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May. 1st, 2011 05:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
caithreamHa ha! Of course I have not forgotten! Much to the chagrin of many, I'm sure, lulz. Onward!
3-21-11
So I took the train to the very northern province of Groningen, where my Oma was born and lived before coming to the States, and where my mom's cousins and their families still live. Marthy and Geert were the first set of a relatives I visited, and Marthy picked me up from the train station and we drove to their farm in a small village even further north.
That's another thing that I liked about Europe. Villages, actual sectioned out small communities that were defined by a sort of no-man's land in between them. The ones in Groningen are quite small, so as we were out walking/riding our bikes, Marthy would say hello and chit-chat to pretty much every person that we passed. And man, I don't know if it was the area of if it's just Dutch people in general, but everyone's yards and gardens are immaculate and beautiful, with flowers spilling over everywhere.
The back of Marthy and Geert's place. They farm potatoes and sprouts.
The front, looking out to the street.
Haaa, their goat. Apparently she was super pregnant and probably gave birth the day after I left, aw.
Kitchen. Everything look like Ikea! Their house is an oooold farmhouse that they added on to, so the kitchen, dining area, and sitting room are newer.
The sitting area that the kept close because of the cold.
Tulips, of course. After Marthy picked me up from the train station, we stopped at a tulip farm and picked up some new ones.
My bedroom. Omg it was cold, so very cold.
3-22-11
The next day I woke up and Marthy told me it was her turn to ring the town bell that day. RING THE TOWN BELL. I cannot. So at 10:45am we walked up to the church.
And at 11:00am, we rang the bell.
(She looks SO much like my mom in this picture, it's ridiculous.)
And of course, I helped. :D
Looking out my bedroom door to the hall. Old. European. And, like I keep saying, reminding me so so much of my Oma and my other Dutch family I've met.
The windmill we rode our bikes to. :D
Crazy flat land.
Leading up to the museum-turned-mansion.
And the sweet moat around it.
Back at Marthy and Geert's place. The front of their farm house.
Taking a stroll...
Goat house!
So I took the bus back to the local train station, and the family of my mom's other cousin, Henk, met up with me to take me to their place. Fenny picked me up and we toured the city of Groningen until we met up with everyone else for dinner that night at this awesome Chinese restaurant. Chinese in Holland! Lulz.
This. This is where my Oma used to work, over 60 years ago now. It was a factory/granary, with a store on the bottom where you could buy grain. When she worked there that street wasn't there; it was a canal, so boats could dock up next to it, and they'd have this system of pulling huge bags of grain from the ship into the top windowed area. I have no clue what the building is now.
Another interesting thing about my Oma and Opa and other family: Fenny didn't know the exact address, so we couldn't find it, but my Oma and Opa, of course, lived around there as well. They were part of the resistance movement during World War II, and hid Jewish people in their house. On one occasion, my Oma's sister was taken from her house and interrogated by Nazis for a few days in Groningen's main government building. She was eventually let go, but good Lord. I can't even imagine. I think it wasn't long after that that my Oma and Opa relocated to Grand Rapids, Michigan in the States.
The Martini tower, and ooh kibbeling! I am so sad that I did not try any kibbeling. The Dutch are apparently very big on Belgium fries though, lol. It's basically the best comfort food in the history of ever. A huge amount of freshly deep-fried French fries with your choice of dipping sauce. Mayonnaise is the most popular, but they have everything from sweet chili to curry as well.
When I showed this picture to my Oma when I got back, she recognized it immediately. :D
In front of the university. ALL THOSE BIKES. I KNOW RIGHT. I KNOW.
3-23-11
Woke up the next morning at Henk and Fenny's comfortably modern house and Henk took me to see the dikes!
TA DA. It's a dike.
Looking over the dike to see...
...the North Sea! :D
There were many geese.
N'aww, sheeps.
SO THEN Henk took me to a local seal rehabilitation center. Omg the cuteness, THE CUTENESS.
Omg it is literally doing a ^_^ face.
THOSE EYES, JUST LOOK AT THEM.
And then we stopped at a wooden shoe maker in their village, who still does them mostly by hand.
