Pirate Pannenkoeken

The Beste's arrived safely, and early (5:05am, yuck) on Saturday morning.. I offered to pick them up at Schipol, so we arranged for me to meet them at 7am (again.. yuck. I am NOT a morning person..) I was so happy to see the whole family. Prequel: I worked for Jan and Todd when I was living in Wilmington as a nanny for their two small children, Cate and Alex. When I began, the children were four & six and for two years, I watched these energetic, extremely intelligent, charming children grow up.. needless to say, I was wrapped around their little fingers. Since my family lived almost four hours away, I began celebrating some holidays with the Beste's, weekly dinners, and birthday celebrations with them.. at some point they began to feel less and less like employers and more like family. I am extremely grateful for my relationship with the children and how caring Jan and Todd are towards me. Needless to say, I was thrilled to be spending the weekend with them!!! We began the day by driving to their Pension in Zandvoort which is on the coast of Holland. It's a beautiful town with sprawling dunes and wildlife, an impressive beach with freezing North Sea water lined by beach clubs, and lots of paths to bike. We walked the beach while the kids played while we waited for breakfast to open up (the Dutch don't serve until 10-11am.. no IHOP or Waffle House around here..) Alas, Pirate Pannenkoeken.. and we were the first customers in the restaurant, probably fifteen minutes earlier than they open. :) Pannenkoek is defined as a dutch pancake, usually larger and thinner than American pancakes. They can be filled with meat, cheese, vegetables, or topped with fruit, powdered sugar and syrup. I personally have attempted to make these for the kids for brunch on days off from school- but I have never made one that included a double shot of Grand Marnier.. I assumed it would be drizzled over the Pannenkoek? Yet, Jan sips it like a champion and reminds me we're taking the train for the day! Bottoms up!

The kids decided to try theirs with cherries.. I think perhaps it was more like a jar of fresh cherries a piece on top of their pancake. Cate ended up eating a majority of my ham out of the pannenkoek.. I was only able to finish half, yet Todd, managed to finish the whole! Pictures don't do these things justice, they are enormous. The kids even ordered smalls if you can imagine the size of the regular portioned ones. 

After breakfast we were off to explore Amsterdam with the kids. NEMO specifically, which is an interactive science and technology museum for children and young teens.. But not before Cate and I invited the Pannenkoeken Pirate to come with us.. 

We finished the day with an early dinner and bedtime. I had a sleepover with Cate and Alex since we were heading into Amsterdam early Sunday morning.. Cate had a bit of a hard time sleeping, so her and I woke up at 10pm after a short "nap" and discussed everything that comes to the mind of a six year for over two hours.. Everything from school, to sports, elementary school gossip to the Easter bunny.. And I loved every minute of it. 

Have I really gone 7 months without...?

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER:
1. Texas Pete.. honest to God, I don't realize when the addiction began but it's a serious one. I put it on eggs, popcorn, fries, healthy choice pepperoni pizza. But my favorite was on popcorn. And there is no spicy sauce to be found here.. I would even take Tabasco.

2. Mexican food. I haven't given up yet, because I haven't tried a few places in Amsterdam or Haarlem. But, I'm talking about North Carolina Mexican food- with Katie and Jenn to be specific. Margaritas, chips and salsa.. and gossip or usually a hangover. Flaming Amy's Wasabi Avocado salsa which might be my second favorite thing in the world after Texas Pete. But I would take Tower 7 salsa right about now too.

3. Target. Oh man, I looked at the website today in preparation for my arrival into NC in a couple of weeks. Huge mistake. Really big. Love their stuff.. it's addictive.

4. Crab legs. Ben and I used to have them almost once a week during the summer when we lived in Wilmington, and well Greensboro too.. boil them on the stove with a lot of old bay. Amazing. But to be honest, I miss cooking on the grill too.. nothing like a charcoal flavor.

5. My own bedroom.. that I decorated. With all of my things.. That's one of the hardest things about living in someone elses home.. it never feels like your own.

6. Raleigh Pavilion.. last concert that I saw was Coldplay. Absolutely amazing. This year, I will be missing Mumford and Son's. I thought I moved to Europe to see European bands? It's bullshit.

7. Everything bagels with cream cheese.. I'm not even picky about where from.

8. Snuggling with Porter. Anyone that has a Weimaraner knows that these dogs LOVE to snuggle. He is like a small person.. or in this case an 80 pound person that loves to get under the covers with his head on a pillow and snore, loudly. He loves to yawn and then sneak in a kiss in the morning too. He sprawls out and takes over most of the bed, but I love him- and I surely miss snuggling.

9. My moms cooking. White bean chicken chili, chicken salad, homemade spaghetti.. the list goes on. And my mom and grandma of course.

