managed to catch an odd word or two from the boat’s automated guide which was unfortunately only playing inside!

The evening was spent at a number of clubs and bars in Amsterdam’s Leidesplein (a square I’d already been to before and loved!) because it was where our hostel was located. Very convenient! It seemed like so long ago that I was chilling in Amsterdam with my sister and friend. Back then I was thinking about coming to Ypenburg to start with the host family I’d just been invited to join. 7 months later and there I was again but this time thinking about coming home to start afresh in the UK...

Efteling (06/04)

Officially opened back in 1952 the Efteling is one of the oldest theme parks in the world, one of the highest ranked parks in Europe and the largest in the Netherlands. Needless to say the trek of 3 hours tram-train-train-bus to Tilburg (in the South of the Netherlands) was worth it. I was amazed by the sheer size of the fantastically designed buildings and the 30 odd attractions as we followed the map around the park: everything was designed to be in keeping with the theme of fairy-tales. I really felt like I was in a different world!

We managed to seek out all the red marked rides on the map since they were ‘Only for daredevils’ and surprisingly I didn’t feel the desire to scream in fear or close my eyes on any of the roller-coasters. I’ve definitely toughened up. That said, the swinging ship was just too much for my poor stomach. I did weep through that.

Once arriving it took the rest of the day just to get round the park. We were very fortunate that the queues were never too long, though we could see that the park facilitated for a summer hype. Slightly tired we stopped for an ice-cream at the appropriately named Happiness Station where we could pick our own toppings and flavour ice cream. Stroopwaffel, speculaas, white and milk chocolate and caramel all whipped up together in a strawberry and vanilla cream made me one happy girl. 

Once all the rides had closed around 6pm we headed to the large free water show by the entrance to the park. It was a breath-taking interpretation of the Princess and the Frog with hundreds of amazingly shaped jets of water, fireworks, fire (on the surface of the water!) all set to beautiful music. A great way to end the day.  

      

Easter in NL (29/03-01/04)

A Good Good Friday:

Having shown my twin sister around the main sights of the Hague by Thursday evening it was time to see them all, and all the other sights of the Netherlands, in miniature! Madurodam, an enormous miniature village, was a great day out for us and my host kids. Lining almost every section of the park were interactive kids games or toys to keep them entertained and card-activated informative videos for the adults. As we weaved our way through the traditional mills, wind turbines, boats, bridges, castles, churches, houses, cities, flowers, cheeses, stadium and airport I was thrilled by how much I recognised and how much I’d seen in real life.

I didn’t get to stop and observe as much as I would have wanted to as a lengthy stop at the incredible kids playground proved necessary as did a stop at the café for a quick muffin and hot chocolate :) Once back home Sophie and I got ready for a night out to celebrate my friend’s birthday. That ticked off another attraction off the list.

Saturday:

Midday called for a relaxing bagel and tea at one of my favourite cafes in the Hague, Bagel & Beans with Sophie and friends. Then a stroll along the Scheveningen promenade- still astoundingly cold for the time of the year!- and it’s pier with its great view across the beach (more on Scheveningen in summer here). A trip to the cinema there rounded off a lovely relaxing Saturday. Simply ‘lifting’ Sophie to all these manner of places was enough to warrant this day of rest. What’s ‘lifting’? The word refers to the carrying of another on the back of one’s bike. Very very common in the Netherlands.

A Sisterly Sunday:

On a day celebrating new life I celebrated having my twin physically back in mine. I couldn’t resist showing her all around Delft and I was really pleased to hear some Easter tunes in Delft’s central square. The cheese tasting in the Henri Willig shop and the visit to the Royal Delft official shop just next door ensured that I completed all that I wanted to in this lovely little town.  

Roaming Rotterdam:

An early start for the train to Rotterdam is how Sophie’s last full day in NL began. Locating a different Tourist Information from my first visit (more here) proved to produce a gem. A free walking tour of Rotterdam’s architecture. The absurd mix of modern and old, simple and complex, curvaceous and jagged, monolithic and bright, opaque and transparent, functional and decorative, dense and sparing, towering and plane. Just wow.

The sun even ventured out as we caught a bus to take us around Rotterdam by water. You read right. A bus. Starting at the Southern point of the harbour we were driven to the Northern point and with an almighty splash (thoroughly enjoyed by all the kids on board) we entered the water. It was a lovely hour long tour, with a perfect view over Rotterdam’s eccentric skyline. Nice to see the Euromast Tower and Erasmus Bridge from an unobstructed vantage point.  

Tuesday morning Sophie and I took the kids to school, then straight to Schipol and then it was back again for me to pick them up. It was a lovely Easter, while it lasted. Love you and miss you Soph x