Dutch Sports

It’s been said that every Dutchman and Dutchwoman can do three sports – bicycling, ice skating, and swimming. I propose that there are several other lesser known sports that anyone who lives in Holland can do. Here are three of those sports.

Dodgedroppings
A derivative of dodgeball, dodgedroppings can be played anywhere outside. There are some differences between dodgeball and dodgedroppings, though. Not all forms of dodgedroppings involve airborne objects. And one need not have any equipment to play dodgedroppings, although shoes and umbrellas are highly recommended. The object in which to dodge is provided by the animals that call Holland their home. Dodgedogdroppings is best played on large grassy areas. Sidewalks, however, provide ample opportunity to play dodgedogdroppings, as well. To increase the challenge of this game, it is good to have a partner to talk to. This will force the players to not be able to concentrate at all times on the ground. Dodgegoosedroppings is particularly enjoyable on the walking paths near lakes and canals. Recommendations are the same as those for dodgedogdroppings. Dodgerandombirddroppings is by far the most challenging form of dodgedroppings. This form does involve airborne objects, but those objects fall from above. One’s reaction time must be particularly quick to win a game of dodgerandombirddroppings.

Bugslalom
Best played while bikeriding or running, bugslalom requires the players to weave through the clouds of bugs hovering throughout the parks and streets. Bugslalom is particularly fun to play at dawn or dusk, when the greatest number of bug-clouds are present. To experience the full enjoyment of bugslalom, it is also important to play the game when out of breath or talking and when not wearing eyewear. Open mouths and exposed eyes result in bugswallowing or bug-in-eye-landings, which is a great way to keep score.

Bikebalancing
A distant relative of backpacking and gymnastics, bikebalancing is a combination sport. First, one must determine the best way in which to carry objects like 32-roll toilet paper packs, 3 children, or a 60 pound suitcase on a bicycle. It involves extensive knowledge of weight distribution and bungee cord usage. Once the first phase is complete, participants in this sport must then balance those objects while riding the bicycle through traffic. Loss of the object results in a 10-minute delay.

What language do I speak?

Tonight Dan and I played Boggle together. We both knew something was wrong when we were seeing a good number of foreign words in the game. Niet, jie, huis and others would just pop out at us. I even wrote down one word, certain it was a word, but unable to place its sound.
Dan gently reminded me it was Chinese.

This isn't the first time we've had this problem. I've been known to pronounce an English word with the Dutch sounds, or write an English word with the Dutch sounds. "UI" in Dutch is like "OW" in English. So, when I want to write "town" these days, I have to be certain I'm not spelling it "tuin". (Which means "garden" in Dutch, by the way.)

Attending months of lectures by foreign professors have had an effect on Dan. Because of the English and Australian professors, he no longer is quite sure when to write "analyze" and when to write "analyse". He sees misspellings so often from the non-native English speaking profs and students, that some words don't look right even when they are.

I hope that this is just a phase, brought on by knowing only bits and pieces of three foreign languages each. And of course, it has something to do with being thrown into an environment where we see so much of a language we really do not know. Certainly, if we do ever become fluent in a foreign language, we will be able to distinguish that language from English from others we speak at lesser levels...right?

Baby Birdies

OK. I admit it. I'm fascinated with all the birds around Rotterdam. And now they are having babies! The first ones were born about a month ago, and now there are families of birds all around the lake. Now, these baby birds don't quite fill the gap that exists knowing that our nephew, 4 nieces, and countless other friends' children are across the ocean. But they are still awfully cute!

Weird looking bandit geese have the cutest, fluffiest babies! 

Black birds with white beaks have black babies with red heads. These babies were so little, Ma and Pa were still feeding them. 

Dutch geese have Dutch baby geese...and a lot of them. My dad and I watched these geese swim across the lake when they were no bigger than the palm of my hand. Now they are so big! 

Baby duck crossing! 

Language Skills

My Dutch class officially ended on Tuesday, the 10th of May. I've made progress, I would say. I can read basic signs and headlines, fool - or at least least think I'm fooling - cashiers to think I can really understand them*, and I can have a conversation with a two-year old. Wait a second, is carrying on a conversation with a two-year old a sign of progress? "Wie is dat?" "Waar is papa?" "Lorna ook." "Wat is dat?" "Tot ziens" Sounds like progress to me!

*Story behind the cashier reference. If a purchase looks like it will be a gift, the kassa will ask if you would like it wrapped. I bought a gift last week, and anticipated the question. "Ja," I said. (This is after I already said hello and asked how much in Dutch.) I was feeling pretty good about myself, until she babbled something else. Uh-oh. Mind racing. What could she be asking? I hear "blauw"...something about blue. But it's not as simple as that. Ah...she figures me out, probably from the blank stare on my face. "Would you like blue paper or white paper," she asks. In English. I respond. In English.

Dutch women are amazing!

Here is one VERY good reason I'll return to the States when we expand our family: Dutch women typically give birth in their homes, with the aid of a mid-wife and WITHOUT pain killers. And they are still having babies!

