At the Richmond Docks

AFter two weeks at sea, we finally arrived at our final destination: the Richmond, Virginia docks for the Independent Lines. This company has four ships that shuttle back and forth every two weeks from Richmond to Chester(PA) to Liverpool to Antwerp in Belgium. Because the final miles up the Appomatix River are so narrow, only the smallest ships can make it. The Independent Lines have 4 ships expessly for this purpose, although the larger company has 350 ships in its fleet.

We arrived exactly on time at 2:05 in the afternoon and the captain turned the ship on its axis to tie up on the starboard side. It was a bright, sunny afternoon and the stevedores were waiting for us. There would be no work on the loading or unloading that day and the dock was quiet. The captain had invited us to a barbeque party held at the end of every voyage and as the last lines were tied off, the crew was already assembling the tables on the dock for their party.

It wasn't until we actually arrived on the lower deck that we saw our son, Michael, waiting for us. We didn't expect him, but his wife, Rikki, so it was a complete surprise for us. Even from the lowest deck he looked tiny, but we waved and shouted to him. He was allowed on the ship and visited our cabin and saw the mess hall and the saloon and the bridge. The crew was preparing the winch to lower our 10 suitcases to the dockside and we took our computers and some small hand luggage down the 5 decks to the rented van. Michael tried to load the suitcases in the vanm, but the Filipino crew men did all the work. They had been very friendly and helpful to us on the entire voyage and waved goodbye.

This was an ideal way to travel, especially if you have time to relax and enjoy the life of a working freighter.

Michael drove us the 4 hours to his home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and we had 4 days to get back our land legs and then drive off to Miami.

Second Engineer on the Independent Pursuit

One of the perks of being a passenger on a freighter is a tour of the engine room. We had to ask the Captain and he had to ask the Chief Engineer and HE had to ask the Second Engineer. The answer was "Yes." After lunch one day, we met the officer, who is Indian, at the door of the engine room and he told us the rules of the visit, "You will find it difficult to hear me and to talk because the engines are so noisy, so stay close to me. Also, the headroom is dangerous because of the many metal parts, so keep looking around all the time. Finally, do not touch any part of the engine, it may be hot or oily." Also, he explained the nature of the engine room crew: "There are two Engineers and 4 Oilers, who are special crew men who keep the motors oiled and help make parts when repairs are necessary. We all have specialized training for this job. The Oilers usually stay together as a team and may stay with a single ship for many voyages. The officers move from ship to ship on almost every voyage."

So, we entered the metal door and were led down the first set of metal steps into the very noisy engine room. We first came to the machine that made fresh water from salt water. Salt water was pumped into the machine under high pressure for two reasons: first, becuase it was used to cool the engine oil and second because there was such a big demand for fresh water all day long in the kitchen and the cabins. Then we saw the engines themselves and a piston that was being repaired. We kept going down metal steps until we reached the actual lowest point where the outside hull was all there was between us and the ocean. We could see the shaft turning where it went outside to the massive propeller.

Finally, he took us into his "office" an insulated work chamber with a huge desk and all the controls for the engine lined up like a space ship. There was a library shelf of manuals above the desk. "I have to study these books all the time so I can become familiar with the engine and can improve my ranking." At the end of the desk was a tiny Panasonic laptop and he pointed to it, "That runs the entire ship," he laughed. "If it crashes, we have a spare one in the drawer."

The tour lasted about 45 minutes and we thanked him for his friendly courtesy to us. "How often do you see your family in India?" There was a photo of his wife and two children on the wall. "Oh, once a year for a maximum of four months. But usually, I sign on for three 4 month tours. I want to advance myself as fast as I can to the position of Chief Engineer where the pay is much better, and then I can tour for 8 months a year." It is fascinating to see such a highly trained man at work. We asked him how he got into the trade. "I was a mechanic engineer for an automobile manufacturer and it was a go to work every day and be bored job. I wanted the challenge of something new and so I chose this field."

The Appomatix River on October 29,2007

The final segment of the trip on the INDEPENDENT PURSUIT was from Chester, PA to Richmond, VA. Captain Pop told us, "You will see one of the most beautiful rivers in America on the trip." The pilot got on the ship at about 6 in the morning and by 10 we had turned up the James River into the Appomatix River. It was a big surprise for us. Not only is the river itself a lovely waterway, lined by miles and miles of forest. It feels like the forest before Europeans came to the continent. You can see in the bottom right of the photo, on the river bank, a small landing with a row boat and a path cut and lined with logs coming down to the shoreline. You can also see the reflection of the ship on the water. The ship has a draft of 21 feet and the river is only 23 feet deep. But the other wonderful thing about the trip was the way the ship handled in the tiny river. You could almost reach out and touch the trees. I couldn't believe the way the pilot maneuvered the ship. Many times in the length of the ship, he would turn to port or starboard by single compass degrees. Back and forth, just like riding a bicycle. Slowly but surely the ship went forward. There were houses once in awhile on the banks. Very large mansions with a Southern feel. In fact, the pilot pointed out "Jimmy Dean's Sausage Biscuit" house, which was white with a portico porch and even a boat house and dock on the bank. We spent almost 8 hours on the bridge as the ship walked its way up the river. It was true: this was a spectacular sight. We congratulated the pilot at the Richmond dock, and he told us that he was a 42 year old pilot who had followed his father and his grandfather into the trade. We asked him how he maneuvered the ship and he said, "I know the trees." Any problems? "Oh, sure, if the mist in the morning is bad, I can't see the trees and then I have to use the computer." The Appomatix River was a perfect ending to our two week trip back to America.

