Amsterdam Day 247: Beverly Loses Her Tooth

Beverly has been so excited recently because she has had a tooth that has been lose. She has been very excited because she knew that it was coming out soon. So much so that she could hardly contain herself. Well the time came, and Jaimee asked Beverly if she wanted to have her pull the tooth. And so she did. 

Amsterdam Day 246: Cologne

The day started quite early for three of our children. For some reason they were up and ready to go by 630 in the morning. I was not so I threw an iPad at them and said keep the volume low so I can sleep some more. It sounds bad but sometimes it is better than having a very grumpy dad from no sleep. 

After breakfast in the hotel, cause it was included which is a win, we headed out to explore Cologne. On the way to the center, we passed a Subway/Dunkin Donuts. And since we have not seen one of those in quite some time, we knew where we were eating lunch. I feel like there is something ironic about going to Germany just to eat lunch at the Dunkin Donuts. 

We arrived at the humongous cathedral in the middle of town. This thing was huge. Ken Ormsbee has alway told me to visit it because it was such an amazing cathedral. And he was right. Excellent suggestion Ken. 

In the back of the cathedral are the remains of the three wise men that visited Jesus when he was born. It also was started in something like the 1200's. For 300 years they get building and finally quit. For another 300 years it remained incomplete. And finally in the 1800's they finished it. 

Charlie was very impressed with the inside. It looks like he is amazed but he is really just counting all the windows. He stopped around 20. 

And then finally the best part about Germany. For the record, Jaimee says she is above this child nonsense, but she is the one that took the picture. 

Amsterdam Day 244: Xanten on the way to Cologne

Since I have Good Friday off from work and since the kids were out of school since Wednesday, we decided to take off for a quick fun trip. We decided to go for two nights in Cologne. We took off on Friday late morning, and headed to the town of Xanten. There is a big archaeological park from the ancient ruins of an old Roman colony. 

We started off by walking through the large amphitheater. The most exciting part was imaging fighting with other gladiators and the lions that were trying to eat us. 

Charlie just wanted to play in the dirt. I'm pretty sure he would have been eaten first. 

They had a pretty interesting museum dedicated to the ruins and the stuff dug out. 

It was a very interactive museum where the kids were able to touch a lot of things and even smell some things. 

And they had a fun area where the kids could dress up as Roman soldiers. 

Charlie was not interested in the dress up but was very interested in the pretend horse. He spent about 20 minutes getting in and off this thing. 

We spent a lot more time in the city of Xanten that I thought we would have, especially for it being a city I had never heard of the day before. The city has a cool city wall around it complete with a very cute church and a windmill. 

We continued on our journey to Cologne. It was getting to be late at night by that time so we had dinner and went to bed. 

If we had driven straight through, it would have taken us just over an hour and a half. To put that in perspective, that is only a bit further than a trip from Peachtree City to Chattanooga or about the same as Idaho Falls from Ogden. It turns out that there are quite a few really cool cities with three hours of our place. 

Amsterdam Day 243: Easter Traditions

Easter (Goede Vrijdag, 1e and 2e Paasdag) took place this weekend and marks the start in a long string of public holidays over the next couple of months. Well, Easter Monday is a public holiday but Friday is a normal working day, apart from government workers and Delta employees taking U.S. Holidays, lucky things. Here is our list of Dutch Easter traditions. 

Decorations
The Dutch are very keen on Easter eggs and spring-related decorations, and many homes will put up willow branches hung with tiny wooden eggs and bows. Over the years these have become bigger and more elaborate, the supermarket shelves are groaning under ornaments and soon they will resemble Christmas trees.

Easter breakfast box
If we have children at a Dutch primary school, Beverly, rather Jaimee, had to make an Easter breakfast box which she gave to another child in her class. This is a shoe box beautifully decorated with Eastery things and contains all the ingredients for a delicious breakfast. Some schools have banned jam and sweet things, white bread and even chocolate eggs… which is a little odd. But hey, a cheese sandwich can be festive as well. Those little things in her hair are chicks. The skirt was the most beautiful thing she could find. 

