First an update on Blogarithm...if you would like to receive an email when we update the blog, you now need to sign up with www.rssfwd.com. They purchased Blogarithm and it seems that the migration of old Blogarithm accounts didn't go so smoothly.
We've been back in Alaska now for a month and we're exceedingly busy. I'm leading tours again for Adventure Alaska Tours and Michiel is busy with a host of big projects, including putting in a large garden and greenhouse at the home we are staying in, staining cabins, cleaning, chopping and bundling wood and many other things. He's also done a lot of fishing already this summer, including 2 (failed) attempts at king salmon (in his defence, he was the only person in the boat to get anything (a sockeye salmon) on the first trip and he was the only person to hook a king on yesterday's trip.) He was successful at landing a couple of halibut so we've got some nice fillets in the freezer.
Our friend, Sandra, from the Netherlands will be here tomorrow for 3 weeks and she will be joining us on an Adventure Alaska hiking tour. We'll get some photos up when we can.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
More Family Time
We've just left the Netherlands after three weeks of (mostly) family time and probably the nicest stretch of weather I've ever experienced in the country. It was fantastic to be able to go out for long bike rides in the country and really get to see the farmland and lovely homes in the area near Rijnsaterwoude (where Michiel grew up and his father still lives). For much of the time, the skies were blue, the sun was shining and the storks, herons, swans, ducks, goats, cows and sheep were frolicking - a glorious time to be in Holland!
For one week of our time there, the entire family rented a couple of bungalows in a holiday park. We played lots of games (including laser tag, a newspaper fashion show and casino night), ate incredible ethnic food (prepared each night by one of the siblings) and celebrated Bonpa's (my father-in-law) 80th birthday with a day out in the Biesbosch National Park. Our day in the park included a horse and cart ride and a boat tour of a water area that has long been managed by dikes.
Here is a collection of photo highlights:
Celebrating Marilyn May's 6th birthday
Bonpa and his sister, Marion
Ton and Oneida on Queen's Day (thus the orange shirts)
All contestants in the newspaper fashion show
Team one: Seneca, Wilbert, Gwendolyn, and Ton
Casino night: Seneca, Marilyn, Joey, Gwendolyn and Tonny
Marie-Birgitte and Anne-Charlotte
Cocktail hour: Marie-Birgitte, Wilbert, me and Chantal
Ethiopian food!
The brothers-in-law: Bart, Perry and Ton
For one week of our time there, the entire family rented a couple of bungalows in a holiday park. We played lots of games (including laser tag, a newspaper fashion show and casino night), ate incredible ethnic food (prepared each night by one of the siblings) and celebrated Bonpa's (my father-in-law) 80th birthday with a day out in the Biesbosch National Park. Our day in the park included a horse and cart ride and a boat tour of a water area that has long been managed by dikes.
Here is a collection of photo highlights:
Celebrating Marilyn May's 6th birthday
Bonpa and his sister, Marion
Ton and Oneida on Queen's Day (thus the orange shirts)
All contestants in the newspaper fashion show
Team one: Seneca, Wilbert, Gwendolyn, and Ton
Casino night: Seneca, Marilyn, Joey, Gwendolyn and Tonny
Marie-Birgitte and Anne-Charlotte
Cocktail hour: Marie-Birgitte, Wilbert, me and Chantal
Ethiopian food!
The brothers-in-law: Bart, Perry and Ton
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Receive an email when we update
Since we are so irregular with updates to the blog, we've added a link to Blogarithm in the navigation bar (left side bar, below the picture of the shoes) of this blog. With Blogarithm, you sign up the blog sites you wish to follow and provide your email address. You'll receive an email any time those blogs are updated.
Thursday, May 08, 2008
From the land of smiles to....
the land of grimaces??
If you want to take a step back into time and/or have your stereotypical expectations of Eastern European gruffness, lousy food and lack of modernization met, fly with Malev Airlines (the Hungarian national airline) and then go through immigration in Budapest. We've seen more than our fair share of immigration officials, but these were right up there in the top 5 most hateful for their wordless slapping down of our passports on the counter (and it wasn't because I'm an American) and the sneers of contempt. The topper was the lady immigration official who stormed out of her cubicle to yell at a Chinese tour guide who was trying to gather his unruly flock of middle-aged women travelers. "Please be quiet. Vee are trying to vork here!" I'm not sure if he completely understood her, but he was stunned into silence, as was everyone else in the baggage claim area.