I've wondered how often problems arise with this method. Well, according to my experiences, it's 100% of the time! (OK...my sample size isn't very big (n=1).) Our friends just had a baby...here's the short story:
1. About 10 a.m., friend feels labor beginning and calls husband to come home from work. Also calls mid-wife.
2. By 6 p.m. friend is progressing, but mid-wife figures it will be another 5-6 hours. Mid-wife leaves, and husband ALSO leaves to bring their daughter to another family. (A two-year in the home while a baby is born? Good idea to take her somewhere else!) Friend is alone.
3. While husband is away - only about 45 minutes - friend realizes the baby is coming. Soon! Our friend - in labor - prepares the mat and some other materials the hospital sent in the "home delivery kit". I guess she didn't want to make a mess! (She also climbed downstairs - and her stairs are some of the steepest I've seen here.)
4. Husband arrives home to a situation somewhat different than he was expecting.
5. Husband calls mid-wife, then realizes he sees the baby's head! Uh-oh.
6. Baby is delivered by her father. Baby is blue and not breathing, but he figures out how to get her to take a breath.
7. Mid-wife arrives soon after baby is born. Husband has to open the door to let her in. (She said he looked like he was from a scene in a horror movie.) A neighbor is also outside listening to the goings-on in the home. Mid-wife cuts the cord, and makes sure all is OK. It is.
8. Husband credits the Discovery Channel for teaching him how to deliver the baby.

P.S. Everybody is doing fine, and the baby is beautiful!

Mexican Food Perspectives

Today I brought tacos to school and Dan and I shared a lunch together. (I know, I know...) A Chinese student saw us and oohed over our spread. Then she said something that's had me thinking ever since, "I had Mexican food once." ONCE???? She obviously hasn't been in Birmingham, AL or any other city in the U.S. And she obviously hasn't worked at my former workplace! To not know the taste of Pablo's cheese sauce...

Back from Sabbatical

After a nice, long visit with my father, I am back blogging. My dad and I played tourists in Rotterdam, and after Dan finished his exams, we toured around the Dutch countryside. Coming from America, it is easy to be entertained by how small this country is. One of my earlier posts discussed the petite-ness of all things Dutch, from cars to refrigerators. Well, the country is petite, too! It is about the size of Massachusetts, and it is easy to drive from the south to the north in one day. Somehow, though, we managed to rack up 900 kilometers on our rented VW Golf in a four-day time span. Here are some thoughts on what we saw. (Pictures, too.)

Outside of the Randstad, consisting of cities like Rotterdam and Amsterdam and where most of the population lives, there are quaint little villages and larger cities, many windmills – old and modern, lots of traffic circles, canal after canal after canal, and fields and farmland with sheep, cows, and TULIPS! The tulip fields are simple amazing, eye-popping yellows, reds, pinks, oranges, purples, and whites seem to be around ever bend in the province of North Holland this time of year. Sheep and cows…I adore the little lambs running around in the fields these days. And there were no close calls with flocks baa-ing or herds moo-ing at us. It is spectacular to look out at the completely flat landscape and see the fields dotted with grazing sheep and cows. There is water everywhere in this country. I think my loyal readers know that by now! But it really becomes apparent when gazing out into a field and being able to see sails sticking out among the green pastures. Sure enough…a canal or a lake is there. Ahh…traffic circles. I only had to drive through two or three of them multiple times to figure out where to get off. They are pretty fun! The windmills simply remind us that, yes, this is a windy country, much to our dismay. We really aren’t that fond of windy weather, yet we’ve managed to live near Chicago, the Windy City and in the Netherlands, the Windy Country for our post-high school education. And the villages and cities – as Dad says, none really have straight roads, and most roads in the towns are narrow. Yet there is a charm to these towns that can easily date back to the 1500 and 1600s. We miss that here in WWII-destructed Rotterdam.

The Dutch often talk about their relationship with the sea, and with so much of the country lying below sea level, it is easy to understand why. In an effort to prevent massive flooding throughout the land, the Dutch have constructed dikes and dams everywhere. (No little Dutch boys with the fingers in the dikes, though.) We drove across the 30+ kilometer long Afsluitdijk, which turned the salt-water Zuiderzee into a fresh-water meer. It changed the economy of the Zuiderzee area substantially, but at a more predictable pace than one flood would have allowed. And where there is a sea, there is a coast! On one of the Frisian Islands, Texel, we marveled at the beach so wide that it took us over ten minutes to cross. If the climate were a little better, Florida would have a serious rival.

I’m so fortunate to be living in another country. There are so many hidden gems lying in places most tourists would not have time to see. But if you would like to see these places, I charge only a modest fee to be your tour guide! Just ask Dad!

Oh, why not? One more tulip picture for good measure! 

Uh-oh...and I was the driver! 

Cool picture of the Afsluitdijk in the fog. 

Leeuwarden, Friesland 

This is the width of the beach, not the length! 

And they are all turning!!!! That means there is wind!!! 

Mooooo 

Baaaaaa