Recently a faithful reader (Hi Val!) asked me if I'd been to the Netherlands. Yes as a matter of fact, I have! I went for the first time when I just about 2 years old and could still travel for free. Sitting on my mother's lap and it was an 18 hour flight. How much fun was that!
The funny part about my arrival in Holland that first visit was that I hadn't yet begun to talk. I was a quiet one. For weeks before the big trip my mom coached me, "Hi Opa, Hi Oma". Nope. Not a word. My mom was getting worried. Surely this kid who's just about 2 years old can say hello to their grandparents.
The big day arrived. Many many hours in the airplane. My grandparents had made the long trek from northern Holland all the way to Amsterdam to greet us. My mom was holding me up to have a look at them after clearing customs and at the top of my lungs I yelled, "HI OPA!!! HI OMA!!!" just like I had been doing it for my months. Those were my first words. It was like until I could actually see them I had no interest in saying their names.
I went again for a trip to Holland when I was 16 and spent most of the summer there. It was a lot of fun and I spent time with cousins from Amsterdam who were much older and wiser than me. Suffice to say, it was a learning experience.
I went again when I was 21 with my dad. I spent a couple of weeks with him visiting family and then spent the summer in Belgium. After the summer was over my friends and I went to Holland and stayed with family for a week or so. Good times.
Then I didn't go again for a long time. My mom and I went in 2000 and had a ball. We stayed with my dad's only sister who has to be the sweetest lady God ever created that I call family. She's now 86 and I still would like to see her again.
Then in 2004 my mom and brother John and Chris and I went for 2 weeks. We went to the one and only cousin reunion. I have 25 first cousins on my mom's side without any spouses.
We hope to go next year and combine it with some other sights in Europe. This is our Dutch foto. It was taken in Volendam and every time I've been in Volendam I've been to the same shop and had a foto taken with whoever I was with. Somewhere in my collection I have the other foto taken at this place with my brother John. I wonder how many people have worn these costumes........
3 comments:
How cool is that! I love the story of your first words. What province did your g'parents live in? I've never been. I sure enjoy the relatives when they come here though. They're all kind of gentle and wild at the same time. I think it's so cool that you got pictures made in that same studio all those times. Now that's clever. v
I LOVE the photo's! I was actually wearing the Amsterdam shirt, you brought back for me, yesterday! ;)
This is so cool. I'm glad you got the chance to visit with your folks.
Post a Comment