Monday, April 27, 2015

Wrights in Netherlands: Part I of II

April 25-May 1, 2015

Saturday April 25, 2015
Jason, Emily and Harper arrived into the Netherlands this morning. They took the train down to Eindhoven from Amsterdam. The long flight with not much sleep was a little rough on Harper. After she napped we went to the center of Eindhoven to go shopping for orange clothes to wear on Kings Day on Monday. We didn’t find anything quality enough for souvenirs. We stopped for lunch and drinks at Voor Uitgang. 

Sunday April 26, 2015
We took the train down to Maastricht today. It was about an hour train ride versus the 1.5 hour car ride we would have had with traffic. We realized in transit that this was Brooklyn’s first train ride! 
Maastricht train station

We all were hungry by the time we arrived, so we head straight to a restaurant on the Markt square surrounding the stadhuis (City Hall) called Café de Zwaan.
Jason and Harper at lunch 
Emily and Harper at lunch
A good scotch ale
Kasteel Tripel 
Maastricht Stadhuis (City Hall) 

Vrijthof
Sint Janskerk next to Basilica of Saint Servatius

Sint Janskerk 
Sculpture behind Sint Janskerk 
Brooklyn and Jackie in Vrijthof by Sint Janskerk 
Emily, Brooklyn and Jackie in Vrijthof by Sint Janskerk
Jason, Emily, Brooklyn and Jackie
Jason, Emily, Brooklyn and Jackie
Chatting away in Vrijthof 
Jason making Brooklyn laugh 
Brooklyn was very interested in feeling Jason’s beard
Brooklyn checking out the art sculpture in Vrijthof

We stopped in De Bisschopsmolen just before closing for some pies.
We walked toward the old city walls.
There was a band playing music near the old walls.
Old city wall fortifications 

Begijnen convent



Helpoort 

Joe, Jackie and Brooklyn napping in the stroller in Maastricht along the Maas River by Sint Servaasbrug 
Joe making silly faces 
Emily and Jason kissing Harper on Maas River 
Jason and Harper walking along Maas River

Maastricht, a city on the Maas River
Joe and Brooklyn strolling along the Maas River by Sint Servaasbrug
Family photo by Sint Servaasbrug in Maastricht 
Emily, Harper and Jason walking over the Sint Servaasbrug 
Harper and Jason getting more walking time on the Sint Servaasbrug before getting back on the train
Maastricht on the Maas River
Pretty old brickwork on the buildings in Maastricht 

Harper riding the train home from Maastrict to Eindhoven

Brooklyn loves mum mums a lot, but she’s a little lazy when it comes to holding & feeding herself
And Brooklyn fell asleep with the mum mum still in her mouth 

Monday April 27, 2015
29 weeks old & ready for koningsdag (Kings Day) #eindhovenisking #prinsesje
We started out the early morning looking for bargains at the flea market along PSV-laan. It was a whole lot of junk, but Jason did come away with something. An orange baseball trucker hat that happened to be bedazzled. We unfortunately did not get a photo of him in it before he removed the bedazzle jems.
After naps, we then headed out to Wilhelminaplein. We ate from some food trucks there. 
It was here that the Americans saw their first pea pot. Guys have it easy around the Netherlands. There are urinals all over the place, especially during drinking events like koningsdag. Note the hose running straight into the stormwater drain. The permanent ones around Amsterdam drain straight into the canals. Trust me, you do not want to fall in there! 
Jason had an interesting interaction with a group of young guys with the same hat as him that had him help tie a tie. I guess he just has that look.
Beers in de markt
We next walked down to Catharinakerk
It was around noon and Stratumseind was pretty dead still. 
Emily and Jason at pre-crazy koningsdag on Stratumseind aka beer row
Happy Brooklyn on koningsdag as we walked through Dommelplantsoen
Daddy and Brooklyn on koningsdag in Dommelplantsoen 
Brooklyn fell asleep as we walked through more flea markets in Stadswandelpark
Jackie found a Nintje bath book for Brooklyn at the flea market in Stadswandelpark.
We got some more beers and ate some fried fish.
Harper playing in Stadswandelpark
Harper, Jason and Emily walking in Stadswandelpark
Harper and Jason walking in Stadswandelpark
Dad and baby girl on koningsdag in Stadswandelpark

We head back into the center for more drinks.
Emily, Jason, Harper, Joe & Brooklyn before we attempted to go up Stratumseind again
Emily, Jason, Harper, & Jackie before we attempted to go up Stratumseind again
Stratumseind selfie before we attempted to go through that crowd to head north
We got a whole lot of oh my gosh a baby! Drunk people trying to touch the babies in the backpacks on their dad’s back.
This photo is a good example of our experience in this young party area with our little ones on our backs. There was a lot of pointing and laughing. 
Stratumseind koningsdag craziness
We got a few more beers and another rose beer for Emily 
There is no way we would be able to do that in the US.
The post-Stratumseind reaction: relieved to be out of that drunk crowd
The typical “asian” photo stance 
We went to get something to eat at Vapiano, an Italian pizza and pasta place with a huge rooftop terrace.
Emily got some frites (French fries) with mayonnaise (typical Dutch dipping sauce instead of ketchup) from ‘dik & lang’ 

Happy Brooklyn ready for some dinner on koningsdag