Next: Leiden and Amsterdam!
3-21-11
Have arrived at Schiphol/Amsterdam! My plane was so small that we had to take a bus on the tarmac and actually walk up steps to the plane! I think I like this place a lot already. Now, unfortunately, I have to wait about 45 minutes for my train to Groningen.
[While on the train:] Omg Shetland ponies EVERYWHERE.
So I took the train to the very northern province of Groningen, where my Oma was born and lived before coming to the States, and where my mom's cousins and their families still live. Marthy and Geert were the first set of a relatives I visited, and Marthy picked me up from the train station and we drove to their farm in a small village even further north.
That's another thing that I liked about Europe. Villages, actual sectioned out small communities that were defined by a sort of no-man's land in between them. The ones in Groningen are quite small, so as we were out walking/riding our bikes, Marthy would say hello and chit-chat to pretty much every person that we passed. And man, I don't know if it was the area of if it's just Dutch people in general, but everyone's yards and gardens are immaculate and beautiful, with flowers spilling over everywhere.
The back of Marthy and Geert's place. They farm potatoes and sprouts.
The front, looking out to the street.
Haaa, their goat. Apparently she was super pregnant and probably gave birth the day after I left, aw.
Kitchen. Everything look like Ikea! Their house is an oooold farmhouse that they added on to, so the kitchen, dining area, and sitting room are newer.
The sitting area that the kept close because of the cold.
Tulips, of course. After Marthy picked me up from the train station, we stopped at a tulip farm and picked up some new ones.
My bedroom. Omg it was cold, so very cold.
Okay! So! Am currently in bed at Geert and Marthy's place. The area around here? Is amazing. It's farmhouses lined along the street, and nothing but farm land behind them. Tomorrow we are biking around a bit, which should be really nice. Their house itself is... wow. It's an old converted farmhouse. It... it reminds me of my Oma and of old things and dark wood and musty smells and wool blankets. Maybe it's just Dutch or Old European... I don't know. But even down to the meal we had (boiled potatoes with crumbled meat and onion on top, boiled sprouts and some kind of boiled lima beans), it all reminds me so much of being around my Oma or being at her place. And it's COLD here. Nothing but small furnaces in the kitchen/dining area/living room, and one in my room and in the bathroom, thank God. I feel a bit homesick because there's lots of things that are reminding me of... I don't know what. Doors that slam and doors that don't fit into the door frame, and cold, brown tile and old, small tv sets, and magazines from twenty years ago. As for now, I'm utterly exhausted, so early bedtime for me it is. I can't wait to see the Dutch countryside tomorrow.
3-22-11
The next day I woke up and Marthy told me it was her turn to ring the town bell that day. RING THE TOWN BELL. I cannot. So at 10:45am we walked up to the church.
And at 11:00am, we rang the bell.
(She looks SO much like my mom in this picture, it's ridiculous.)
And of course, I helped. :D
Looking out my bedroom door to the hall. Old. European. And, like I keep saying, reminding me so so much of my Oma and my other Dutch family I've met.
Breakfast was just like Oma's. Cheese, hearty breads, jams, etc. Marthy and myself also went out on bikes to look around Groningen. We had to borrow a bike, and it's a little high for me, so when I was trying to get on it, Geert and Marthy and Joop (the boy who is interning/learning about farming a few days a week with them) had a little bit of a laugh at my troubles, seeing as how they go on bikes everywhere! Once I finally got going, it was lovely. We biked to a bunch of different places, like this local mansion that is now a museum. Walked around inside there for a bit, and then came outside to the cafe and had some tea outside in the sun. Then biked to the cemetery where Marthy's parents (my Great Aunt and Uncle, I think!) are laid to rest. Also saw a windmill! Now having some quiet time to myself - might read a little bit, and then take a walk out and about. Going into the city a little later tonight, I think?
The windmill we rode our bikes to. :D
Crazy flat land.
Leading up to the museum-turned-mansion.
And the sweet moat around it.
Back at Marthy and Geert's place. The front of their farm house.
Taking a stroll...
Goat house!
