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People and Places ( 2002 and 2001)
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April 11, 2002
It has been a long time without an update, but here is another one.
This time about our holiday on Gran Canaria. This is the third of the Canary Isles we have been visiting. Before we went to Gran Canaria we have been to Tenerife and Lanzarote. Like usual, I have been strolling around on the Web to get some more information about the island. To see some of the sites I found, click here, here, here or here.
We booked a room in the wonderful Suite hotel
Maspalomas Dunas, well provided with all neccessary
conveniences and a beautiful (heated!) pool. The food was
delicious, with lots of different desserts for Kevin *grin*, and
the hotel staff was very polite and friendly.
If you compare Gran Canaria with Lanzarote, the island isn't that spectacular and beautiful. We were close by the famous dunes with (of course) the inevitable camel tours, but also close to a bird reserve. With a lot of mosquitos as by product....
Fortunately they were only active during the night, for which we came well prepared. During the day, the hotel offered lots of activities. and so Paul and Kevin had a wonderful time playing table tennis and slaughtered each other at tennis, while I spent hours on my sun bed at the pool side, which happened to be right next to the bar (!).
In order to keep me, the lazy one, somewhat slim in spite of all the good food, the nice wine and all the other temptations the cook served, we had to go for a long walk each day.
We strolled either through the dunes, that are much steeper than the ones we have in the Netherlands, or to one of the shopping centers, or to the Maspalomas promenade.
The promenade was just going through a
mayor face lift. The new foot path was completed, with palm trees
and lots of flowers, but contractors were now busy building more
shops and restaurants. And what struck me is that everything is
very good accessible for wheel chairs.
Everything you could possibly need is for sale in Maspalomas, and even now perfume, cigarettes and leather are much cheaper than in the Netherlands, because the Canary Isles are still a tax paradise eventhough they are part of the European Union.
Although we have been to Ibiza (one of the Balear Islands), and because of our stay there we should have been used to this and that, we couldn't help noticing that Gran Canaria clearly has overcome Ibiza when it is about being the favourite holiday destination of gay people and nudists.
But I have to admit that the dunes are very apropriate for nude sun bathing because not many strollers take their daily walk there because of the steepness of the dunes. Although..... the sun is particularly fierce on the Canary Isles, and when you get a sun burned butt.....ouch....
Of course (as you might have already noticed) I had my new camera with me and this time Paul has managed to get his hands on it and persuaded me to have my picture taken. I silently hoped he would fail, but it seems even Paul can use this camera without reading the manual *grin*.
But in retrospect I am happy he succeeded in taking the pic because, (if I say so myself) it is a pretty nice picture indeed.
After a week of gorgeous weather and completly relaxed, we had to go back home to the Netherlands, this time though cold not wet for a change. And although we had a fanastic week on Gran Canaria and although the island isn't ugly at all, I still think Lanzarote is the most beautiful of the Canary Isles (the ones I have visited so far that is). But I know that not everyone agrees with me there: lots of people feel all the black and dark red of the lava is ugly and some even think it's depressing.
And while we were sun bathing on Gran Canaria, Marianne was enjoying the yearly school Snow Camp in Passo Tonale (Italy), the same place they went to last year, and again she had a wonderful time. Oh and yes, she did come home uninjured. Thank God...
I would like to thank, on behalf of Marianne as well of course, the teachers for another wonderful holiday and for taking good care of the group once again.
January 28, 2002
Although it still in
January, Winter seems to be completely over.
Just for a couple of days we had some frost,
and even an tiny
layer of now, just before Christmas.
It was wonderful to see snow, even though it
was only about 2 cm.
And of course, this was yet another good
opportunity to find out
what more possibilities my new digital
photocamera had in store
for me.
Since a couple of months I am the happy owner of a Sony Cyber-shot. A friendly and fairly compact
little camera, probably with more options that I will ever find
out, oh well, I could of course read the manual for a change, I
guess......not ........*grin*
It has the size of a pack of cigarettes (yeah, yeah, I know I
should quit, but I won't, so stop nagging *grin*) and for some
one as lazy as I am, it is just as simple to use as my beloved
Minolta, that, unfortunately, has been dropped one time too many
on the floor and sadly enough passed away. I will miss my Minolta
though, it has been my companion for many years and always made
me good pictures.
But I am straying now,
I guess.*grin*
Last week I was in London once again, and it
was there that I couldn't help noticing that
Winter definately is coming to its end.