The Easter Hare
Yes, the Dutch do have Easter egg hunts but don’t forget, the Netherlands has a Paashaas – Easter hare – rather than a bunny – well, it does rhyme better.

Easter Dinner

Since we were traveling this weekend, more to come on that later, we had a very traditional Dutch Easter Dinner. We went all out and let them get full kids meals this time. 

 

Amsterdam Day 240: Jannica's Choir Concert

As I mentioned before, Jannica's choir trip this year was to Muscat, Oman.  I have discussed my trip in depth, so now I will give the details, as far as she has shared with me, about her trip.



Her first day was waking up very early and going to the Grand Mosque, same as me.  After the mosque, she went to the Mutra Souq to go shopping.  Her big purchase was a belly dancing outfit.  We shall see if she is ever allowed to wear that out of the house.  Then the rest of her day included a visit to the hotel pool and the beach.

The next day, she headed of to the first day of rehearsals at The American International School of Muscat.  It is an amazing school.  It makes Disney High in Amsterdam seem like nothing.  It also has what I consider to be one of the most amazing bathrooms in the whole country.  It was beautiful.  The auditorium also was impressive looking.  She spent the whole day, about 13 hours at the school rehearsing. 

The next day was more of the same, but it also included the concert at the end of the day.  Overall, it was a very exhausting day both physically and on her voice.  But she reports that it was absolutely amazing and fun.

So I show up to the concert 20 minutes late.  As I walk in the door, I discover the whole choir is gathered outside the auditorium waiting to go in.  This gives me a chance for a quick conversation with Jannica before I find a seat.  Since I was 20 minutes late, there was no one to pay.  So bonus on being late, and I didn't miss anything important.  When I walked into the auditorium, they were were showing all the international schools that flew to Muscat for this event, it looks to be about 10 schools, mostly in the Middle East, but ones from Austria, India, and over course, the Netherlands.

It was a recorded concert, so her is the link if you would like to watch it.  Jannica is on the front row, about the 4th student from the left.

http://livestream.com/TAISMOman/events/4980110

45:38 The choir part of the concert starts

1:02:05 A song from Mecedonia that I find quite interesting

1:06:55 A song from India that is full of energy

Two of my favorite songs are the song from Macedonia and the song from India.

After the concert, the everyone changed.  The packed up their bags, and headed for the airport.  Most of the flights were just after midnight, so timing was just about perfect.

Amsterdam Day 237: Oman Day 4

The desert safari camp was all that I expected and so much more. After riding 20 minutes through the desert driving on the sand, we arrived at our camp. 

Our camp consisted of about 20 huts, a kitchen/dining room, an outdoor living room, and a campfire. 

Oh, and I forgot about the bathrooms. Compared to this, the restrooms at the Grand Mosque were absolutely fit for a king, I mean Sultan. The sign is to remind guests to place used toilet paper in the trash bin and not down the toilet, since it will clog the septic system. 

And here is a view from the living room. This may have been my favorite part as I could just lounge, relax, and just do nothing. 

At sunset, they took us up to the top of the dunes. It was amazing to hear absolutely nothing. The sunset was not the best because there were storm clouds rolling in. This will be important later on. 

The next morning came very slow from one of the worst nights rests in my near term memory. It was hot. And because of the rain, there were mosquitoes. And because of the mosquitoes, I had to cover my body with a blanket, which only made it hotter. Anyways, morning brought camel rides. Here is my buddy. We decided to call him Kevin. No idea why. 

And we took off as a group though the desert on camelback. I'd say overall, that it was a lot of fun, but very uncomfortable. Camels tend to have a ridge right down the middle of their backs. Even with the cushions, it feels a bit like a wedgy. 

After the camp, we took off to Wadi Bin Klalid. In order to get there, we had to take the cars through several rivers that were overflowing from their banks, because of the rain. This is usually the parking lot. 

It is a beautiful canyon area with several natural pools to swim in with a cave at the end of the short 1km hike/swim. It turns out that it was a very good idea to leave my phone/camera behind as it would have been soaked. 

