Back to Reality

Hi, there blog readers. I know it has been a while. We were all set to spend Pesach in The Hague and then at the last minute decided to go back to the states, where I was for most of April. It was so nice to be home with my family for the holiday. Both my brother and his wife and my sister, her husband and kids all came to my parents for the second days of the holiday. It was such a treat to have everyone together for a few days. It was nice to spend time with my second nephew who now could interact with you a bit more and was just learning to turn over. It was a great time home and arrived back May 2 and am now settling back in.

We made sure the first Sunday back to head over to the famous Keukenhof to see tulips. As many of you may know Holland is famous for its tulips, yet they only bloom a few months a year. Scott actually planted tulips outside our house and just as we left they were budding and when we came back they were dead already. Thankfully we are told they should come back next year. Keukenhof has all different types of tulip gardens. It is a very beautiful place and thankfully we were able to see some great flowers. I am attaching picture heres, so you can get the idea. The weather has been great here, so it was a lovely Sunday in the gardens.

We just booked our summer vacation, a cruise to the Eastern Mediterranean. We are so excited and the best part for me is that I have been dying to go to Pompeii, Italy and we were able to plan it that we could spend a day there. Look forward to a full report over the summer. We also have plans to go to Paris and Vienna. The European exploration continues . . .

Achmad the Camel from Purim

March

Two weeks back, I had the opportunity to go with the American Women’s club to the Bags and Purses Museum in Amsterdam. You may ask what is this? It is actually exactly what it sounds that. A local couple had been collecting purses and bags and they amassed so many they decided to make a museum. It was actually very neat. They had bags from a few hundred years ago and then some designer bags of today. They had bags made out of all different animals’ skins and even one bag that was a working telephone. (Before there were cellphones) It was a great afternoon and then we had high tea in the dining room. Of course I couldn’t eat anything, but was great to be spending a lovely afternoon with a bunch of great ladies.

Last weekend was exciting for us here in The Hague as it was Purim, a Jewish holiday celebrating one of the most joyous and fun holidays on the Jewish calendar. It commemorates a time when the Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination. Scott baked his famous hamantashen, a common pastry we eat on the holiday. We went to the synagogue on Sunday for the Purim festivities. The theme was a Bedouin Purim and it was in an Israeli style. All the food was Israeli, the kids made pitas and there was even a real live camel which the kids could take camel rides. We didn’t take a ride, but instead took a picture besides him. See above. Was a really fun day and there was a great turnout. Probably over 100 people. This is the first time we have seen many of the Jews who live in The Hague. It was nice to see that yes they do live close by and will turn up maybe just once a year.

Pictures

Friends from Home

Very exciting for us in February was that we had friends from home come to visit. Our friends had a wedding in Paris and decided to extend their trip and spend a few days in Amsterdam and in The Hague. They came with their 6 month old daughter, who is absolutely adorable. It was interesting to have to track down a car seat and pack and play, but we found the essentials so were all set for them. We met them one night in Amsterdam and took them to one of our favorite kosher restaurants in the city, Hacarmel. They said they also quite enjoyed it. Then on Thursday night we picked them up in Amsterdam. That was the first time we ever drove through the side streets in the Amsterdam city center. It was actually quite scary because the roads are so narrow and often on your left and right are canals. We were able to navigate our way thru and then took them to the kosher pizza place. Then Friday we explored The Hague. Scott would have taken off, but he was taking a 3 day First Aid course which he couldn’t miss. He volunteered to be a first aid responder at work and despite his extensive EMT training in the USA, he was required to take the course. We went to the Escher Museum and Mauritius museum, which houses the famous, painting Girl with the Pearl Earring. Then walked around the City Center and afterwards went over to the Peace Palace, which house the International Court of Justice. It is under construction, but you can still see the magnificent exterior which was financed by American Andrew Carnegie. Shabbos was so nice with them here. We had over about 9 people for lunch including us and our friends. They were able to meet some of our friends here and learn about life in The Hague. I know our friends were really impressed by the shul and Jewish community. Sunday we took them to Madurodam, which a replication of Holland in miniature. It is a site to see when you come to Holland. It was such a nice weekend for us to again show friends from home our life here. Before they came they asked us if they could bring anything from home. I said just them coming is a gift onto itself. It warms our hearts to every so often get to spend time with friends from home. It keeps us connected. Thanks Rivka, Marc and Neta!!!

Also in the past few weeks, we experienced dentistry in Holland. We had our checkups and I had a cavity filled. It was a bit of an overwhelming feeling as during the procedure they were speaking in Dutch and hard not to understand a word they were saying. But filling looks good and I survived, so can’t complain.

Last weekend we finally spent Sunday exploring in Amsterdam. We went to the Rijksmuseum to see the Rembrandt paintings and the famous Night Watch and then headed off to The Van Gogh Museum. At night we had the opportunity to go hear a speaker at the Amsterdam Jewish Community Center. It was a great opportunity to meet some new people and we had our first taste of kosher sushi in Holland. We were so excited and asked the rebbetzin where it came from and she said they hired someone to make it. Oh well. I guess another thing we can learn to make.

Some thoughts in February

Things have been very status quo here. We are basically settled in to the way of life and with the days getting longer and the sun starting to shine more, we feel ready for the spring and some more exploring of Europe. The weather has really been so great that I can’t complain. In the high 40’s, yes I still go by Fahrenheit, even though I can do the conversion from Celsius.

Today I happened to shop in a department store in the town center which I have never been to before. As I explored the kitchen goods, I found all the items you would find in Macy’s or Bed Bath and Beyond. They even had some of the brands. Again been so interesting to see that yes you can really buy most things you can buy in the states, you just have to know where to look.

I wanted to share the following story from last Sabbath. Scott and I went to the Rabbi’s house for lunch along with two of the elderly women in the community. We had heard that one of the women has lost all her family in the war, but that was the extent. I started talking to the other lady and she told me that she was hidden during the war and even though she went thru hard times, she can’t at all fathom the experience the other women had of making it thru Auschwitz and losing her entire family. Was so interesting because here was a woman who had experienced the war firsthand saying that her experience was nothing compared to others and how strong the other lady was in life. I hope to be able to hear more of their stories in our time here. Most people here don’t mind talking about it, but often it is the language barrier that is difficult.

Me and my two cuties!!!