Yep...Hungarians are a sad looking people and a folk not given to warm hospitality...at least not in shops or restaurants. We walked out of a restaurant when our waitress didn't return to our table to take our orders. Perhaps she decided that she didn't feel like trying to speak English, maybe it was time for a cigarette break (and, my God, do these people smoke!) or perhaps this is normal. We left the restaurant and opted,instead for stall-purchased fyllo-dough wrapped potato and cheese strudels.
Franz Liszt
All this aside, it was great being in Budapest again. I had visited in 1999 when western food chains were just starting to crop up on shopping streets and the bulk of the visitors were roving groups of Russian men in black trench coats. These days, there are more visitors from western Europe (especially Italians) and there is a definite sense that a lot of money has gone into fixing up buildings, roads and shops. In fact, the apartment we rented was purchased by an Englishman who is putting a lot of money into fixing up the place and furnishing it with all the comforts of a western European apartment (actually, this apartment is only 3 square meters smaller than the place we lived in in Amsterdam). It was a great deal and it felt really nice to have a little "home" for a few days.
We enjoyed warm, sunny spring weather and the lilacs and blossom trees were in their full splendor. The trees all had new leaves of a brilliant bright green that you only see in the beginning of spring. All around the city, locals pruning off lilac flowers to bring home and young couples making out in public places seemed to be common signs of spring.
Chain Bridge
We did loads of walking, traveling from Buda (the older city) on one side of the Danube to Pest on the other. The architecture is beautiful and the imposing facades of the large stone structures give way to charming courtyards with wrought iron railings (if you were lucky enough to catch a glimpse through an open front door). The sidewalks are wide and roomy (maybe we only noticed this because we were coming from Bangkok, where it wasn't unusual to encounter small sidewalks with deep holes, trees, salespeople, dogs, etc.) which made it a pleasure to stroll. The broad streets and sidewalks are in marked contrast to the claustrophobic supermarkets and shops. Shopping for food was truly unpleasant due to the lack of personal space and the total lack of healthy or tasty looking items on the shelves. The bulk of the food is from Hungary and not imported, which meant that there issn't a very big variety of produce (though LOADS of Hungarian sweet peppers) or of packaged goods. The one exception was the wonderful market hall, which had a wide selection of meats, veg and, of course, souvenir packs of Hungarian paprika.
The Synogogue
One day we rented an audio tour (like the ones you get in a museum) for self-guided walks around the old castle and the Citadel on the Buda side. We also spent a half day in one of the 15 thermal bath complexes in the city and really enjoyed the pools of varying temperatures, the outdoor thermal pools and the strong current pool.
Szechenyi Thermal Bath complex and an impending storm
Buda Castle
Parliament
While in Budapest, we also ran into a couple of friends from the ice (we're everywhere!) and we enjoyed some meals together. I particularly enjoyed hearing their different perspectives on the things we were seeing. For example, I felt that there wasn't a whole lot of English spoken or written in the city (either on menus, billboards, or shops), while they were surprised at how much English there was. One thing we all noticed and enjoyed was the frequent use of exclamation marks in Hungarian. Was this a direct correlation to their frequent use of directives (especially by civil servants)??? Who knows...but we did enjoy that they also used these exclamation marks when they translated sentences into English and German....Press the foot pedal to operate the water!!! All visitors must use a locker!!!
Fishermen's Bastion
Chain Bridge with St. Stephen's Basilica in the background
St. Matthias and the Fishermen's Bastion
What one really misses after a short period of time in Budapest is some diversity. Traveling on the train for a short day trip to Szentendre or on the metro, you can't help but notice that everyone is pasty white. For me, though, the food, the tiny markets, the lack of diversity and the lack of warmth from the people did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm for Budapest. The feeling of spring amongst the beautiful streets and buildings was enough to make me happy!
