Port of Rotterdam

Last saterday I went  on a trip with a friend to Rotterdam. We made a boattrip through the harbour of Rotterdam.

The boat was named after a the Dutch seafarer and explorer Abel Tasman (the boat on the right).

We started at the Erasmusbridge, it's nickname is The Swan.

At the front a statue, on the left a cruiseship of the Holland America line named 'the Rotterdam'.

Cargo in the harbour

'The Rotterdam' almost ready to leave the harbour of Rotterdam on his way to Norway for a cruise.

A fireboat salutes the cruiseship as it departs.

It was a great day.

Presents

However it was not my birthday I received two presents this week.

The eye mask from the Body Shop was given by my daughter

And from my friend the eau the toilette Bonbon (Viktor and Rolf)
(my two cats are named after this fashion duo)

Volkswagen

I got my first car, a Volkswagen, when I was twenty years old. The car itself was eleven.

After two years I got this red one, I drove it for ten years, I'm still missing it!

This one was spotted by my aunt and uncle in Germany.

A few weeks ago Marieken and I visited The Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven.

One of the artworks was this Volkswagen Beetle, created by Surasi Kusolwong

In the car you can watch a little movie.

Last week

Last year in july I wrote a blog about the 4days marches passing my house.

Also once a year 14.000 lady's runs The Marikenloop for 5 or 10 km.

There are lots of walks and runs in our City.

This lady was the fastest

I won this book: Cat sense.

Makes me happy.

Rolf too fast for the camera.

MOM

july 1950

Zwolle

Last sunday we (Marieken and I) make a little trip to Zwolle.

All about that trip you can read on her blog.

Here some pictures of the most lovely shop I had ever seen.

 In this shop the famous "Zwolse balletjes'' (small balls from Zwolle)

I never tasted them, I wanted to buy them, but unfortunately the store was closed. 

Around the center of the city is a canal.

In the past it was for defending the city.

Downtown

Sint Jacobskapel, Nijmegen

In the old town of Nijmegen a little chapel from the 15th century. The chapel (a national heritage site) functions as a place to meet for pilgrims, especially for the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. Pilgrims come together in the monthly ecumenical service (2nd Sunday of the month) and they can get a stamp in their credential here. In the past it has also been used as the workspace of a glass blower and people used to live here. Nowadays you can also get married here and it's attic is used for expositions.

This building used to be an orphanage and was built in the 16th century.

Just one of the little streets, flowers everywhere.

Charlottes Web?

Did you see the movie Charlottes web?

This morning I found tiny little spiders in the yard, cosy together

A few hours later they were very busy.

The King's birthday

Flags on top of the church

and in the streets.

On this day we eat a sweet goody called Tompouce. It's a well known pastry in the Netherlands. It's made of puff pastry, pastry cream and it's topped with a layer of icing. Normally the icing is pink, but for King's Day it's orange. Eating it can be a challenge, there are different techniques.

Tastes delicious but..

hard to eat.