Snowdrops were blooming abundently in Hyde Park
and daffodils were already showing their heads
and the temperature was so mild, I didn't
even need my coat. Not long now before Hyde
Park will be an ocean of colour again....
London was as big an excavation as during
my last stay there, although...
no, it was even worse than last time!
Last time London's skyline was full of ugly cranes, St. Paul's Cathedral was wrapped up à la Christo, and now even Tower Bridge was completely sealed off for all traffic, including pedestrians.
Walking on the part of Tower Bridge that was still open for pedestrians, it somewhat reminded me of the "carless Sundays" in the early seventies, you know, during the big oil crisis *grin*, when no motorised traffic, except for public transportation, was allowed on the streets on Sundays to save petrol......
November 2, 2001
The football season is already some
months old now.
Kevin plays in C1 this season, again Rob van Noort is
his
trainer/coach.
This season they even have their own site!
The yearly team photographs have been shot again and
"our"
boys look great again, don't they? Thanks Rob, for
allowing
me to use the photograph here. Good luck, guys!
I just got back from a couple of days of sight seeing in London. And of course I got what I deserved: beautiful and sunny weather, temperature around 21 degrees Celsius, absolutely fabulous.
Again I walked until I got blisters on my feet again, through Hyde Park (thanks Erik, for the tip about the view from the bridge over The Serpentine, unfortunately it was a bit too foggy to get a really good view, but next time I am in London I will go back and try again!), Oxford Street, Regent Street ("window shopping", because London is very expensive).
And then my feet
started to hurt so much that I jumped on the
hop-on hop off bus and I let them drive me all
around town.
The guides in the bus give lots of information
about London.
They offer three different routes and if you
wish you can change from
one route to the other, so you will get an
excellent picture of the city
and its buildings. Of course I wanted to pay
her Majesty the Queen
a visit, but called a little bit to early at
her door at Buckingham Palace.
The moment I got on the bus again, there she came
with her police
escort driving in her Rolls Royce, precisely in
time for her afternoon
tea. 
What struck me the most in London, was that there were Christmas decorations all over: in the shops decorated Christmas trees, Christmas lights hanging over Oxford Street and Harrods was nothing but lights!
Wouldn't people be completely sick of Christmas by the time it finally is Chrismas??? Funny guys, those Britains.....*grin*
Fortunately the Big Ben was it's good old self still. Thanks, Steve, for waiting instead of driving away with the bus, so we could hear Big Ben strike 5 o'clock.
If you would like to go to
London for a couple of days, take the time and surf around
the internet first and make a list of favourite
places you want to see.
Especially if you are only going for a very
short time like an extended weekend, it is
advisable to think about "must sees"
before you leave home.
Surf to www.visitbritain.com, to www.a-london-guide.co.uk
or to www.londontown.com. Consider taking the Heathrow
Express
if you want to go from Heathrow into
central London. In only 15 minutes this train
takes you to Paddington Station. Train tickets
(and even the tickets for the
hop-on hop-off bus) can be ordered via the
internet with a credit card. Very
convenient huh? Most museums in London are
free, you only have to pay for
special exhibits. I only had time to visit the British
Museum this time, and again I
loved visiting it.
Again this visit was way too short, so I have
to come again.
London, I will be back soon!!
September 21, 2001
In the light of all the terrible things that happened on the
11th of September, it might be not very appropriate to tell a
merry story about our holidays. But life must go on, doesn’t
it....eventually….
Let me at least start by saying that I have been watching the
terrorist attacks in the United States of America with utter
horror, it was like I was watching a movie…. Even now I have
seen the images of the planes crashing more than a hundred times
on television, it still doesn’t seem to be reality, but more
like some pretty good “special effects” in a horror
movie. I would very much like to draw the reader of this homepage’s
attention to the website of Menno
Aartsen, a Dutchman living and working in de United States of
America, who gives a very clear report on his website about the
feelings and emotions that are among the people in New York City
and in the whole of the United States. Thank you, Menno, for your
explanations and hang in there, our thoughts are with you and
your fellow Americans, and may God bless you all! Let’s hope
that the terrorists, whoever they might be that planned these
attacks, will be brought to justice without a big outburst of
violence. Not that whatever punishment they will receive, can
bring back the dead, or take away the suffering and the pain of
those countless people that lost their loved ones, but okay....
Well, and now about our holiday in beautiful and sunny Spain.....
