It has been 3 weekends now that I have yet to blog
about. Well there are a few reasons for
that. One is that I hurt my knee running in the spring, took a month off and
started back with aching and soreness again.
Since then both knees have become increasingly sore and a couple of
weeks ago actually feeling like they will buckle 
under my tremendous weight. So
I have not gotten around much the last two weeks. Reason two is Amsterdam (right). This was my second trip there and again I was
not impressed: maybe it was the hoards of people, or the driving rain and icy
wind, or the lines and fees for anything I wanted to do but I
just didn’t like it. The things I did do were unimpressive like the Jewish
History Museum which I thought might be a good substitute for the Anne Frank or
Corrie Ten Boom House, but was an expensive lesson in basic Jewishness 
with a
lot of pictures of Dutch historical figures who allowed Jews to have minimal
rights as if that was a noble gesture. The Sex Museum (not my idea, but better
I thought than standing outside in the rain) was the dumbest thing I may have
ever seen and I felt a little stupider for the experience (standing outside in
the rain would have been more edifying). The cars parked precariously along the canals however did impress me (right). The streets reeked like old
bong-water and the openness of the prostitution made me feel pity
rather than joy about the progressive nature of Amsterdam. Half of the
prostitutes were just gruesome and the other half looked like sex trade
victims. I don’t plan to ever go back to Amsterdam; nothing to see here folks
unless you want to crawl into a coffeeshop and stay in a stupor for the
duration, which be time better spent. Last weekend I went to some smaller places
for some local flavor. First, the town
of Thorn (left) 
for pancakes at their quite famous Pannenkoekenbakkerij (Pancake
Bakery). Pancakes are like a crepe the
size of a pizza and covered with any number of toppings. I had Salmon, mushroom and spinach, but didnt take a picture since I was hungry and it looked too good to become distracted with getting the perfect photo. The town
was created as a monastery then a cloister and then turned over to exclusively
women’s rule about 800 years ago where the Abbess 
(Head Nun) ran the abbey and
town. The whole downtown aka the Old
Town is and always has been, whitewashed and the church is 1000 years old. From
there I went to the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten (left) where 8301
Americans are buried. I am awestruck as
I hear over and over how grateful the Dutch are to America for the liberation
from the Nazis and they have markers and reminders everywhere. The cemetery is
very reverent and clean and is maintained by the citizens of the local
community. 
Then a late afternoon drive to the Hoensbroek Castle which is about
15 minutes drive from my place here in Brunnsum (left). Nice big old castle with a
moat, drawbridge and a café that serves espresso and vlaai (a special
Limburgisch fruit pie where the whole pie is baked and the filling is very
thick with fruit – heavy but delicious). To finally catch up, the Kerstmarkts (Christmas Markets)began opening on Friday the 16th. Here they celebrate Sinterklaas which is the
day, December 5, when the big fat man (St. Nicholas) dressed in red arrives to
Netherlands by steam boat (stoomboot) and brings toys to all the good children
and Swarze Piet (Black Pete – a skinny white guy in black-face, supposedly
representing the Moorish tradition but obviously not in a positive light) comes
to collect the bad kids, throw them in a burlap bag and take them away to Spain.
In recent years Swarze Piet has just become a bunch of guys in black-face who
keep the kids amused with antics and candy. But I saw no Swarze Piets last
night, only a Sinterklaas and his lovely wife. I topped the day off about 730
pm with some gluweine (hot mulled red wine) and a pannenkoeken met kaas (cheese
pancake). I missed the big parade because my compadres didn’t want to
stay. Mental health professionals, all
PhDs: one afraid of clowns, one afraid of crowds and one who hates to wait, and
me, feeling like a kid loaded with gluweine and giddy to see
Sinterklaas and Swarze Piet. Although I
had the car keys, I figured it was better to go home now, than to force them to
stay while I am amused and then ride home for 20 minutes with 3 angry
womyn. No, just kidding, they are all
great and we had a lovely time. We laughed and laughed and enjoyed the crisp air
and the day without rain. My knees ache a
little this morning but I only have to go grocery shopping and iron my shirts
for my final two weeks here. Next week, weather permitting, knees permitting
and finances permitting I will spend in Cologne, Deutschland.