10. A haircut. I'm terrified to get my hair cut here because I'm afraid the dutch/english translation won't go the way I want it too and I'll have a short haircut and stupid bangs. That being said, I would love to have a haircut, my eyebrows waxed, and a pedicure on my arrival.

Did I mention I'm going back to NC for 8 days? My trip was extended because I have two weeks off here.. and I absolutely can't wait. April 27th-May 8th :) Waiting on my ticket provider with fingers crossed.

What was life like before Skype?

If you or someone you love lives a long distance away- then you probably know the phenomena that is Skype. Let's face it.. it is amazing. For free, you can talk to your family in NC or a friend in Australia or your boyfriend or girlfriend studying abroad. Face to face (well, computer screens to computer screens), live conversation at the moment it is happening. I LOVE SKYPE. Seriously, since I've moved to Holland, I've had the privilege to keep in touch with my Mom (even on days she's stressed out yelling at me to come home..), my Porter who I get to see and take snapshot pictures of as he gets bigger and bigger (almost 2 years old, and quite the handsome Weimaraner!) My Grandma, who I'm not entirely sure understands the concept but loves that she can see me and know that I'm doing alright. My cousins who I could talk to for hours and hours (we need to plan another skype date soon biatches.) My best friends Katie and Jenn, and Katie even created a Skype account for her New Year's Resolution so we could stay in touch while I was gone... and this really great guy who I keep in touch with when we can't be together. Last night I had a Skype date.. after a couple of hours of laughing and talking, I realized just how much I've grown to appreciate Skype and how big of a part of my life while abroad it has become. But then, I reflected on how technology on a whole has made this process so much more different than if someone had done it 40 years prior. Facebook and email, gmail chat, Skype- the entire time I've been away from North Carolina I've been able to stay in touch with my family and friends, and even people I don't care to stay in touch with (I really should filter my FB friends, some posts and pictures are just ridiculous). I've watched babies grow up, houses bought, engagements, breakups, makeups, blown kisses to my mom from 4,052 miles away, had the best online "date" ever across the English Channel/North Sea.. and I wouldn't be able to do any of this without technology. However, I think back on the days when people sent handwritten letters, how romantic, and yet for one of the most impatient people in the world, how painful it must have been to wait for days, weeks or months to hear back from someone you care about.. even postcards seem so dated. And as much as I love the convenience of technology, the immediate response, the availability.. it saddens me as well to know that my generation and future generations will never be one that writes letters to loved ones. Or telegrams to inform people that a baby has arrived. I mean hell, just wait five minutes after a delivery and pictures of the new baby is all over Facebook..

Regardless of my technology rants, I am so incredibly appreciative of all the means of communication I have at my disposal while here. Especially, when I get to see this face..

Things I am absolutely, positively looking forward to in April...

1. April 10th: Concert in Den Haag.  I am slowly but surely turning into a classical music snob. 10euro tickets, how can I say no. Plus, there is a book market in the center on Sundays. Books, another weakness. Man, I sound like a cool girl.

Alex  & Cate 

2. April 15th-23rd: The arrival of The Beste's! Cate & Alex were the children I worked with when I lived in Wilmington for over two years. When I began working with the Bestes, Cate had just turned four and was attending pre-school and Alex had just turned six and was in first grade. I grew to love these children dearly, and leaving them to move to Holland was a very difficult decision. I adore their parents, Jan and Todd were wonderful employers, awesome people and I always felt at home with them. I was always invited to holidays, birthday dinners, and dinner- time after time. I will always have a special place for the Beste's in my heart- they've become family. They will be visiting me in Holland for 4 days, and Belgium for 3 days, AND I will be able to have my birthday dinner with them which is an ongoing tradition this year in Amsterdam at Fifteen (Jamie Oliver's Restaurant)!

3. April 22nd: My 26th Birthday. My god, when did I get so old.. last year I had what we refer to as a quarter life crisis.. not knowing what I want with my life, not knowing how to get it, being scared to death to try anything or more importantly, finish anything. This year- I will be turning 26, and although I am just as clueless as ever about my future.. I'm definitely looking forward to the chance to grow a little wiser. PS: happy earth day.

4. April 22nd -April 25th: Mr. Sutcliffe will be joining me in Amsterdam Friday morning from London for my birthday dinner and exploring the city together. Then, we will spend the weekend in Germany following the Rhine River south towards Frankfurt via roadtrip! (somewhere neither one of us has ever been..) Stopping along the way to little vineyards, quaint German villages, and enormous castles lining the river. Quite looking forward to spending time with him and a hopefully memorable adventure.