As I was swimming back after the hike up, there was a Pakistani family sitting at one of the bridges. Several men were jumping off a cliff about 20 feet high. As I swan by, they challenged me to jump also. I immediately was up to the challenge. It was really cute as there were several children, grandmas, and grandpas. They were all excited to see this white guy jump. They all very excitedly counted down from 10, and I jumped. 

I headed off with plenty of time to get to Jannica's choir concert, but there was a problem I did not expect. Apparently, several of the dams had filled up with the rain last week and then again today. And when dams fill up, the leak over the edge. I was delayed by about 90 minutes because of the slowed traffic going through the rivers. I made it to Jannica's concert only 20 minutes late, which was fine since they didn't start singing until 30 minutes in. So perfect timing. More on Jannica's choir concert later. 

My flight was not until 5am the next morning. I had a hard time justifying a hotel when I had to be at the airport 3 hours early. Jannica's flight was right after midnight, so she didn't have to worry about this dilemma. So I took off to discover the sights of Muscat at night. I have no idea what this mosque is called. I thought it looked really cool. 

This is the Sultans Palace. I was a little disappointed that it was not more Aladdin like. Still cool though.  

And finally, the Grand Mosque at night. 

Amsterdam Day 234: Oman Day 2

After the Mosque, I took off into the mountains to explore a bit more. First stop was a fort in Bahla.

This is a restored fort that was recently reopened to the public. It was amazing to look at. 

I walked into one of these rooms and there were birds flying everywhere, some getting really close to my head. I freaked out a little until I figured out what they were. 

Yep. They were bats. I freaked out a little more and quickly left the room. But just so you don't get the wrong idea, it was a manly freak out. And a manly scampering out of the room. 

I climbed up a lot of stairs and climbed the towers. My thought as I was walking through was, "Wow, this is amazing. And this is what I always imagined the Alamo to be like." But compared to the this, the Alamo is disappointing. Very disappointing. 

Another 45 minutes up into the mountains brings you to the base of the Wadi Ghul. It is often referred to as the Grand Canyon because it is also grand and it is also a canyon. The picture doesn't do this justice, but you can see the beginning of the canyon, just to the right of the old abandoned village. 

Driving back to civilization, I came upon this young lady just laying around. I want to call her Sacajawea for some reason. 

Further up another mountain side is the little village of Misfat. There is a huge gorge with banana trees, date trees, pomegranate trees, and other stuff. It is so much fun to be driving through these deserted areas and then come upon the wadis with all the trees and water. 

As I was walking through the gorge, the call to prayer began from the village. If you want, you can listen and see. 

I had an interesting interaction at the grocery store. Two probably 20 year old Indian guys took a particular interest in me. I originally thought that maybe they didn't see many pale bald white guys around here. They asked several questions about where I was from and if I was alone. When I left the store, one came up to me and asked if I wanted a massage. I responded with a polite no. And then he told me that he was a sex boy and asked if I was interested. I'm not sure if anyone knows this about me, since I've never really told anyone, but I'm not really into Indian dudes.  So I declined and drove off very fast. 

Amsterdam Day 236: Oman Day 3

Have you ever wondered how livestock is sold in cities in Oman? Have you ever wanted to watch the process happen. If your answer was yes to both of those, then you are in for a treat. 

I woke up early so that I could get to the livestock market in Nizwa. It happens every Friday and is the liveliest from 7am to 9am. I arrived around 8am and the place was crowded. It took some time to find a parking spot and then walk to the livestock market, and I was not disappointed.

Here are the quick basics. If tiu get their early, the buyers get to have a seat in the middle. The later arrivals have to stand in the outside. It seemed a little more exciting on the outside though as there was more opportunity to be trampled by a cow or a goat. The sellers parade their goods around the circle hoping to get in a bidding match for their items. The buyers then, for lack of a better word, fondle the animals to get a good feel of how strong they are. Or maybe it is to see how tasty they are. I don't really know. They sure seemed to like checking out their undersides. 