Last weekend I went to Brugge or Bruges, Belgium (top) depending
on whether you incline toward the Flemish or French spelling, and it is one
stunning city. It’s been called the
Venice of the North due to the many canals that run through it, although you
hardly need a gondola; maybe a cattle prod to jolt the many tourists. I imagine it is much more congested in the
summer so I am not griping. Brugge itself dates back over 2000 years but
despite the Franks, Romans and Vikings, it was never an actual city until
roughly 900 years ago. Original remnants
of the city remain but much of it is medeival architecture is still there with
buildings dated like 1675 or 1600. Some date back to the 13th and 14th
century and are still inhabited by either government or private citizens. Lots to do in Bruges. Other than canal tours,
there are Belgian waffles which taste yummy especially when doused with
chocolate and coupled with a hot 
coffee on a cold day (right). Belgian beers are diverse and so far SO-O-O-O
good. They are so proud of their beer
that there are signs warning people to BE RESPONSIBLE, DRINK DON’T DRIVE and of
course the eco-friendly urging to SAVE WATER, DRINK BEER. I ate a Flemish Beef
Stew for lunch today that was so good, I wept in front of all the Flems (Is
that what Flemish people are called?) Of course there is plenty of lace and then
there is my chocolate renaissance. I
wrote the other day that Hershey’s kisses trump any chocolate I have had, but
that was my dark ages. I have never seen
it carved in so many different forms: statues, witches, Santa Claus, unclothed
and detailed body parts (right below). Chocolate that hints of strawberry, hazelnut, coconut,
you name the flavor. I now know beyond any doubt what Heaven will be like
because I have tasted and smelled it in Brugge – I 
am still talking about the
chocolate. I can still smell it hours later, partly due to having dribbled
chocolate from my waffle down the front of my jacket and getting it under my
nails and all over my face and partly due to being in chocolate factories. But
enough about chocolate. I could
definitely have spent several days in this city and it would be worth
revisiting. Aside from Bruges, I have a couple of comments again driving in
Europe. Roundabouts are spaced about
every 20 feet in and around most towns so it really feels like driving in
circles sometimes. My GPS says “continue
straight through the roundabout” but you can’t go straight through a roundabout
or “take the second exit” some exits of which are for bike or pedestrians and
some are for cars so I have to be profoundly alert. Roundabouts circle in
continental Europe to the right so when the GPS says turn left, I have to go
right to go left and she gets all confused and tries to recalculate the
route. Bless her heart. In Netherlands and Belgium, pedestrians,
bicycles and wheelchairs always, always have the right of way so those folks
don’t even look. It’s my job to watch
for every idiot that can’t tell that I am an American. (My friend Manny says, “Day ha no cortesy. We
no frong here, wha day speck?” He’s Cuban, so at least I think that’s what he
said. Mostly I just smile and say “Si.”)
I have almost run down 3 people (2 riders and one in a motorized
wheelchair) and they never looked up…just kept cruising right on by. On
roadways there is a sidewalk, a narrow one lane for cars and two large bike
lanes running in each direction. Imagine my caution when I get into a
roundabout with three cars, a wheelchair, 20 pedestrians, and 30 bikes. But at least they’re biking, even 80 year
olds and 3 year olds so that’s good and healthy, I guess. And for my final
comment on the day, there are no billboards anywhere…none. The highways and side roads are steam-cleaned
and ironed daily. They must be because
they are perfect, no bumps or potholes.
Autobahns curve gently so you never feel any centripetal force. And everything’s so pretty. Below are the flags of Belgium (top), EU (left), and Flanders (right).
