7.13.2009

15 things we miss about Netherlands



Now that we have been cycling in Belgium for over a week, we have started the inevitable list of things we miss about the Netherlands.

I asked my family and here is a quick brainstorm of things we miss:

1. The liveliness, the bustle of the cities (always cycles, boats, cars, people out and about)
2. the multitude of outdoor cafes and eating---visiting among friends
3. canals, canals, canals
4. chocolate sprinkles (aka Hagelslag)
5. FLAT bike paths
6. MARKED bike paths
7. ... actual bike paths
8. Vrienden op di fiets (means 'friends on cycles' and where we rented rooms in people's homes)
9. organic games of soccer in piazza's. Large empty piazza's beckoning soccer and kids joining in.
10. friendliness of people in Netherlands; offering directions, help, conversation; warmth of the people.
11. camaraderie of cyclists; everyone is into cyclists, thought has gone into every route/path/way a cyclist would want to go.
12. COLOR. Vibrant dress, buildings, gardens, etc.
13. every bit of land was used: sheep, chicken, cows, gardens, fields of corn, potatoes, garlic, lined trees, goats, beautifully manicured yards and gardens, well-painted everything... fastidious was the word we often used...
14. no smoking in cafes/restaurants until after 10pm. Yes---really.
15. STROOPWAFELS.

1 comment:

  1. hi janelle! traci's sister lori here. this is so neat to watch your blog! i married someone who's father came over from holland so we do a lot of the 'dutchy' stuff: hagelslag, stroopwafels, gouda, old amersterdam, butterledder, etc.(NO dutch lace here!!) we're actually leaving for france & holland tomorrow and taking our 5 kids with us-they've never been to europe so it's pretty exciting! keep blogging & we'll keep watching ;)

    ReplyDelete

we love hearing feedback!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails