Saturday, November 23, 2013

Sinterklaas is coming to town.

So those of you that are fans of David Sedaris have probably heard a little about this before but for the rest of you here is your introduction to Sinterklaas, the dutch version of Santa Claus (actually you really should hear it from Sedaris too if you have time Six to Eight Black Men ). So like Santa, Sinterklaas is a version of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children and sailors. He brings gifts to good children, dresses in red and white, and enters your house by chimney. Unlike Santa, Sinter leaves gifts on December 6 (Saint Nicholas day), lives in Spain, and travels by boat and by horse. And instead of elves he has African slaves as helpers. Well former slaves. They are called Zwart Piets and are usually played by white people in black face. They are supposed to be somewhat mischievous and idiotic and probably the most prominent display of racism in the Netherlands. From the smiling Zwart Piet decorations hanging up in all the stores one could be lulled into the belief that yes in the past the piets were looked down upon but now they are a charming effort at incorporating diversity into the holiday. But I have been assured that that is not true and that its racist origins persist.


 Kurt and I are of the mindset of 'when in Rome do as the Romans do' so we have talked to the boys about Sinterklaas (we told Leif he was Santa's cousin) and we plan to give them little gifts on the 6th. There is another component of the Sinterklaas tradition which is the arrival of Sinterklaas in the Netherlands in late November. There is a huge ceremony and everyone gathers to watch the boat come in. Today Sinterklaas arrived in Leiden and we took the boys to go see the spectacle. I was prepared to be horrified by the Zwart Piets and to silently judge all of the Dutch people around me. The truth is it was a very festive gathering. All the children were dressed as zwart piets (some in even in black face which was still disturbing) but I saw no animosity toward the Zwart Piets. The kids loved them as much as Sinterklaas himself. So I am going to go naively out on a limb and give the dutch the benefit of the doubt that they have given up their racist ideas and have come to embrace this character as their equal and as a cherished part of their holiday.
  Klaus enjoyed dancing to the music and watching the Zwart Piet acrobats. Leif said his favorite part was the woman on stage singing the (awful) songs about Sinterklaas. They both enjoyed the gobs of kruidnoten (little gingerbread cookies) handed out by the Zwart Piets and the free balloons. Surprisingly Leif was not impressed by this:


Tuesday, November 12, 2013

There and back again

 
York Minster
Our last days in England were spent in York and London. We drove to York after our day at Warwick Castle. We were again rushing to get on the road so that the kids could nap in the car. The parking lot at our Warwick accommodations was the smallest parking lot known to man with an even smaller exit. Kurt had to do some ridiculous number of turns to maneuver the car out (think of that scene in Austin Powers where he gets the golf cart stuck between two walls). Anyway by the time he go the car out to the road his nerves were a little frayed. He quickly typed York into the GPS and we set off.
  We had been speeding along for two hours, wondering when we would start seeing signs for York, when we realized that we had selected the wrong York from the GPS menu. Fortunately we were not going entirely the wrong direction but it did add an hour and a half to our drive time. When we finally arrived we settled into our comfy B&B, Amber House. I liked all the places we stayed on our trip (well except for the hostel in Bath) but I think I liked this place the best. Winning features included a claw foot bath tub and the option for a vegetarian full English breakfast.

Little Viking
York itself was lovely and our first day there the weather was just perfect- 60s and sunny sunny sunny. On Lars and Sam's recommendation we checked out the Jorvic Viking Centre. York was built upon an ancient viking settlement called Jorvic. Some of the ruins of Jorvic were uncovered in the 70s and preserved under what is now the museum. In the first room of the museum a clear glass floor lets you walk over top of the foundations of several buildings from Jorvic. There are also some of the millions of viking artifacts that they have uncovered on display. Next you hop into a roller coaster type car and float through a recreated Viking city complete with smells. See video. Next were some more displays on viking life and craftsmanship and a few skeletons that they had unearthed nearby. Owing to Kurt's viking heritage we went a little crazy in the gift shop. I thought Leif would be impressed by the ride but he treated it with as much disinterest as he did the rest of the place.
On the York walls
 For lunch we bought some pies at the open air market and at them in the plaza outside the York Minster, a huge, opulent cathedral. After settling the boys down for a nap back at the B&B I went out and walked around the city. I found a post office and sent back the hand towel we had accidentally stolen from the first place we stayed at. I also was finally able to find a replacement pair of shoes for Klaus. There is an adorable medieval section of York called "the shambles" where the streets are still sized for carts and the crooked buildings lean into each other and over the street. Felt like being on a Harry Potter set. When the kids woke up we took a stroll around the city walls which are almost entirely preserved. Then we ate dinner at a vegetarian place called El Piano. Rick Steves had recommended the place but we only found it to be ok.
  In the morning we had planned to tour the inside of the York Minster before heading off on the long drive to London. For a rainy morning we were surprised at the crowd headed into the Minster. Unfortunately for us that crowd was there to actually attend a service and because the church was actually going to be used as a church tourists were not allowed in. It was probably all for the best since the ride to London was really long.
 Actually we weren't even driving to London directly- we had to drop the car off at Southend Airport and then take the train in. We were unable to pawn off the car seats that we had bought on the car rental guy so in addition to our luggage we had to carry two lard car seats. Despite this, my economical husband refused to get a taxi from the train station to the hotel. We loaded up Leif's spot on the stroller with the baby bed and car seats and Leif road on the back of the wheeled suitcase as Kurt pulled it. After about an hours walk we stumbled into the Dockside Hotel. As we started checking in Leif started freaking out and we finally got it out of him that he needed to use the potty. I'm sure we scared the quiet man at reception but he showed us to our room anyway. Kurt had scored this hotel room on Expedia for the ridiculous price of $90/night including breakfast. That is really unheard of in London. Now, granted, we were in the East end but the hotel is five minutes walk from a tube station and bus stop.

On Saturday we took the bus into Trafalgar Square where we were greeted by an unwelcome side: a giant NFL sign. There was a NFL rally going on. Apparently American football is trying to find an audience in our sister nation. I was pissed. I didn't want to see something so American while I was on my England romance. Anywho we signed up for the Original Tour Double Decker bus tour. We sat up on top of course :) The tours are set up so that you can hop on and off at various stops. We got off at Buckingham Palace and watched the guards march around for a bit. But other than that we just sat back, listened to the tour guide and ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. At around one I headed back to the hotel room with the kids and Kurt went to see a production of Les Miserables. He said it was good although as Kurt usually does he had lots of critiques.

On Sunday we tried to beat the crowd to the British Museum but it was already packed by the time we got there. We breezed past the Rosetta Stone and headed straight to the Parthenon Marbles. For some reason I had thought the pediment sculptures were a bit better preserved so I was rather disappointed at their fragmented condition. For lunch we ate at a pub called Shakespeare's Head. I was again annoyed by the NFL clad table next to us but I enjoyed my vegetarian sausages none the less. Since Kurt had gone out the afternoon before it was my turn. I scurried over to the National Gallery to see their collection of northern Renaissance works. Luckily for me most people prefer the Italian Renaissance so the Dutch rooms are not quite as crowded. I saw Van Eyke's Arnolfini Wedding Portrait (It was just as sumptuous as I had hoped) and Holbein's The Ambassadors (much larger than I imagined and so full of detail!). After that I walked down to the houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
 
Kurt and Leif playing football wiht Big Ben
At 6 we had planned to meet up at Westminster Abbey to hear a free organ concert. Due to a misunderstood text I assumed that Kurt had aborted the idea of coming and so I went in and sat down. Westminster was much smaller than I had imagined which only made the huge organ all that much more bone rattling. The concert was only a half house but it was enough of a chance to sit and contemplate the beauty of the church. When I walked out I was greeted by my smiling family. They had made it after all but had been seated in the back. Kurt had bargained for Leif's cooperation in attending the concert and so we now had to find him a place to play with the new football (rugby ball) that we had gotten him. Right across the road from Westminster was a patch of grass with a great view of the now illuminated Big Ben. Kurt and Leif played their version of football while Klaus rolled around in the leaves. At one point some Spanish tourists asked me to take their picture. I picked up Klaus so that he wouldn't toddle away while I did so. Before I knew it the tourists had taken him out of my arms and were posing with him for the picture. So somewhere in a Spanish scrap book there is a picture of my son with a group of total strangers standing in front of Big Ben. Perfect for out last night in England
 The trip home turned out to be somewhat eventful. On our last night England was scheduled to get hit with the worst storm it had seen in 10 years. We heard the rain and wind all night but it did not seem too terrible. At breakfast, the news reports said that all flights were cancelled due to the storm. Luckily for us we were taking the train home. Unfortunately for us parts of the London Tube were also shut down due to storm debris. What should have been a 30 minute tube ride to St Pancras Intl Train Station turned out to be double that but we did make it onto the train. In Belgium, also hit with the same storm, things were a bit worse. Trains were being cancelled and redirected left and right. I'm not sure how many different trains we rode that day but we eventually got back to Leiden, albeit 4 hours later than planned. We did meet some great people on the train and, while I was sad to leave England behind, it made me realize how much I really like the Dutch as well. Everyone is so friendly and so willing to laugh here.
 Anyway thus concludes our trip to England. Shew!

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

England Part 2


In our last episode we visited Stonehenge, Dartmoor, and Tintagel. These sites draw big crowds in the summer months but not as much in October giving us the feeling that we had the country to ourselves. We had really settled in to this tranquil tourism which made the hustle and bustle of Bath a bit disappointing. Bath is a gorgeous city built on top of a Roman settlement and some natural hot springs and made mostly of 1700s homogeneous looking buildings of golden "Bath " stone.  It is popular with international and domestic tourists alike making it a bit of a party town. It is also really expensive; The only reasonable housing deal I could find was a private room in the YMCA with a bathroom down the hall. It felt like being in college again only with kids (not something I recommend). It was fine really but I wouldn't have wanted to stay there for more than one night. They did have laundry facilities which I was grateful for as Klaus' car seat still smelled like vomit. After settling in at the Y, we enjoyed Cornish pasties for dinner and then took a walk around town, darting around several tourists who were already obviously drunk.
 The Klaus alarm clock got us all up too early for the YMCA's free breakfast. So we decided to pack everything up and take it to the car which was stowed in a nearby mall's underground parking garage (parking is also really expensive).  Since we wanted to do it in one trip, everyone had to carry something. Even Klaus had to hold his lovie, a stuffed tiger we call Hobbes.
 
After breakfast we toured the Roman Baths, an amazing bath/temple complex that was uncovered in the center of town in the 1700s. The hot spring that inspired the the bath's location still bubbles up and fills the pools that the Romans dug. The audio tour was free and wonderfully informative but unfortunately the kids only let us listen to a fourth of it.
 After the Roman Baths we tagged along on on one of the free walking tours put on by The Mayor's Corps of Honorary Guides. Our tour guide, Andrew, was very entertaining and had a superb delivery. He made us like Bath inspite of our initial bad impression.
  After a picnic lunch outside the Bath Abbey we raced back to the car, both to get our tired lads off to their nap but also to avoid an impending storm. We made it into the car before the skys opened up but we were still pelted with Klaus' tears as we proved to be too late for him. To comfort him I shuffled through the bags in the back seat to retrieve Hobbes. It did not take long to discover that Hobbes was not there. As I began to think back about it I realized that I didn't remember seeing him in Klaus' hands when we packed the car early that morning. Which meant that he must have dropped it on the walk to the car. I don't know who was more upset, Klaus or me- As a child I once lost my cherished "blanky" in a grocery store so losing a lovie is a very traumatic thought for me. At the same time I also realized the Klaus was missing a shoe. I wanted Kurt to turn the car around but between the crowds and the rain there was no way we were going to find either Hobbes or the shoe. Plus we needed to get going so that the boys could nap in the car. So we left bath one shoe and one tiger lighter.
  Our next destination was Oxford for the boys first college visit...Just kidding. Kurt and I are huge fans of
Inspector Morse and Inspector Lewis, two mystery series set in Oxford. While the murders in the show are grisly the setting is beautiful and we wanted to see it for ourselves. We stayed at a great B&B called Park House, where the inn keeper Kathryn dug out a huge bag of trains for the boys to play with. They loved her instantly. The only problem was that there was no wifi and I was still holding on to some hope that we could find Hobbes or at least order a replacement. The thought of it made me really anxious the entire time we were in Oxford.
  After reading about it in our guide book and seeing it in Inspector Lewis, I really wanted to go punting in Oxford. Even though it was raining Kurt and the boys graciously complied. A 'punt' in this case is not the football move but rather a type of flat bottomed canal boat that is pushed along using a long metal poll (think Venice). We arrive at the boat house just as the men running it had decided not to open that day because of the rain. With my best pitiful tourist performance and my cute child props I convinced them to rent us a punt. We explored the canal for only about an hour as it was pretty hard work for Kurt and also we were hoping to make it to another free walking tour.
 
Klaus picking out his seat in the
 Balliol dining hall
  We missed the walking tour but it was probably for the best. I'm not sure the kids would have put up with another one. So instead we walked around Balliol College (Oxford is made up of 38 autonomous colleges) founded in 1263 making it the oldest college in the University. Not many of the buildings admitted tourists but I recognized a few of the quads from Inspector Lewis. Leif and Klaus were unimpressed. That's ok- international tuition is 50 grand.
 For lunch we went to an Itsu, a chain of restaurants serving fresh healthy Asian inspired food- totally awesome! Then the boys and I took a nap at the B&B while Kurt walked around more of Oxford. We met up for dinner at a pub called the Eagle and Child which boasts Tolkien and C.S. Lewis as former patrons.
 


  In the morning we bid farewell to Kathryn and then drove 10 miles to Blenheim Palace, the country home of the Duke of Marlborough. Imagine a mini (although not too mini) Versailles. The Palace was impressive even at the breeze-through pace at which I saw it; Leif and Klaus were not willing to suffer another tour so Kurt and I took turns walking through the grand salons, dining rooms, and library. Luckily for the childed- tourist, the palace also offered a play garden complete with maze and giant chess set and a fun train/tram that took you there. Our two weary little travelers perked up in this more child-friendly environment and we had a grand time there before driving an hour to Warwick.
 
Warwick, is home to Warwick Castle where Edward II's lover Piers Gaveston was imprisoned and executed in 1312. Despite its dubious history it is now a rather fun amusement park. There are no rides or anything but parts of the castle are set up with walk-through displays and several live shows. We saw the great hall and state rooms which provided a lovely view of the river Avon as it passes very near the castle's base. We also walked through the "Kingmaker" exhibit where very life-like wax figures prepare for a battle in tableau. The "Secrets and Scandals" exhibit was similarly set up. Leif was a bit wary of the wax figures but I think he enjoyed seeing all the different rooms. After touring the castle a bit we headed out to the grounds to see a real trebuchet launch. Warwick boasts a life-size wooden wheel trebuchet that, as impressive as it seems to us today, must have been terrifyingly impressive at its inception. I am in love with the past but it is seeing things like this that make me happy that I live in the age that I do. Life sucked back then.We were also really impressed the birds of prey show. The castle has a collection of trained falcons, eagles, and buzzards. The falconer assured us that all of the birds were bread in captivity so we could watch their amazing swoops and dives without feeling too guilty. We ended our day with a walk along the castle walls and then walked back to the car enjoying some tea and scones along the way. How wonderfully British!


 I'm not sure when I will get around to writing part three of out trip. Kurt and I are participating in NaNoWriMo (national novel writing month) and it is sucking up all of my spare time.