P.S. As I finished writing this posting, I switched to the New York Times online to see a front page article about the rise of Anti-Semitism in Budapest. There are currently more than 80,000 Jews in Budapest, more than in any other part of central Europe and the fact that Hungarians, 19 years after the end of communism, are now able to show that they are believers might be part of the same zeitgeist that allows far-right extremists to now show their hatred. I've grossly simplified the situation, so please see the May 7, 2008 article for more in-depth analysis of the situation.
If you want to take a step back into time and/or have your stereotypical expectations of Eastern European gruffness, lousy food and lack of modernization met, fly with Malev Airlines (the Hungarian national airline) and then go through immigration in Budapest. We've seen more than our fair share of immigration officials, but these were right up there in the top 5 most hateful for their wordless slapping down of our passports on the counter (and it wasn't because I'm an American) and the sneers of contempt. The topper was the lady immigration official who stormed out of her cubicle to yell at a Chinese tour guide who was trying to gather his unruly flock of middle-aged women travelers. "Please be quiet. Vee are trying to vork here!" I'm not sure if he completely understood her, but he was stunned into silence, as was everyone else in the baggage claim area.
Yep...Hungarians are a sad looking people and a folk not given to warm hospitality...at least not in shops or restaurants. We walked out of a restaurant when our waitress didn't return to our table to take our orders. Perhaps she decided that she didn't feel like trying to speak English, maybe it was time for a cigarette break (and, my God, do these people smoke!) or perhaps this is normal. We left the restaurant and opted,instead for stall-purchased fyllo-dough wrapped potato and cheese strudels.
Franz Liszt
All this aside, it was great being in Budapest again. I had visited in 1999 when western food chains were just starting to crop up on shopping streets and the bulk of the visitors were roving groups of Russian men in black trench coats. These days, there are more visitors from western Europe (especially Italians) and there is a definite sense that a lot of money has gone into fixing up buildings, roads and shops. In fact, the apartment we rented was purchased by an Englishman who is putting a lot of money into fixing up the place and furnishing it with all the comforts of a western European apartment (actually, this apartment is only 3 square meters smaller than the place we lived in in Amsterdam). It was a great deal and it felt really nice to have a little "home" for a few days.
We enjoyed warm, sunny spring weather and the lilacs and blossom trees were in their full splendor. The trees all had new leaves of a brilliant bright green that you only see in the beginning of spring. All around the city, locals pruning off lilac flowers to bring home and young couples making out in public places seemed to be common signs of spring.
Chain Bridge
We did loads of walking, traveling from Buda (the older city) on one side of the Danube to Pest on the other. The architecture is beautiful and the imposing facades of the large stone structures give way to charming courtyards with wrought iron railings (if you were lucky enough to catch a glimpse through an open front door). The sidewalks are wide and roomy (maybe we only noticed this because we were coming from Bangkok, where it wasn't unusual to encounter small sidewalks with deep holes, trees, salespeople, dogs, etc.) which made it a pleasure to stroll. The broad streets and sidewalks are in marked contrast to the claustrophobic supermarkets and shops. Shopping for food was truly unpleasant due to the lack of personal space and the total lack of healthy or tasty looking items on the shelves. The bulk of the food is from Hungary and not imported, which meant that there issn't a very big variety of produce (though LOADS of Hungarian sweet peppers) or of packaged goods. The one exception was the wonderful market hall, which had a wide selection of meats, veg and, of course, souvenir packs of Hungarian paprika.
The Synogogue
One day we rented an audio tour (like the ones you get in a museum) for self-guided walks around the old castle and the Citadel on the Buda side. We also spent a half day in one of the 15 thermal bath complexes in the city and really enjoyed the pools of varying temperatures, the outdoor thermal pools and the strong current pool.
Szechenyi Thermal Bath complex and an impending storm
Buda Castle
Parliament
While in Budapest, we also ran into a couple of friends from the ice (we're everywhere!) and we enjoyed some meals together. I particularly enjoyed hearing their different perspectives on the things we were seeing. For example, I felt that there wasn't a whole lot of English spoken or written in the city (either on menus, billboards, or shops), while they were surprised at how much English there was. One thing we all noticed and enjoyed was the frequent use of exclamation marks in Hungarian. Was this a direct correlation to their frequent use of directives (especially by civil servants)??? Who knows...but we did enjoy that they also used these exclamation marks when they translated sentences into English and German....Press the foot pedal to operate the water!!! All visitors must use a locker!!!
