Friday, July 23, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
This will probably be my last weekend as Dutch Resident...
1. packing (probably a good idea..doubtful I will)
2. trip to Amsterdam for shopping (adding to the items requiring packing), cafes, and people watching
3. last minute tourist activities (somewhere I haven't I been in Holland or surrounding areas like Belgium or Germany)
4. hangout in Zwolle (my current town of residence)I think I will go for some combination of all (except the packing...)
Friday, May 28, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
To Answer the Top 5 Questions People Have Asked Me This Month:
2. No, I don't know what I will be doing after I leave
3. No, I don't know where I will be living when I get back
4. Yes, I know that June 23rd (when my resident permit expires) is very close
5. Yes, I am aware I am being very short and bitchy...deal
Monday, May 10, 2010
NOTICE
Looks like I am returning to the Land of Lincoln (or maybe the Dairy State)..somewhere in the USA by the end of June...
For all those to planned to visit while I was living in Europe...guess this is what happens when you wait till the last minute ;-)
Upside I am really looking forward to coming home...
Downside I have tons to do in less than 6 weeks
Friday, April 30, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Apparently Americans are Prudes...
Here is another big difference between the US and Europe. In European beaches it is not uncommon for women to go topless. In the time I have spent on beaches in the Netherlands and Spain, I have learned that I am a prude. Not only was I the only person in a 1 piece, a third of the women of the women were only wearing bottoms...
I never considered myself a prude before I got here, but I am. I still wince when I hear swearing on the radio and network tv. When movies are replayed on networkTV unedited, I am surprised. Radio stations don't beep profanity. I haven't decided which is better. I think I would be more comfortable taking my nephews to an American beach, or listening to American radio in the car with them...but should the government be doing the screening for me.Luckily I don't have to decideNorth Carolina beach town bans thongs
April 28, 2010 1:43 a.m. EDTKure Beach officials say they will crack down on people wearing thongs in the seaside community.STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Kure Beach, North Carolina, bans thongs at beach
- Decision came after couple asked if they could wear thongs on honeymoon
- Mayor Dean Lambeth says reaction to policy has been positive
(CNN) -- If you plan on going to Kure Beach, North Carolina, bring your sunscreen and shades, but please leave your thong behind.
The seaside community has adopted a zero tolerance policy on anyone wearing the barely-there bikini by the shore on their part of North Carolina's Pleasure Island, just south of Wilmington.
"You can do what you want to in your own space," said Mayor Dean Lambeth, "but for public decency, keep it off the public beach."
Lambeth told CNN he and the town supervisors last week unanimously approved the ordinance banning the skimpy bathing wear.
"Everything we do is family oriented. We like the small town atmosphere," he said.
The decision to forbid thongs was triggered by a couple's recent inquiry about spending their honeymoon in Kure Beach, Lambeth said.
According to the mayor, the couple wanted to know if they could wear thongs. The man thought the town's policy on the matter was ambiguous, Lambeth said. After consulting with the police chief, he determined the ordinance should be amended to better address the issue.
Section 12-32 of the Code of the Town of Kure Beach, which was adopted on April 22, makes it illegal "for any person being naked or insufficiently clothed ... to bathe or swim in the Atlantic Ocean" or any other area within the town's jurisdiction. Sun-bathing "naked or insufficiently clothed" is also banned.
"Thong bathing suits or similar attire are specifically prohibited," the code says.
Anyone wearing a thong on the beach will be fined $25.
Lambeth said reaction to the no-thong policy has been overwhelmingly positive.
"I have gotten probably 100 e-mails from all over the U.S. supporting our stance," he told CNN. "I'm getting calls from New York, California that they are glad somebody is finally taking a stand for public decency."
Lambeth, who said Kure Beach's population swells from 2,500 to 11,000 in the summer, described the town as "nice, slow-mo and conservative."
"We're just a small southern community, and that's how we're going to keep it," he said.
He also suspected the decision on the thongs could end up in court and blamed liberals for that.
"You can file a suit -- the way this country is leaning so far left, it wouldn't surprise me," he said. "They want to challenge it? They want to spend the money? Go for it."
Lambeth said people can wear thongs in their homes and backyards. And with his policy in place, he told CNN he's content.
"I'm sitting out here looking at the ocean and don't see a damn thong in sight."
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
I don't think that is what you meant...
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Keukenhof Gardens
I went to the Keukenhof Gardens in Lisse. It was a bit early, lots of un-bloomed flowers. I knew it was early in the season but I didn't want to miss the tulips. How can I say I lived in Holland but never saw the tulips. When I first moved here it was too late (June 2008), then I missed them last year...so this was my last chance. I am trying to make sure I see everything the Netherlands has to offer (or at least all of the corny tourist stuff) before my return to the US (tentatively late July).
Malta 2010
Took my first solo vacation
My take on Solo Travel
-no arguing about what to do, what eat...
-but if you don't know what to do there is no one to make suggestions...
-day activities easy, after dinner harder
-Anything longer than a week, too much time alone