After 30 minutes at the livestock market, I spend the next little while wandering around the souq. They had different sections for crafts, vegetables, birds, meats, fish, and dates. 

My personal favorite section was the weaponry, particularly the rifles and the Khanjar. A Khanjar is a traditional dagger originating from Yemen. Worn by men for ceremonial occasions, it is a shortcurved sword shaped like the letter "J" and resembles a hook. 

And then there was a walk up the fort next to the souq. Up at the top, this one reminded me of Alladin. I just about started singing out loud and I really wanted to start jumping from roof to roof to get away from the guards because my monkey stole an apple. I didn't though, because I already have my princess back home. I love and miss you Jaimee. 

From the top of the fort, I saw a part of the souq that I missed. Huge carpets hung up for all to see. Pretty cool, but I don't think that they would fit in my carry on. 

I then started the next part of my journey. I was headed out to the desert. In my way, I found this group just hanging out in the side of the road. I want to say that they are wild, but who knows. 

At one point on the journey, I stopped in a small village. Apparently in the villages, there are a lot of areas that have been abandoned. That is part of the problem with revolutionizing your society and modernizing in only 40 years. What that does mean though is that there are lots of cool places to explore where you vehicle might get stuck. I went through this doorway and found myself in a dry riverbed. 

This is the riverbed that I drove through in my little Kia in order to get back to civilization. 

Anyways, I'm off tonight to sleep in the middle of the desert. Here is how it is described by the lonely planet book. 

Nomadic Desert Camp - This intimate camp, run by a Bedouin family, offers personal service in the heart of the dunes. Accommodation is in barasti-style huts with shared bathrooms. Included in the price is transport from Al-Wasil on the Muscat-Sur Hwy, a camel ride and a visit to a Bedouin village. There is no generator and therefore no air-con, which makes for a peaceful and authentic experience. 

I'll let you know how it goes. 

Amsterdam Day 233: Oman Day 1

Jannica has her choir trip this long weekend. Back when we were in Georgia, a choir trip would usually be a long overnight bus ride down to Orlando, two nights in a hotel at Disney World, and an overnight bus ride back. Well, not at Disney High. At Disney High, they do trips to Muscat, Oman. And since deep in my heart, I can't let Jannica go to a country that I have not been to, I went along. And by along, I mean to be in the same country while she practices and performs. I will see her a bit. 

So on Wednesday, we took off from Amsterdam and flew to Muscat. For you airline nerds, I took Etihad connecting in Abu Dhabi, but the first flight was the 787 operated by KLM. I was not real impressed with the Abu Dhabi airport. Jannica flew with her fellow Disney High group on Swiss through Zurich and then stopping in Dubai on the way. 

When I arrived, I went to the rental car counter. There were 6 people in the little room having a little party. Since I showed up right as they were eating, they served me up a plate also. I can honestly say, that I have never been fed at the rental car counter before. It was some type of Indian food with just the right amount of spice. Very tasty. 

I checked into the hotel for a very short night as I had to meet Jannica at the Grand Mosque in the morning. Something about her needing money to survive or something like that. Here is my view of Muscat in the morning. It is pretty cool how all the buildings conform to one color and have the same types of style. 

I reached the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque early enough in the morning that there were not a lot of people yet. Non Muslims can only enter from 8-11am except on the holy day, Friday, where they cannot enter at all. 

Apparently, this place can handle up to 20,000 worshippers. It is a really beautiful new building, having been completed in 2001. 

After visiting the worship area, I went to the Islamic Information Center where I learned more about the mosque and more about Islam. And I walked out with my own copy of the English translation of the Qur'an. I opened it up and started reading. I've always been fascinated with religion, even when I was young, so this was a fun treat for me.

And no visit to the Grand Mosque would be complete without a visit to the restrooms. I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting, but I kind of figured that a beautiful and new building like this,  would have stately restrooms to match. And I was wrong. I'm not sure if it was the Indian food from the rental car counter or what, but I found myself in the situation where there was a need. You figure out how that works while keeping your pants on. And notice the hose in the side as the tool for wiping. And notice that there is nothing for drying.