Marcin and Ania say "Yes!"

In the excitement of moving from The Hague to Miami, we were given the chance to celebrate the marriage of two friends, Marcin and Ania, in Tbilisi, Georgia. This is a grand old story because we have known Marcin since he was 15 years old in High School in Warsaw. Ania we have recently met several times.

Marcin and Ania decided to get married in Tbilisi, Georgia because that is the place he proposed to her, in front of the oldest church in the country. They had a civil ceremony in the living room of the ambassador's residence and the Consul officiated. It was wonderful because all of her family came from far away to be with them. Marcin's friends and sister came from Warsaw to be there also. All included there were 80 or so people from Poland, Germany, Holland AND many from Georgia.

We flew into the airport at 4 in the morning and just as the sun came up, we were driven by taxi van to our hotel in the "old Jewish quarter" of the city. We managed 4 hours of sleep and in the afternoon we all assembled for a tour of the city. The next three days went by as if we were on a roller coaster in a dream. Lots of laughter, dancing, drinking very good Georgian wine, huge lunches with lots and lots of meat(the Georgians love meat), walking in the streets where cafes had tables out and people gathered to drink, eat and sing, visiting the churches and the old synagogue, and more of the same for three days.

Marcin and Ania had a lovely idea(not just to marry) to bring people together for this huge long party. We left after 3 days on a flight from the airport at 3 in the morning and went back to The Hague to have one single day before the packers came to move our belongings into storage.

The Independent Pursuit Monrovia Liberia

Judy and I decided to take a "slow boat" to America after 38 years in The Hague. Our friend, Huibert, suggested a freighter, since he has twice traveled to the States on container ships. We discovered a company in London that arranged freighter travel for passengers. It turns out that the Peter Dohle Company from Hamburg, Germany owns 350 freighters that take passengers. Each ship has the word Independent in its name. The Independent Pursuit is one of the smallest ships in the fleet: 170 meters long and 30 meters wide and 7 meters deep. The ship can carry 1500 containers, but on our voyage there were only 750 because some were over-sized.
Captain Pop, the Master, was Romanian and explained, "This is the smallest of the ships I've captained. You will see why it is so small when we travel to Richmond, VA. Most of my ships have been at least 3 times larger." We couldn't believe that because, in our eyes, this ship was huge.

Our decision to take a freighter turned out to be complicated than we imagined. First of all, we had to prove that we were healthy enough to travel, with full insurance and a medical certificate. The insurance proved that we personally were insured, BUT we also had to sign statements releasing the Peter Dohle Company from any responsibility in regard to our health. Even if we die and have to be placed in a freezer, the company is not responsible. Furthermore, we had to prove that we could afford the trip (cost about $100 a day perperson) by fronting all the money. We were told that we should be ready to board on October 16 in Antwerp and wouldn't be allowed to enter the ship without a stamp from the Belgian customs police.

We had a 20 page document explaining "Life on Board" a freighter and it said things like: "Bring string to tie down your radio if the ship should roll in a heavy sea." "You will be able to buy small items from the ship's store, so bring small change in dollars." "Do not expect to be waited on like a cruise ship, you will be on your own for most of the day." "In ports, beware of the busy trucks and other vehicles that are moving quickly. Also, some ports are dark and dangerous for tourists, so always check with the Captain before you leave the ship. He will organize a taxi for you." "If you are allowed shore leave, be certain that you know the exact location of the ship and be back on time well before the ship departs, otherwise you will left behind."

So, it was with a bit of trepidation that we loaded up a van with our 10 suitcases, 2 computer bags, Judy's purse, my backpack, and a bag with apples, Evergreen biscuits and water bottles. We called the ship's agent and were told, "Do not arrive before October 17." One day later and we thought one day later to arrive in America. Little did we know.