Very interesting night. Had stamppot for dinner. Then we went into the city and met up with Geert and Marthy's kids. They were VERY nice and awesome company to be around. Had a shot of Polish plum alcohol, as their son's fiancee is Polish. Tomorrow I can sleep in a bit, and around 1pm I am apparently being bussed to Henk and Fenny's for the night. Will also see more of the city of Groningen tomorrow!
So I took the bus back to the local train station, and the family of my mom's other cousin, Henk, met up with me to take me to their place. Fenny picked me up and we toured the city of Groningen until we met up with everyone else for dinner that night at this awesome Chinese restaurant. Chinese in Holland! Lulz.
This. This is where my Oma used to work, over 60 years ago now. It was a factory/granary, with a store on the bottom where you could buy grain. When she worked there that street wasn't there; it was a canal, so boats could dock up next to it, and they'd have this system of pulling huge bags of grain from the ship into the top windowed area. I have no clue what the building is now.
Another interesting thing about my Oma and Opa and other family: Fenny didn't know the exact address, so we couldn't find it, but my Oma and Opa, of course, lived around there as well. They were part of the resistance movement during World War II, and hid Jewish people in their house. On one occasion, my Oma's sister was taken from her house and interrogated by Nazis for a few days in Groningen's main government building. She was eventually let go, but good Lord. I can't even imagine. I think it wasn't long after that that my Oma and Opa relocated to Grand Rapids, Michigan in the States.
The Martini tower, and ooh kibbeling! I am so sad that I did not try any kibbeling. The Dutch are apparently very big on Belgium fries though, lol. It's basically the best comfort food in the history of ever. A huge amount of freshly deep-fried French fries with your choice of dipping sauce. Mayonnaise is the most popular, but they have everything from sweet chili to curry as well.
When I showed this picture to my Oma when I got back, she recognized it immediately. :D
In front of the university. ALL THOSE BIKES. I KNOW RIGHT. I KNOW.
Had a Skype session with my aunt and Oma, which was wonderful. Hearing my Oma speak Dutch with Henk and Fenny was so delightful. Her face was just so bright and happy.
3-23-11
Woke up the next morning at Henk and Fenny's comfortably modern house and Henk took me to see the dikes!
TA DA. It's a dike.
Looking over the dike to see...
...the North Sea! :D
There were many geese.
N'aww, sheeps.
SO THEN Henk took me to a local seal rehabilitation center. Omg the cuteness, THE CUTENESS.
Omg it is literally doing a ^_^ face.
THOSE EYES, JUST LOOK AT THEM.
And then we stopped at a wooden shoe maker in their village, who still does them mostly by hand.
NOTE: European M&Ms taste different than ours in the US, haha.
Next: Leiden and Amsterdam!
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no subject
Date: 2011-05-01 11:24 pm (UTC)Also, does everyone in town take a turn to ring the bell? haha Thats so rad and old school.
no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 12:08 am (UTC)They do! IT WAS SO COOL. She just so happened to be filling in for someone while I was there! :D
no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 06:12 am (UTC)ALSO, I AM IN LOVE WITH YOUR ICON. Do you have the original pic?
My friend Kate has worked in/with a lot of churches and in Toronto she rings the bells at one church once a week. lol
no subject
Date: 2011-05-04 02:01 am (UTC)Which is actually from this video. :D (I have that icon tagged as "fucking adorable" because I love it so muuuuch.)
Okay, that is AWESOME. I feel like everyone should have the opportunity to ring church bells at least once in their lives. :D
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Date: 2011-05-04 05:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-02 12:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 12:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 12:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-05-03 01:49 pm (UTC)And your family's place is really, really nice. :)
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Date: 2011-05-04 02:03 am (UTC)It was so cool! I'm so glad I got the opportunity to go. :D
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Date: 2011-05-04 05:13 am (UTC)OMG! So much awesome! I seriously enjoy looking at your pictures and reading about your trip!! It's making me long for travel in a way that I can't even describe. <333 I'm so glad you got to experience it and are sharing it with all of us! :D
and omg the SEALS. :D cutest ever!