The First Episode of the Sinterklaas Journaal
While in other countries children eagerly count down the days until Christmas with chocolate calendars and endless enthusiasm for the question “how many days now?” Dutch children get to start the waiting game early with the celebration of Sinterklaas. Sinterklaas, an elderly gentleman dressed in quite serious looking red and gold clothing comes complete with white hair and a long beard but it is there that all the similarities with Father Christmas/Santa Claus and Sinterklaas end. Take the following: Father Christmas/Santa Claus Sinterklaas chubby skinny utilises...
Read MoreAn Unhealthy Addiction
I lifted the knife and plunged it straight into the slightly bumpy flesh. It took a bit of pressure but after only a few moments the decapitation was complete and the innards were exposed. Now came the part that most people disliked the most – ripping out the slimy, stringy insides. However, this was all part of the process to me. Only after it is done can the real fun begin. My addiction to pumpkin carving is a relatively new one. Sure I had grown up in a country where pumpkin patches and hay-rides went together with autumn as well as milk goes together with cookies but I never...
Read MoreFun on the First Monday of the Month
Buuuuaaaarrrp! Buuuuaaaaarrrp! Buuuaaaarrrppppp! No matter how many years I live in the Netherlands, I don’t think I will ever not giggle on the first Monday of the month at noon. There is something about carrying out your usual Monday tasks to suddenly be interrupted by air raid sirens. I wrote about my first few experiences of the monthly siren tests back in 2007 when I first moved here. I at least knew that the sirens were going to start belching out their warning screeches but I have always wondered how weird (and perhaps worrying) it is for someone who is only here as a...
Read MoreCloggie Created Confusion
Sometimes the Cloggies really confuse me. I have gradually adjusted to their lack of customer service, their desire to eat objects that have the texture of baby food with the occasional lump of unidentifiable meat in it and even their obligatory birthday circle. However, when I was flipping through the advertisements that are shoved in our postbox a few times a week (yes, I know I can put the sticker on the outside to say I don’t want them but then I would miss gems like this!), I stumbled across this little find. At first glance you would think nothing of the well known...
Read MoreUnlimited!!!!!!!
Recently I had been considering signing up for the Pathe Unlimited Card at the local cinema. The Unlimited card basically gives you unlimited (surprise, surprise!) access to all the films at the cinema for a monthly fee. To make it worth the monthly fee, you need to go and see at least two films a month. I had gone over the pro’s and con’s several times. However, after looking through all 24 pages of films expected to be in the cinema in 2010, I decided that there were enough films there for me to get my money out of the card and decided to sign-up. My friend Tammy,...
Read MoreSometimes It Just Doesn’t Work
Anyone who has had a stab at translation work or even just attempted to translate something from one language to another for a friend, will know that it is not an easy job. There are always a few words and/or phrases that just don’t match up. So it is of course always funny when you run across an example somewhere. A little while back I went to the Beekse Bergen Safari Park for a birthday weekend. Beekse Bergen is a great place where you have the option of walking through the park, riding a boat through or driving your car through the AutoSafari. All three options take you to various...
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