Four of the Nine Suitcases for the trip

After all our household furniture and appliances were given away and our art collection packed for the shipment, we still had to keep clothing, bank papers, tax papers, medical papers, customs and passport papers, computers and all the attachments, work documents and personal items. These many things were packed into 9 suitcases for the voyage on the Independent Pursuit container ship bound from Antwerp to Richmond, VA. We needed everything for six months while we search for a place to live. We rented a short term furnished apartment, but the suitcases are filled with the stuff and stuffings of our lives. Like gypsies, we have to know what is where and what should be on top and what can wait. The shipping company allows 250 kilos of luggage per passenger, and we are nowhere near that amount. Although the angle of the gangplank could cause some embarrassment. We don't know what deck our bunk will be on, but we hope it won't be six stories up from the main deck. Actually, there are no elevators on a container ship, so we will be hiking up and down the inside and outside stairs for two weeks and should be stronger and healthier by the time we have to carry the bags off the ship. We chose bags with wheels, but stairs will be a hassle. Yesterday, Judy looked up the web site of the ICL and they announced that they will not be taking passengers in 2008. So, maybe we are the last ones to take passage with them. Everything is ready for the drive to Antwerp. Our friends will drive the rented van from The Hague to Antwerp and then help us with the bags and then drive the van back home. I think the last official duty we will have is to go to the passport office in Antwerp and get our passports stamped with the European Union Belgian exit stamp. Then, off to the ship and ready for the trip. The Independent Pursuit goes from Antwerp to Liverpool and then across the Great Circle Route on the Atlantic to Chester, PA and finally to Richmond, VA. Our daughter-in-law, Rikki, will drive up from Chapel Hill, NC and take us to her home with ALL the bags and two slightly greenish in-laws. Can't wait.

Judy and Kasia in Tbilisi

In the middle of all the hecticity of packing up our apartment, we flew off for a wedding in Tbilisi, Georgia. Our Polish friends were hosting a huge party for the wedding of Marcin and Ania. This photo shows Judy and Kasia(dressed in a Polish peasant costume) in the hotel lobby. The weekend was spectacular, although tiring. The airplanes arrive in Tbilisi Airport between 3 and 4 in the morning, so we had a 5 hour wait in Munich Airport. In the airport, Marcin was waiting with two taxi vans for the 10 Polish friends and little old us. Kasia and Ania were not there to meet us because they were recovering from an evening of serious drinking and fun. The hotel was in the old Jewish quarter of Tbilisi and up a steep hill. We got to bed at about 5 and slept until 10 the next morning. Breakfast was Turkish coffee, fresh eggs scrambled, dark bread and white cheese. On the first day, we had a tour of two of the oldest churches in European Christendom, because Georgia was the first country to accept Christianity. One of the churches has a crypt where the robe of Jesus is secured. The synagogue in Tbilisi is big and has three stories, each with its own synagogue and own rabbi and 3 congregations. Tbilisi is a friendly, warm town with a combination of old Soviet buildings and roads and trucks with a Mediterranean street life. Lots of cafes with strollers being invited to join in the fun. On the day of the wedding, the whole group of almost 100 guests were bussed to the home of the Polish Ambassador was our host for the official wedding ceremony. Then, champagne in the garden and finally off to the wedding party at a HUGE Georgian restaurant. The party lasted until 1 on the following morning. At midnight they announced that we were celebrating our 46th wedding anniversary. And the party went on. We returned to Amsterdam after leaving at 5 AM in Tbilisi and home at noon. The very next day, the movers arrived to pack us up for the trip to America. It was a tiring but very rewarding interlude.

Another country, another place, more friends

One of the most satisfying aspects of our life in Europe has been the travel. Sometimes we try to make a list of countries we haven't visited. The first Christmas in 1968 we packed up the light blue Volkswagen station wagon and drove to Spain. That summer, we made the first of the many car trips through Europe to Agia Trias, our favorite village in Greece. The road went on highways in Germany until the first overnight stop in Austria. Then, the real adventure would start as we drove over the Loibel Pass (14% grade!) into Yugoslavia. The drive was lovely and the mountains were spectacular. At the top of the pass, the border guards changed from well dressed and efficient Austrians into unshaven, sloppily dressed Yugoslavians. They were surly and not very friendly. In the early days, they would take our passports and write all the details by hand in a huge book. Then we would drive down the mountain for the 2,536 kilometer "highway" to the Greek border. We tried to do it in one go, but usually ended up stopping for the night in Llubliana, Zagreb, Slavonski Brod, Beograd, Nis, and finally, the armpit of the country: Titov Veles. Years later, we were able to make the trip in one day and a half. Our longest trip was from The Hague all the way to Shiraz in Iran. On that trip, our VW threw a piston in Slavonski Brod and we took the train home. The car was delivered to our front door by the Dutch Automobile Association, and it only cost us Dfl. 25, the parking costs in Yugoslavia. We used to drive to Warsaw through East Germany and once tried to make it as far north as we could to see the longest day in Sweden. But, the mosquitos were so huge that we turned around in Gavle and headed for home. We have never been in Portugal or Finland, and will have to wait until we get very old to see them. This photo is of Judy and our friends in Bulgaria in a mountain restaurant outside of Sofia. So, tick off that country.