5. April 26th: HELLLOOO North Carolina. I can not wait for the following things:  To see my family, my grandma who is turning 80 this month and looks as good as ever, the girls, my PORTER pup, to eat Mexican food multiple times, a Bojangles biscuit with Bo-rounds, and as much Texas Pete as I want . Seriously. And if I have to drive 3 hours to Flaming Amy's then I just might for a burrito and Wasabi Avocado salsa.

My favorite cousins :)

Longtime best friends

Looking forward to seeing this handsome (not a baby anymore) face! 

Feeling like an Amsterdam kinda weekend..

Beautiful weather in Holland this past weekend. Saturday I had plans to go to Amsterdam to meet up with Maureen and Bruce who were in town visiting HS friends, from NC. I met Maureen when I was working at David's Bridal in Wilmington, and honestly she is one of the most amazing women EVER! She has friends everywhere, from every stage of her life, and she is always the life of the party- At some point I began calling her Momo, I think it was after she found out she was going to be a grandma for the first time, and granny just didn't sound right for Maureen. My favorite memory is when I came to work and she had dyed her hair dark red because I had recently dyed mine and I asked her 5 times if she liked it before she finally answered.. it was her version of a  peace treaty since I doubted she liked my new hair color, she would simply go red too- copying someone else is the ultimate form of flattery. Regardless, I was to meet her and Bruce at a restaurant I picked in Amsterdam named Luden's off of Spuistraat in central Amsterdam. I left the house at 11, to get to the train station for them to tell me that my local station (Heemstede Aerdenhout) was closed for traveling to Amsterdam and I had to go to Haarlem. Off to Haarlem, I get there, and no trains are going to Amsterdam for the day- so off to Hoofdoorp.. at this point, I'm beginning to get slightly annoyed at the fact that I've gone to two train stations and it's taken me 2 hours to locate and board my train to Amsterdam. I finally arrived into the city, took off walking at full speed and managed to only be.. ehh 45 minutes late?Thankfully they were just beginning to eat and so I was able to order a delicious mozzarella, pesto & tomato broodje (sandwich) and have a few drinks with them! It was sooo nice to see familiar faces, speak English with other Americans and I was able to meet Sherri and her husband (friends of Mo's that live in Den Hague, in case I ever need anything!) A wonderful lunch, and then a drink at a Frank Sinatra inspired bar on Spuistraat, a walk through the Red Light District and a tour of the Bulldog, and I was homeward bound.

Sunday I was invited to go to the ballet with my host family. Jacob, the youngest has developed a love for breakdancing, and due to his extremely good looking dutch instructor, so have I. When I get the opportunity, I usually make it a point to go and watch- only for the sake of Jacob of course. This Sunday, Jack volunteered to take Jacob to breakdancing for the day, so Eva, Christiaan, Emma and their cousin Misha and I were off to see Sylvia in Amsterdam at Het Nationale Ballet. It was a modern classical adaption of a ballet that was performed in 1876 in France. The music was absolutely amazing, composed by Leo Delibes. I highly recommend seeing this ballet if you ever have a chance! If I don't say this enough, I am so grateful for these opportunities to go to concerts, operas, ballets, or art exhibits whenever I can, especially while I am here in Holland.

Monnickendam & Marken

During my time here in Holland, I've tried to see as much of this beautiful, small country as I can. I have the luxury of having a host family that has "given" me a personal car to use during my time here so I don't have to borrow one of theirs, and that I means I can drive it on the weekend/holidays etc. I have grown to adore this Mercedes, I lovingly refer to as the "tank".. it's green, old aged, rusted around the edges, with a very sensitive A/C system that randomly starts up whenever it wishes and an even more difficult navigation system. Thankfully, in the past month, Emma the 11 year old has successfully managed to show me how to use the navigation rather than a paper map. One Sunday, I woke up feeling very much in the mood for an adventure and decided I would take the car to Monnickendam and Marken which is north of Amsterdam on the water. I typed in the address, and almost immediately realized the GPS system is a piece of crap. I would have to do a combination of navigation and map skills to get me to my destination. 2 hours later, and multiple curse words to no one in particular, I managed to arrive in Monnickendam, a quaint fishing village, which is extremely picturesque.

After walking around the centre of Monnickendam for a couple of hours (its truly not so big) I was off to Marken. Originally an island, now you can drive to Marken via a causeway stretching from Monnickendam towards the center of the island. It's a beautiful drive, with water on both sides of the causeway and lots of places to picnic along the way. Marken was originally known as another, you'll never guess, ... fishing village(!) Thus, they built their homes on brick levels to avoid water damage and Marken has been known for the dwellings ever since. A beautiful, scenic and historical village.