i was in the north sea today

no, really. the cold one? yeah, really far up north? i was in it! today! well, not today, really, but yesterday...

we got up in the morning and came down to breakfast (it's like our breakfastses in germany, sam! meats, brotchens, cheeses, fresh juices, nutella!), then loaded up around 9:00 am. this morning, we're going to delft, where they make the delftware pottery. well, where they should be making the delftware pottery. we get a tour of the factory (which is amazing, the master painters can paint a plate with intricate detail in about an hour and a half), then spend an eternity in the gift shop while everyone picks something up.

after everyone finally finishes, we go to...leiden? i don't remember, but it's differentiated because it has two churches, an old church and a new church. the old church was built in the 13th century and the new church not so long ago, in the 14th century. we get to scope them out, and they're beautiful, of course. then have some time for lunch.

for some reason heineken is pretty prominent here. i have to say, drinking a heine at 0 degrees centigrade is a mighty tasty endeavour. lunch takes a long time, is decent, but takes forever. i had two beers. two delicious, perfectly frosted beers...mmm...

we load up again, and, i think, we go someplace that is escaping me right now. after that, we roll up to the north sea. here, we have a few hours of free time to enjoy some dinner. a gang of us tried to throw a couple of euro away at the casino, but none of us wanted to pay the 3.50 euro cover charge to drop a euro or two in the machines so we could say we gambled in holland.

that's when i break from the group. i go to the grocery store i saw, bought some asian food from the deli (which was not very tasty, by the way - and more expensive than i thought it would be) and a six-pack of, you guessed it, the beer they had: heineken and went to the beach. the sand there is very soft, norbert tells us that it gets destroyed every year, so every year they dredge sand from miles out and deposits it to create the beach. there are restaurants there on the beach as well, temporary buildings that also get reconstructed n an annual basis.

i plop down in the sand, which is very fine, soft, and does not stick to you. a nice attribute, no? i eat my meal while watching the families and lovebirds and everyone. after, i walk down and let the water lap up over my feet (with my slut red toes, no less!). brrr! that water is damn cold! then i go back to my spot, wathc te naked baby run around a bit, listen to the screams of the young ladies that feel the freeze of the cold water, and watch the runners and surfers enjoy their craft.

the six-pack didn't make that much of an impression on me, so, when we head back to the hotel, i talk kelli into coming down to the bar for a drink or two. well, there's this thing that the choir does, sort of a tradition. it's a card game called "phase 10," made by the makers of uno. the others find out that we're heading that way, so, before you know it, there's 14 card players, me, and one other non-player.

kelli and i are rapping with the bar tender and we ask if a 15-year old, liz's son, can hang out with us in the bar area. the guy tells us that they have their first beer at 12, so it's no problem at all. kelli then asks liz if the yong chap can have a drink. she asks him, he's actually a bit tentative, but reluctantly agrees. the order on tap: malibu pepsi. i ask him later if he enjoyed it, and he said that it tasted very good. i doubt that he felt any of the effects of it, but it put a smile on his face. today, a drink, tomorrow the red light district? eh, his mom probably doesn't want him to grow up that much on this trip!

i end up drinking some cognac from france that is pretty tasty. when i go up for some more, three young gentlemen are up there and ask me how i'm doing. i figure they're practicing their english, and i'm not far from the mark. we have a pleasant conversation. one of them lives in los angeles and sells tulips, from here, over the internet. he had to get his annual europe fix, so he's here for a little while. but, he has to get to work, so they take off.

i was talking with the bartender, when a lady compliments me on my goatee. she's a half of one of the two couples there, celebrating her friend's husband's 60th birthday. her friend, the other lady, asks me how to say it in english. i tell them goatee. she asks, "like from a goat?" "i don't know, but that's what it's called. it can have a mustache too, but when it's shaved on the sides, it's a goatee." "what's this called, then?" she asks, pointing at ther husband who has a little bit of a scruff, but a mustache long enough to curl the edges. i say, "a beard with a fabulous mustache!"

after the phase 10-ites scurry to their rooms, kelli and i end up hanging out with these two couples and the dutch gentleman with the english accent, as he lives there now. he's a little rambunctuous, flirtying with kelli, who disarms him gently but easily. we laugh with these guys for a good long while, then go our separate ways for some rest...ahhh, rest! i'm going to get some of that now!