Judy and her favorite cat: Bikki

18 years ago, friends moved from to England and didn't want to have to put their cats into six months quaranteen. We were catless and took the two cats: black Mr. Gentleman Hoover and wild kooky Bikki. Hoover died at age 17 and Bikki became the cat of the house. She had a wonderful personality, very sweet and funny. In fact, she insisted on lying on the kitchen table and I built a little fenced in "room" for her with BIKKI written on it. She would lie there peacefully until someone got their hand a bit too close and then, boom, she would bat out and give a little scratch. We would box with her in the "yard" which she defended like a champion.
After we moved to the Cornerhouse, Bikki and Hoover became house bound cats and when Hoover died, Bikki took over. There was no stopping her. She would climb into our clothing cabinet by pushing open the door(how I don't know) and knocking everything on the ground as she jumped to the highest shelf. Some mornings, when I reached in for a sweater for school, Bikki would be hiding behind the sweaters and I would get the shock of my life, when she would go into attack mode and lash out at my hand. Bikki and Judy had a special relationship as you can see by the photo. Finally, at age 18, we had to put Bikki to sleep and have been catless ever since.

Kitchen tiles in The Hague apartment

When we moved into The Cornerhouse apartments in 1999, we installed a brand new kitchen. We chose a light cream colored tile for the walls. Our friend, Huibert van Dorp, said that he'd like the chance to paint a few just as decoration to be added at random. We gave him 10 tiles, but a week later, he asked for a complete box of 80 tiles. He returned a few days later with all the tiles painted. We had given him a cardboard box with English language paperback books and he had just picked some out at random and found interesting quotes. I suppose an artist, especially one who loves words like Huibert, has a sort of instinct to find important and beautiful words just by scanning a text. So Huibert copied 20 or so paragraphs from the books and painted the other tiles in a sort of illustration of the texts. When the tile setter arrived, Judy laid out the tiles on the floor and asked him to keep them in the "correct" order. We went to lunch and shopping. When we got back, the tiles had been attached, but in another order. The tile setter had just made decisions based on his personal opinion as to what looked good. Nothing to do except say, "Great!" In fact, Huibert loved it because of the element of chance involved. Here is the text from a tile: "It was a prison even to him now, not a happy hunting ground of science. And the river knew better than they did. On the morning of August 27 it swung south, and since the dip of the beds was to the north, they rapidly ran into lower and lower formations. If it kept up this way they would be back in the granite. By nine o'clock they saw the dreaded rock, brown here instead of black, but unmistakable, rising up from the shore line."
Not all the tiles are serious though. One is a shopping list from the butcher: Poulet, gehakt, ham, pekelvlees, salami, boerenmetworst, sausijsjes, slavinken, sudderlappen, chocoladevla, karnemelk, slagroom, boter, boerengatenkaas, ossestaartsoep. Another is a list of the kinds of cakes in a bakery: Mocca, hazelnoot, swark, vlaai, advokaat, kerson, appeltaart, cocoskoek. One shows a large cocoon, titled: Chrysalis Humongus. And, the funniest one is a tile which he, by accident, painted upside down. It is labelled: Upsidedown Pig.
You can see the butcher tile on the bottom right in the photograph.
Luckily, the new owner of our flat, LOVES the tiles and is going to keep them.

Sweelinkplein in The Hague

This is the corner of the Sweelinkplein and the Reinkenstraat in our neighborhood in The Hague. What is interesting here is that the building frontages are protected monuments and may not be changed in any way. The neighborhood has changed of course, but now there are doctors' offices on the ground floor in places but still family homes in most of the buildings. The building directlyon the corner houses a doctors' office on the ground floor but the second story is a sports school and where I work out every morning. Typically for modern Holland, there is a Polish nurse who is the daily trainer. The top two floors are for a group of physical therapists. An interesting story is that the recent Dutch Paul Verhoeven movie about the war years in The Hague was filmed on the street in front of this building. Any modern looking features were covered up, including painting the white lines in the parking bay a bricky reddish black. Doorways were changed, street lights were "oldenized" and original street hardware like posters and round message towers were brought in. One of our friends, Wilbert van Dorp, is the owner of a set building company, and his team built up the street scene. I would run out of the gym and chat with him. A funny ending to this story is that at the Dutch Oscars ceremony in Amsterdam, Wilbert got into an argument with the main producer who had never paid his company, so Wilbert couldn't pay his staff without dipping into cash reserves. The argument developed slowly into a loud discussion and finally erupted into a fist fight right in the middle of all the fancy folks.

You can also see the red mailboxes on the side of the building. Mail here is picked up five days a week and so the local companies and families have a local and secure mailing point. During New Year's, when the Dutch explode millions and millions of fireworks, the slots in the mailbox are covered so that only single letters can be mailed, and not fire crackers.

