Bike adventures

Now that my big musical at school (and major workload) is over I'm getting back into my normal routine again. What a great feeling! So even though Pinksteren was almost two weeks ago, I'm now getting around to blogging about it. Not to mention I'm still working on our post for Berlin! 

Pinsterdag or Pentecost is a three day weekend here in the Netherlands. We had amazing weather and Jaap and I took full advantage of it. Three days of sunshine and the outdoors!

Drinks with Jenny & Arie on a terras

The Friday of our Pinkster weekend was warm and sunny. As much as we love our little balcony, we were in no mood to stay home for dinner. We met up with our American/Dutch friends Jenny and Arie at a little terras on the Maas. (I love how the Dutch have a specific name for an outdoor café.) It was a beautiful evening of snacks and drinks. Our romantic stroll home along the river reminds me how much I love Maastricht and its beauty.

Jaap took us for a scenic bike ride on Saturday. He's a good navigator with our bike maps of Zuid Limburg. We couldn't have asked for a better trip. (Well...we probably could have done without my whining over all the hills). Thankfully Jaap is used to my whining. It wasn't too bad though. I've toughened up since moving to the Netherlands. I would have never enjoyed this bike ride two years ago. Now it's actually fun!

Break time in a little secluded spot

Belgian biking

We rode through some tiny little Belgian towns, stopped for drink in the woods, and ended up back in St. Pieters, in Maastricht, for a drink at one of my favorite places, De Sjans. The perfect day. Minus the severe allergy attacks that we both had. Hay fever season is not fun! 

Back in Maastricht in Biesland

I love this restaurant. The terras at De Sjans is so peaceful and tranquil. The perfect ending to our beautiful ride in the sun. 

R.I.P. Fiets

We've had a beautiful Sunday. A bike ride to nearby Eijsden, lunch with a river view on the Maas, and a viewing of an "antiques roadshow" with our friends. We stopped at one of my favorite little spots, Eijsden castle. I love this place. 

In bike related news, I got my new fiets (bike) today. It's been a sad few weeks without my bike that I liked so much. I stupidly left my key in my bike during Dutch class and my bike was stolen. An easy steal for a bike thief. Jaap says I'm becoming more and more Dutch because having your bike stolen is a part of Dutch life. Well, you live and learn! 

R.I.P. fiets...thanks for the good times

Sinterklaas 2011

Ready to open presents!

This busy time if year is starting to catch up with me, so here is my belated Sinterklaas post in pictures. 

Reading the poems with presents

Jaap enjoying the Sinterklaas gifts with nephews

Spelletjes!

And more spelletjes!

Dank je wel to Frans and Annabelle for hosting! Het was gezellig.

And here is our new fake Christmas tree from Hema. I love this time of year, but I'm looking forward to some rest and relaxation at Christmas!

Meet our new neighbors: The Squatters

Geen leegstand meer in dit pand!

How is possible for someone to 'legally' break into an apartment or house, that they don't own, and call it their new place of residence? Well anything can happen in the Netherlands! But actually, it is no longer legal to squat apartments/houses, but apparently it's still happening. Here's proof of that. Haha! The idea that you can do this is and not get arrested is absolutely ridiculous to me. 

Behind our apartment complex is a row of houses, some of which have been sold, bordered up, or knocked down. Enter the squatters and our new neighbors! One day when Jaap came home from work he told me to come look out the balcony and see the squatters in action. There they were, knocking out the cement blocks that cover the windows one by one, which by the way took them many hours. The pictures that you're looking at were taken from our balcony. 

Here is a little progression of how the squatters made this place their new home. First you have to break in with at least one chair, bed, and a table to claim residency. Jaap says that once you're in the apartment or house, you have to notify the local police. Haha. Sometimes an arrangement is set up to pay rent, but I don't know how this works and if it actually happens at all.

The sign that they hung next to it says, Geen leegstand meer in dit pand, which means, No vacancy anymore in this building. 

You're probably wondering why squatting was even legal to begin with. Hmmm...me too! According to Jaap, squatting can help alleviate a housing shortage crisis by allowing people who need housing to move into vacant buildings. I still don't get it, but it was fun to watch someone break into a house in broad daylight. FYI...squatting is now illegal in the Netherlands, so we're still trying to figure out how this happened.

Here is the finished product! Tah dah! Poof you have an apartment!

Queen's Day & Tulips!!!!!!

Queen's Day, lots of tulips, and clogs. It's been a very Dutch week for me. Last Saturday was Koninginnedag, an official holiday that celebrates the Queen's birthday. Technically Queen Beatrix's birthday is in January, but the holiday remains on April 30th (the previous Queen's birthday) so the Dutch can celebrate in warm weather. 