Fishermen's Bastion
Chain Bridge with St. Stephen's Basilica in the background
St. Matthias and the Fishermen's Bastion
What one really misses after a short period of time in Budapest is some diversity. Traveling on the train for a short day trip to Szentendre or on the metro, you can't help but notice that everyone is pasty white. For me, though, the food, the tiny markets, the lack of diversity and the lack of warmth from the people did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm for Budapest. The feeling of spring amongst the beautiful streets and buildings was enough to make me happy!
P.S. As I finished writing this posting, I switched to the New York Times online to see a front page article about the rise of Anti-Semitism in Budapest. There are currently more than 80,000 Jews in Budapest, more than in any other part of central Europe and the fact that Hungarians, 19 years after the end of communism, are now able to show that they are believers might be part of the same zeitgeist that allows far-right extremists to now show their hatred. I've grossly simplified the situation, so please see the May 7, 2008 article for more in-depth analysis of the situation.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Off to see some family
Leaving Tasmania was hard but made easier because we knew we were on our way to Thailand for two weeks with Jon, Aor and Jake. We hadn't spent much time with our nephew so it was exciting for us to have the time to get to know the little guy (4 years old). We also hadn't really seen Jon and Aor for quite a while and it was fun to see how they live in Bangkok and spend some time at the International School where Jon works.
Jon had asked us to give a presentation on Antarctica to his 5th grade (10 year olds) class. We spent some evenings in our campervan in Tasmania putting together films and photos from our time on ice. (There WAS a good reason for Michiel to be carrying around those extra hard drives!) The kids were well prepared for our talk and had lots of questions for us as well as a surprising amount of attention for our slide show and videos.
For most of the rest of the week, we stayed at a great hostel in the newer and trendier part of Bangkok and didn't worry ourselves with being tourists, seeing the city or battling the heat. We hung out with Jon and Jake at the aquarium, the children's museum, the park, the massive shopping malls, the bowling alley, and at home (where Aor taught us how to properly cut mango and papaya). It was wonderful!
Michiel returns to the womb at the Children's Discovery Museum
We did leave Bangkok for a few days to do some snorkeling on the island of Koh Wai, near Koh Chang. But the heat was so unbearable and the wind was non-existent, so we had to upgrade from our cozy and hospitable resort to a larger resort with all-day electricity and fans. There was a ring of coral around the island which meant that we didn't need to take a boat in order to snorkel (as is the case with many of the islands in that part of Thailand). We snorkeled and relaxed in the sun for a few days, then returned for more fun in Bangkok.
Jon had asked us to give a presentation on Antarctica to his 5th grade (10 year olds) class. We spent some evenings in our campervan in Tasmania putting together films and photos from our time on ice. (There WAS a good reason for Michiel to be carrying around those extra hard drives!) The kids were well prepared for our talk and had lots of questions for us as well as a surprising amount of attention for our slide show and videos.
For most of the rest of the week, we stayed at a great hostel in the newer and trendier part of Bangkok and didn't worry ourselves with being tourists, seeing the city or battling the heat. We hung out with Jon and Jake at the aquarium, the children's museum, the park, the massive shopping malls, the bowling alley, and at home (where Aor taught us how to properly cut mango and papaya). It was wonderful!
Michiel returns to the womb at the Children's Discovery Museum
We did leave Bangkok for a few days to do some snorkeling on the island of Koh Wai, near Koh Chang. But the heat was so unbearable and the wind was non-existent, so we had to upgrade from our cozy and hospitable resort to a larger resort with all-day electricity and fans. There was a ring of coral around the island which meant that we didn't need to take a boat in order to snorkel (as is the case with many of the islands in that part of Thailand). We snorkeled and relaxed in the sun for a few days, then returned for more fun in Bangkok.
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