Jan from Mirasa Restaurant

This is Jan, the owner of the Mirasa Indonesian Restaurant on the Reinkenstraat. His is a great story: born in The Hague and decided at a young age to go to Indonesia to learn self-defense techniques. He fell in love and married and returned to The Hage where he opened the restaurant. His wife was the cook and his two children helped waiting on tables. His son, Michael, is now a policeman in the city. Sadly, Jan's wife died. There is a Bhuddist shrine in her honor which you can see over Jan's shoulder above the doorway. He remarried Fanny, who is now the cook, and the restaurant is a going business. Jan is full of life and a great host and Fanny is an outstanding cook of rijstafel and other Indonesian specialties. Jan has kept the family atmosphere and the natural home cooking and so when we want to impress friends or just have a good meal, we head off to Mirasa. At the end of the meal, we go into the kitchen and give Fanny a hug. Mirasa has been one of our regular eateries and Jan is a fixture in our lives. He told us that we "aren't allowed to move to Miami."

Faisa, her father and Judy

Here is Mohammed, as a father. We have known him since he was a little boy almost 35 years ago. His father ran a market stall in the city market, and we would buy spearmint, peppers, olives and Moroccan cheese from him. Slowly, during the years, Mo has become the big boss and he runs the stall now with his son and daughter, Faisa. We see them every single Saturday morning when we shop and now he has zucchini, grapes, artichokes and dates added to the assortment. There is a standing joke with him and his family that he can't add fast and every time he has to add up the bill, they begin to laugh, he begins to laugh, and finally, after a moment or two, he says something. Judy asks, "Have you added in everything we bought?" He checks again and there are more laughs and then he says yes and we pay. He is always smiling and shy and friendly and so are his children. Anyway, Faisa was given our little VW Polo as a gift from her dad and so the American-Moroccan-Hague link was strengthened.

Tsvetana and Ivan in Sofia, Bulgaria

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Tsvetana and Ivan in Sofia, Bulgaria

Our last months in The Netherlands have been fun. Not only did we spend a lovely three weeks in Greece, but we were invited for a four day visit to Sofia, Bulgaria as guests of Tsvetana and Ivan Kamenova. This is them at the train station in Sofia as we left to return to Thessaloniki. We traveled first class on a brand new train in a private compartment, even air conditioned. The trip lasted five hours and cost Euro 17! Ivan is a painter and teacher in the National Art Academy. He has illustrated many children's books and now concentrates on his painting. Tsvetana is a professor of law and they were fantastic hosts for us. In fact, we were not allowed to spend even one penny for the whole days we were there. We stayed in their house 10 kilometers outside the city, on a hilltop overlooking the city. After another bottle of wine, I think we promised to be their hosts in Miami, but I am certain we swore to visit them again.

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Renske Dooitjes and Maggi's "Chair"

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Renske Dooitjes and Maggi's "Chair"

Many months ago, this Mr. Blandings Dream Chair sculpture by Maggi Giles, was damaged. Luckily, Maggi's restorer, Renske Dooitjes, is such an expert that you can't see any damage at all. Here is Judy and Renske in her atelier in Amsterdam on the day we picked up the chair. Renske works for the Museum at Leiden University and we have seen her repair Venetian glassware! We carried the chair to our car and put it in the back seat, covered by a quilt, and strapped in by a seatbelt. When Renske sends a bill, she includes a complete list of all the chemicals she used, and their percentages, and all the methods she used in the repair. This is such a complete list that it can be used to guide any future restorer. Now the chair is back in our apartment ready for the move to Miami.

agia trias boulevard

We have started our "real" retirement after a very busy first week of July in The Hague. Judy finished her work on Friday, the 29th of June and Patriek and Maria van Dorp threw a huge party on June 30th for us to say goodbye to the van dorp family. We have known them since 1968 and now they are all grown up into adulthood and craziness. Judy and I had a birthday party with our friends, Irene Nicastro and Ineke vander Jagt on Judy's birthday, July 1. Then, on Tuesday and Wednesday, we had a house guest from Paris and another huge fancy dinner for Judy on Wednesday night. On Thursday morning, I picked up Umit Celebi and his family, Kate Gyllenhaal, and daughters, Aysa and Mavi. Judy went to the airport with me to meet them and then took the train to Amsterdam because she was the graduation speaker for the Masters' Law Program. Umit stayed with us until we left on Saturday morning at 4 AM for the flight to Thessaloniki. He is staying there with the family until next week. So...we have been very busy and needed a rest.

So, here we are in Agia Trias, our favorite Greek village. We have been coming here since 1970 and everyone greets us like old friends. We have a busy daily schedule of sleeping until 9, coffee at Vagelis' at 10, shopping for fruit and vegetables at 11, swimming until 2, lunch until 3 on the balcony of Hotel Pibieba(Riviera); death nap until 5, swimming again until 7, shower and the evening "volta" or parade on the boulevard from 8 to 10 and then dinner at Anemos Taverna, owned by the Apotalidis family, where Jannis Galanis is the chef. This has been a regular routine for many years and let me tell you, it is exhausting.