Koninginnedag in Maastricht is pretty tame. The real party takes place in Amsterdam with more music, people, and drinking. However, we still managed to enjoy the day with warm weather and the largest flea market (vrijmarkt) I have ever seen in my life! On Queen's Day the Dutch government allows people to sell their goods (more like junk) on the street without paying a sales tax. It's a very kid-friendly holiday where kids sell their toys and baked goods throughout the park. We also saw a lot of young musicians performing on the streets. We threw a couple of euro cents to some beginning flute players playing at one of the vrijmarkts. It was very cute. Jaap and I bought some CDs and another kitchen good for myself. We spent a whopping 3.50. Woo hoo!

Vrijmarkt at the Stadpark. Jaap wearing the Dutch color.

The Stad park had some pavilions set up with live music and food. We listened to a big band perform while enjoying some drinks. Here's a picture of Jaap enjoying the holiday. I'm not sure if you can tell, but he was dancing in this shot. One of his signature moves. Now...on to the tulips!

When most Americans think of Holland they think of clogs, tulips, and windmills. Oh, and of course legalized marijuana. I have yet to experience the joys of coffeshops and smoking pot in the Netherlands, but I can now check the Keukenhof off my list. What a sight! The Keukenhof is very unique and like nothing you have ever seen before. Jaap's parents treated me to a day at the Keukenhof. I'm glad I was able to go there with Jaap's family and enjoy it with others. Jaap was really sad he missed it. Just kidding. :) Special thanks to Jan and Trees for the trip! Het was gezellig!

The Keukenhof is famous for large fields covered with huge blocks of color from different types of tulips. Unfortunately, we were about a week or two too late and the tulips in the fields have come and gone. However, there is still a lot of see at the Keukenhof and the gardens are really spectacular. Throughout the park there are different pavilions that house more exotic flowers as well. 

Did you know that the Netherlands is the number one exporter of tulip bulbs in the world? These people really know their flowers. It's one of the many little things I love about living here. I once bought 50 tulips at the market for 5 euros. That's ridiculous! I've gotten into the habit of buying flowers at the market once a week to bring some more color and nature into our apartment. I love that buying flowers is so affordable. 

I feel so Dutch!

Dutch people, on the other hand, keep many plants and flowers in their homes and gardens. Gardening here is serious business. Jaap is responsible for watering the plants in our apartment. I forget that we even have them. I'm pretty sure I was born without a green thumb. My former roomate and very close friend, Debbie, had a great saying when we lived together in Boston. She used to say, "Elena, this is where plants come to die." It's so true. I've killed every plant I've ever had. For now, Jaap can water the plants and I'll keep buying my tulips at the market. :)

Jan enjoying the clogs. 

It's beginning to look a lot like Carnaval!

Please sing along: It's beinning to a look a like Carnaval, everywhere you go! It's that time of year. Here in the south the Carnaval season has officially begun. Festivals, parades, Carnaval music, red, yellow, and green decorating the streets of Maastricht and of course beer! 

Can you find Jaap? He's the one playing the valve trombone. I'm a music teacher and I didn't even know what that was. Apparently it's perfect for playing in pubs with crowds of slightly drunk people. (Less chances of damaging the slide). 

The rest of the Netherlands does not take part in these celebrations. I can say that the party is really only happening here in the dirty south. The Netherlands is basically divided into two parts. The north and south. Protestant and Catholic. Noord Brabant and Limburg are the two southern provinces that are predominantly Catholic and celebrate Carnaval. Maastricht is famous for it's Carnaval costumes and celebrations and I'm so happy that we live here to be in the center of it all. 

For years Jaap has played with the Redt Band, a Carnaval party band from his hometown. Since we only live an hour from there he is able to still play with them for Carnaval season. Last Sunday was my first time experiencing the joys of this holiday. There was a festival in Oirschot and the Redt Band made their 2011 Carnaval season debut. I'm officially a Redt Band groupie. The festival took part in several pubs with bands from Oirschot as well as surrounding cities and towns. Lots of beer, loud music, and good times. Note to self: Bring earplugs next time. Ouch. Saying I had fun is an understatement. I had a blast! There were lots of Carnaval bands participating throughout the day, but I must say the Redt Band was my favorite. I know I'm biased, but they really know how to entertain. 

Warning: It's advised to have at least one beer before watching the following video clips. It's easier on the ears. :)

I'm looking forward to all the festivities happening during the next month with the Redt Band and in Maastricht as well.  I really feel far from home because of all these different experiences and traditions.  At the same time I'm happy to be here because you won't see any of this in New York!