This year we couldn’t
leave until half July, firstly because of the fact
that the school holiday was late this year,
and secondly because of
the marriage of Rob and Signe, on the 13th
of July.
Again, we wish you good luck and happiness,
and we hope you had
a fantastic wedding day!
Weather in the Netherlands hadn’t been
too good, so we were longing
for some sunshine and warmth.
Fortunately we were able to get plenty of it
during our stay in Spain.
Our boat was already waiting patiently for us in the harbour, so Paul and the kids actually could sail away immediately. The picture above shows you Paul and the kids, together with two friends of Marianne’s: Marjolein en Domenique. Domenique did spend a week with us in Spain. We hope you had a good time with us, Domenique. Next year again?
We have been lying in the sun, enjoying
the "dolce far niente";
see for yourself on the picture on the left:
Kevin and Huub delightful in their hammocks.
But the kids
have also been waterskiing, playing football,
tennis and volleyball.
After 4 weeks of peace and quiet,
unfortunately it was time to go home
again, where the work was already piling up on
our desks.
April 27, 2001
WE DID IT!!!!!!
After
we got the ISO certificate February 28, yesterday it was again
party time!
Paul and Arjan finished with succes their
post-graduate course
"Adviseur voor Arbeid en Gezondheid,
richting bedrijfsfysiotherapie"
(which means they now are registered physiotherapists
for work related
health problems and work related health care)
. 
One and a half year of blood, sweat and tears are finally over.
Finally time to reflect on the results of those more than heavy
years where nothing else mattered but study and ISO procedures.
Now it is time to party, champagne and cake, in a few days
it's time to get back to reality, to get to normal daily
routines, time to make money again *grin* , without having to
worry about papers that are already long overdue, ISO procedures
that still need to be developed, manuals that need to be reviewed....
A big thank you for all our staff
members for their patience and hard work. Guys, without
your help and support all of this wouldn't and
couldn't made possible.
Also a big thank you to our kids,
Marianne and Kevin, who had a rough one and half
year having to do without a lot of tender
loving care of their parents. Kids, you have been
great, we love you!!!
4 maart 2001.
Marianne and Kevin returned safe ánd in one piece from Passo
Tonale
(
February 8, 2001.
A bit woozy
because of the jetlag, I am yet able to report to you
about my short break to New Orleans, "the City
of Jazz" or
"the Big Easy".
Before I went to New Orleans, I ofcourse did
some extented
research on the internet for touristic
information.
Here, here, here, here and here can you see where among else I
got my information from.
So much that I have seen and experienced again!
Frankly too much to tell on this little corner on
the internet.
Again I made a huge amount of photographs from which
only a small selection fits on my
homepage.
Beautiful
museums I visited, of which the Presbytere with its
enormous Mardi Gras
exhibition was by far the merriest. Next you see a
photograph of one of the figures that are
carried during the parades. Mardi Gras starts this
year on Februari 16.
During the Mardi Gras periode New Orleans is packed
with celebrating people.
Even now all the shops were loaded with all kinds of
Mardi Gras stuff , there were masks en signs
hanging everywhere and they were making tribunes for
the spectators of the parades.
For hours I strolled and looked in the small
antique shops and little restaurants in the French
Quarter, after which it was very nice to rest my
feet and sit on a bench at the Mississipi
riverfront enjoying the warm sunshine (my favourite
spot was the Plaza de Espana with the
fresh fountain). 
I really
enjoyed the many
jazz musicians who were playing
practically on every streetcorner
But especially at the Jackson
Square it was fun!
Besides listening to jam sessions you can also have your
future
predicted, have tarot cards read and more of that
"fuzzy" kind of stuff.
I did some
extented touring through Louisiana, among else I visisted some
plantations, of which Oak Alley Plantation I thought to be the most beautiful.
I drove along endless white beaches on the Gulf of Mexico, via
Mississipi all the way to Mobile Alabama, where I went to look at
the USS Alabama, a battleship from WW II. On my way back to
NO, I stopped at the Jean
Laffite National Park, a
swamp area, where if you are lucky (or not!), you can encounter
crocodiles. A swamp-tour by boat is for crocodile-lovers a must.
No, not for me, thank you *grin*......
Click here to go to People and Places of 2000.
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This homepage is last updated October 2, 2002
Everything on this page, text, photographs and images, is, unless strictly mentioned otherwise, mine, wherever on this planet I might be.
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