We met up with Jane Evangelopoulis, the daughter of our oldest friends here, Nicos and Elfie Evangelopoulis. Jane is our Greek daughter and we always love to meet up with her to get the latest gossip. Gossip is big business in Greece because family feuds are the life blood of the people here. We know one family where the brother and sister have not spoken to each other for 30 years. The sister owns a beach accessory store about 300 meters from the brother's restaurant and they (and their children and grandchildren) pass each other every day but pass each other without even a nod of recognition. We know one family where the husband sleeps in his car outside the house, and his wife and daughters refuse him entry. This is gossip heaven.

Kasia Meller and Judy in Warsaw

Kasia Meller and Judy are standing in front of Kasia's shop, Mellina, where she sells clothing, accessories as well as serving coffee and cakes. We have known Kasia and her twin brother, Andrzej, and their older brother, Marcin, for 21 years, since they were little children. Warsaw is their home city and we have made a pilgrimage there every Thanksgiving WITH a frozen turkey, sweet potatoes and cranberries to make a party for them. We have loved watching them grow up into successful adults. We had a wonderful, fun filled summer vacation with Kasia and the "boys" in Greece with their father, Stefan and their mother, Beate. For the last 21 years, we have visited them several times and they have been here to our home in The Hague. Also, they spent a year in Atlanta, Georgia and we flew the twins from Amsterdam to Boston and then drove them to Chapel Hill, where our son, Michael and his wife, Rikki, drove them to Atlanta.

Huibert and his caravan

This is Huibert standing in front of his caravan in Amsterdam. This is one of four caravans in the park, which was once the place where circuses would winter. Huibert has painted the inside and outside of the caravan. A visitor to the caravan park would be reminded of a Hippy campground, but there is also a huge quonset hut where parties are held, and a sort of airplane hanger where a boat is being built. Huibert's family and friends gather for meals around a central campfire. The whole site is very unique and, in fact, a Dutch TV program once filmed Huibert painting his caravan. The park is on a small island on the Ij River right on the outskirts of Amsterdam. Huibert is waiting for the day that the city fathers roll up and close the place down.

Rob Brandts Gold Potato Compost Chandelier

Rob Brandts is a sculptor who lives outside of Rotterdam. About 5 years ago, he was drinking coffee out of a plastic cup and the indentation left by his thumb suddenly caught his attention. He decided to have the indented cup turned into a ceramic model and made a few for a show in a gallery. They sold out immediately and he decided to mass produce them for steady income. These plastic-ceramic cups have been a big success for Rob. This chandelier has nine of the cups with a halogen bulb inside and the black wires are heavy duty electrician's wire so they can be bent back and forth. The idea is of an upside down compost heap with the gold dripping off the black base onto the gold "potato".

Greek willow revolving bar table

About 30 years ago we were driving on Halkidiki peninsula and stopped for a snack in Kassandra. On the other side of the street was a derelict workshop filled with old wooden furniture. A man was busy cleaning out the shop and loading pieces into a small van. Suddenly, we noticed this table. We walked over to the site and found this dusty item under a pile of old workclothes. We asked the man if it was for sale and he said yes. It is all handmade, even the glass top was hand cut, and the central bottle holder revolves around a post. The design is bent willow twigs upon plywood. There are two small side shelves with glass tops also. We put it in the back of our station wagon and drove it all the way back from Greece to The Hague. Then, the reaction to the Dutch weather was a bit shocking because a mold began to grow all over the willow. We went to a garden store and they advised buying a mold-killing spray, which worked perfectly. The table is a bit wobbley on its legs, but otherwise it is still in good shape. Each of the bottle holders is a cheap pressed wood circle with the willow twigs glued and nailed to the side. This is nothing fancy, but it is a unique piece and with all the fun of bringing it back from Greece, we will take it to the States.

"Our man" Andi

This is Andi, from Indonesia. Andi is a singer, guitar player, member of a band AND a pharmacist. He put himself through pharmacy college in Indonesia by making music. It took him 7 years, and now he, and his wife, have come to The Netherlands to earn money by cleaning houses so that they can return to their country and buy a pharmacy. Behind him you can see the door telephone on the wall, the line phone on the black holder, and on the left, the photo montage of me and Judy from our original passports. Sometimes, when Andi is working here, we speak to Peter, our son in Boston, and also my father.

