Kanick Parents Visit Holland

October 17-27, 2008

Steve and Sharon made the long trip overseas to visit us!  We had fun showing them around, and having family visit us overseas really made it feel like more of a home to us.  We walked all over Rotterdam, showing them Het Park, and the bridges and canals. 

We went into the Cube Houses, and to our favorite restaurant, Bazar.  One of the things that I think was the most shocking to them was how we were able to walk up (and carry groceries up) those steep stairs every day! (second to that, maybe the 'coffee shops' on every corner) ;)

They really enjoyed one of our favorite little towns, Delft.  It's character is so well preserved, it feels like you're stepping back 300 years.  They liked the large "New Church" in the town square, which had tons of shops where you can find tons of the blue and white pottery and souvenirs.

We spent a day exploring Amsterdam.  We took Steve and Sharon to our favorite Dutch pancake house, where we sat outside along the canal.  They like the Dutch coffee!

We toured the old church, which had an interesting photography exhibit.  We took the touristy, but actually really informative, boat tour, to see all of the various parts of the city.  And, last but not least, no trip to Amsterdam would be complete without a trip to Wynand Fockink to sample the liquors.

One day while I was at work, Chad took his parents to Antwerp, in Belgium.  There are tons of cute pictures of them, but I just love this one. ;)

Then we were off to France. We spent a couple nights in Paris, then rented a car (which is quite an experience) and drove up to Normandy.  Paris was amazing, as always. We walked for miles and miles, to see the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Arc, and the Eiffel Tour.

We also explored The Cimetière de Passy for the first time, which is a beautiful cemetery up on the hill that has views of the Eiffel Tour in the background.  There they go again... I love it.




We rented a car and drove up to see Normandy.  Steve's uncle is buried in the American Cemetery there, having died during the early days of the D-Day invasions.  We stayed in a lovely little town called Bayeux, at a beautiful bed and breakfast.  We went to a museum, to brush up on our history, then drove to Omaha Beach.  It was stunning to see the steep cliffs that flank the shoreline, and to imagine the task of all of those men trying to get up the hill to overtake the foxholes.  Really sobering.

The American Cemetery was one of the most beautiful cemeteries I have every seen. It is so pristine, and so peacefully quiet, overlooking the ocean. It was strange to see a white cross with the name Kanick on it.  We were all silent, and crying.  It was a really meaningful and memorable.  Chad's Great Uncle Walter has a beautiful view of the ocean.

We are so happy that the Kanick parents got the chance to make the big trip overseas.  It was probably a once-in-a-lifetime trip for them, and it meant a lot to us to have family visit us so far away.

-C

Pictures from their visit:
Holland: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157608414834136/
Belgium: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157608415276392/
Paris: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157608421661577/
Omaha Beach: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157608426625107/
Bayeux: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157610554227055/

Football Game - Netherlands vs. Iceland

October 11, 2008

One of the advantages of working with a lot of Expats, is that everyone is always eager to organize a party or activity. Most people are away from home, and they don’t have families or friends nearby, so it is fun to hang out with each other. This is how we landed tickets to the Netherlands vs. Iceland football game (a.k.a. soccer for us Americans). About 15-20 people from Maersk (Simo, Marianna, Saif, Rusa, Perry, etc) got tickets to the game. We met up at Cabrinus (the "office" pub) for a couple drinks before the game, then hopped on the tram to go to Feynord Stadium, home to Rotterdam's local football team. We wore our orange shirts and orange Holland scarves that someone had given us at a pub during the Euro Cup that summer. It was very funny riding the tram to the game because everyone had crazy orange hats on, their faces were painted, and people would spontaneously burst into a chant or team song.

We had a really good time at the game. It was nice to be in that sort of atmosphere again, since we weren't able to go to any American Football games this year. :( But, I liked seeing everyone get excited for their team, and cheer when they scored. People took their game programs and tore them up into tiny pieces, and when their team scored, they would throw the paper in the air like confetti. They also had some chants/songs that the whole stadium would start singing. The Netherlands won the game 2-0. It was good to go to a game with other people who knew where they were going. Now, if we go again, we'll at least have a slight idea about what is going on. Hopefully we get to see another game while we are here.

-S

Some pics & a video from other football fun in Rotterdam watching the Euro Cup:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157606890762990/