Scheveningen harbor during a storm

In the last 40 years there have two or three storms in the Scheveningen harbor which have been so strong that the large fishing boats have been picked up from their mooring positions and the sea water has come up over the quay. You can see our little VW Polo parked next to the Tridens trawler, which has risen far into the air. Its lines are stretched upwards as the ship rises. The sea water is sloshing ovr the edge of the quay and you can see the white caps on the sea face. On the days when the winter winds are very strong and from the South, the beach roads along the dike faces are covered with blowing sand and the police stop all traffic. Once, in the 1970's, a ship was blown onto the beach from its mooring 10 miles out at sea. It was the pirate radio station, Radio Northsea, and it became a huge tourist attraction, until a channel was dug and the ship was towed out to sea again.

Rowing teams on the Suez Kanaal

This view from our balcony shows two teams of rowers in a competition held in the Spring each year. There are 12 rowers, one helmsman, and one man on the bow. They race from the harbor in the center of The Hague along a course that brings them to each section of the city's waterway. There are some sections of the canal system that are so narrow that the boats can only go one at a time, and these are the select spots for a bit of aggressive rowing and steering. You can also see the houseboat at the end of canal right at the bridge on the Laan van Meerdervoort, where only one boat at a time can pass. In this case, the yellow boat was able to make the first pass.

Sinter Klaas, Zwarte Piet, and Judy

December 5 is Sinter Klaas holiday in The Netherlands. The Sint arrives in The Hague on a fishing boat, supposedly from Spain. He is accompanied by a group of Zwarte Piets, who throw a sort of candy to the people. All the children sing songs to welcome the Sint, and that evening, the families gather to hand out gifts. The special aspect of Sint day is that the gift is attached to a poem and is hidden inside a packaging that disguises what it is AND together, the poem and the package, are supposed to make a sort of funny, sarcastic comment on the person getting the gift. In the schools, each child is brought with the class to meet Sint, who reads from a large book in which the teachers have described the children. In some cases, the Sint says that "you have not worked hard on your spelling, have you?" Of course, the little children are amazed at his knowledge. On the street outside our apartment, (and on many streets in the whole country) The Sint and the Piets parade with music and make a lot of fun with the shoppers. All the families arrive and greet Sint, who has ridden up on a white horse. Lots of laughing, lots of singing and just plain fun. We used to have fun with the friends and our kids in a big Sint party where poems and gifts were exchanged. You would pick a person's name out of a hat and buy them a present and write the poem. It was great when one of the children got an adult's name and wrote a poem that could be quite funny(and true).

Pieter Defesche, "Neighbors"

This lovely painting is our favorite. Pieter painted this of the lady and her two children who lived next door to him in the village of Ulestraten, near Maastricht. She had asked him to make a portrait of her and the children and he made it on the condition that she let him make the same portrait in is own style. She agreed. Pieter was a professor of art in Maastricht and a charming man with a wild twinkle in his eye. We visited him and his wife, Dolly, in their home and they also visited my mother and father in Boston. Pieter died in 1998, a much admired and loved Dutch painter.

Huibert van Dorp--mini theater

Huibert is one of our longest running friends. We met him when he was 19 years old and a student in the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. He has made many pieces of art for our apartment. This theater has flashing lights in the back and overhead lighting. There are stage curtains and teeny steps leading up to the stage floor. When you play music, and the lights flash away, the effect is lovely at night. The four figures on the stage are independent and can be moved around in a dance. The little green floor lamp is also free to put either on the stage or next to the steps.

The Peace Palace, Carnegieplein, The Hague

The Peace Palace houses both the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration, where Judy works as the General Counsel. She also works for the International Council of Commercial Arbitration as Managing Editor of their Yearbook and other publications. This building was constructed with funds from Andrew Carnegie at the beginning of the 2oth Century. Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia were the leading figures in the creation of a court to settle international disputes in order to avoid war. The Peace Palace is filled with lovely pieces of art donated by many countries. Judy worked here from 1997 until her retirement in 2007.

The memorial placque on the Reinkenstraat

This placque above the door of number 19 Reinkenstraat was organized by Herman Niebhor, the owner of the cheese store. He wanted to remind present day residents of the history of the street. The basic story is that 24 Jews were secreted in the building and were betrayed by a neighbor during the German occupation of The Netherlands during World War II. The inscription says: "This memorial to the dead is, for them, a second life." Jean Bartou.
The text is: "On March 22, 1943, 24 Jewish neighbors who lived at #19, were arrested by the German occupiers. They were transported to Sobibor(Concentration Camp) and murdered."

The Reinkenstraat, our shopping street

The Reinkenstraat is a typical Dutch shopping street. This is the front door of the Boot family hardware and handyman store. There are two flower shops, two butchers, a shoe repair shop, two bakeries, one laundromat, four cafes, one bar, one clothing repair shop, two pizza restaurants, one Indonesian restaurant, a cheese and milk store, two gift shops, one leaded glass workshop, two real estate agencies, an upholsterer, a bookstore, and a late night snack shop. The only store missing is a fishmonger, but on two days a week, a herring cart is brought out and we buy fresh herrings, or smoked mackeral sandwiches. The Reinkenstraat used to be a workers' neighborhood, but now has been yuppified and gone up market. There is also a bicycle repair shop around the corner and two tram stops at the end of the street, so this is one of the most convenient streets in the city. We have loved living in this neighborhood, especially because the people are so friendly. Judy teases me that I am the "mayor" of the Reinkenstraat becuase I say hello to everyone. Our dream would be to find a street like this in Miami when we move.

A View of the houseboats on the Suezkade

These houseboats have permanent locations rented from the city. All services are supplied just like a normal house. The water in this canal is too warm to swim in, and once in a while, a fisherman hauls up an immense carp and all the newspapers come for photos. The houseboats can not be shifted outside this location unless they are demolished down to the underwater boat section. Usually, the basin is made of poured concrete and it is floated in under the bridge. All construction materials are delivered from the roadway on the right. This is a peaceful canal with no traffic, so the living is comfortable. In fact, there is even a two story houseboat at the other end. Every year, a family of swans comes to raise a family. We lived overlooking this beautiful canal for almost all of the 39 years that we were in The Hague.

Suezkade 124, our home for 27 years

This apartment was our home from 1970 to 1997. Officially it is called a double ground floor gentleman's house. On the left is the wooden-walled gentleman's smoking room(we used it as a guest room), the master bedroom, a second bedroom, the kitchen and, at the back, a pantry. On the right, is the living room, the dining room, and the sunroom, which opened into the garden. There was also a smaller bedroom on the right opening on the garden. And, in the end of the 14 meter long marble hallway, was the door to the wine cellar. As a special treat, our landlord, Mr. Jasperse, spent 5 years digging a secret underground tunnel from the sidewalk to the back garden, because he also dug out(by hand!) a hole for a swimming pool. Unfortunately, he struck ground water from the Beek River, and the hole flooded so badly that the pool could not be finished. The floor in the pantry cracked and broke because he didn't support the roof of the tunnel. We loved this apartment, especially the huge old fashioned kitchen which became the central location for many dinners with our friends and family when they visited.

Maggi Giles' ceramic dinner set

Maggi Giles has been our friends since 1972 when we were lucky to have seen a sculpture she made in the Galerie Nouvelle Images in The Hague. I called her up at her studio in Amsterdam and told her we loved the sculpture. Since then we have been close friends. On our 25th anniversary, we asked Maggi to make us a set of dishes and she agreed. This is a place setting for eight, including two candlesticks, two serving bowls, a fish platter, a coffee pot, salt and pepper shakers and a tomato plate. Maggi helped us choose the appropriate utensils. Maggi said that we were obligated to use the dishes and keep them on display, and when we have a fancy party, we bring them out of their cabinet. Each one must be hand washed in order to protect the edges. these dishes will be specially packed for safe transport to Miami, and the cabinet will go also. Maggi's book, "The Piggy Chef" and her book, "The Perfect Planet" will get featured space in our new home.

Farewell dinner hosted by Boelie and Ellen

Judy and I have been lucky over the years to have met interesting people. Some Dutch people have become close friends. Boelie Woelders (real name is Arian) was 19 years old when he first came to our house for a party. Boelie had a relatively wild life when he was younger, but now, a married man, he is the owner of a successful graphic art company. He and Ellen hosted a farewell party in our honor in their home in Oestgeest, outside of Leiden. The chef gives private lessons and also cooks for private parties. We were picked up at six by a taxi and driven to the house. Champagne and "hapjes" were served before we sat down. And then a four course meal was presented, and the chef explained every dish. Finally, coffe and three cakes(baked by Ellen) for the closing and we were taken home by the taxi at about midnight. Patriek and Maria van Dorp were among the guests. What a pleasant evening and an emotional one.

Faisa's Family waves goodbye.

This is Mohammed and Faisa and Naeem and their mother. Mohammed is the son of the Moroccan man from The Hague open market. We have been shopping from this family for almost all the 39 years we have lived in The Hague. Faisa turned 21 and we sold her our VW Polo. This family is typical of what we are leaving behind here. The grandfather immigrated from Morocco and now his son and grandson operate the same market stall. We usually buy zucchini, parsley, sweet potatoes, artichokes, fennel, and wild spinach from Mohammed. Every Saturday morning at 10, we drive to the market and head for Mohammed's stall. Then off to Barbara for fruit and then to Jan for vegetables and finally to Willem, the Kaas Boer(Cheese Farmer) for a selection of Dutch cheeses. We hope to find a similar type of market in Miami when we move there in October, but we have heard that Miami does not have a daily market like this. The Hague market is the biggest in the Netherlands, with food, butchers, bakers, fishmongers, antiques, clothing and flowers. You can buy very cheap clothes there(€ 1 for a handmade shirt from India!) and handbags, shoes, coats from Russia, bicycles, and even fresh herring eaten raw right on the spot.