Late August

This is Elder Calkins and Brownell who live in Utrecht. Their apartment run-down and is in the middle of a minority neighborhood. We just got done replacing the wall plug that used to be hanging on the wall by the electrical wires. The cord goes into the shower room where the washer is also located.

We made a trip to St. Niklaas, Belgium with Elder Sanford so he could get some dental work done. After we went to a local Turkish Doner (Shawarma) shop for dinner. The bread and pita are made fresh every day. Tasty with or without meat. For 4 Euro ($7.5) you have a great meal.

This is the view of the old church in Dordrecht as we ride our bikes to church or to the bridge.



On our second trip over the bridge we again heard the buzzer just as we crossed the draw bridge. We got to the other side of the draw bridge so we could take these pictures.



We were standing right next to the bridge as it lowered. The motors and mechanical parts that caused the bridge to raise and lower were very quiet for such a large and heavy structure.



Peter has told us to visit the beach at Hoek van Holland (Corner of Holland). We were in Rotterdam at the end of the day so we headed to the Hoek. It was sunset. People were swimming in the water - think of the water temperature in San Francisco bay.
We drove East of the beach to a walkway on the river leading into the Rotterdam harbor. Huge boats were coming and going as the sun set. Some were ferry boats where you drive your car onto the boat, then check into a room on the boat to sleep until the morning where you find your self at your destination and drive away.

Our next door neighbors are from Iraq. They are probably refugees. They have been here about 10 years and learned to speak Nederlands. Sister Everton gave them some sweet rolls. These kids returned in a few days with some pastries with meat and cheese. Sister Everton returned their plate with oreo cookies. That was a few weeks ago. When we got home, thier kitchen drapes were parted enough that they could see us arrive. A few minutes after we closed our door the bell rang. The kids were at the door with a Turkish pizza. The crust is a soft, fresh home-made pita with spicy tomato and meat sauce. I need to learn how to make it.

Peter's walk on the river

We have Peter and the Sisters over for dinner every week, normally on Saturday. This time he brought flowers for Sister Everton. She loves the blue flowers. They reminder her of the flowers on Lombard street in San Fransico.

Peter wanted to take us to his favorite spot on the river. We parked by the harbor just as the moon was coming up.



We started down a path that had the river on one side and lakes on the other. Sometimes there was a small beach on the river side.




It got darker and darker. Peter loved it. When he was younger he would walk several hours to come to this spot and then sleep over night. It really lifted his spirit to be here.



Elder Everton's Birthday

My Birthday happened to fall on the same day as district meeting. I was surprised at how thoughtful they were. The sisters made cupcakes and candles. Sister Everton made cheese cake. Each companionship had a gift for me. The sisters gave me matching hot pads and apron with blue Dutch scenes on them. The zone leaders gave me a tie. They added a birthday greeting on the back of the tie. Utrech Elders gave me a nice card. The Den Bosch Elders gave Sister Everton and me a boat ride on the Den Bosch canals. Everyone went with us on the canal ride as a district outing. Here they are singing "Lang zal je leven" which is the Nederlands equivalent to Happy Birthday. After singing they each said something nice about me. I was surprised how nice it all was. I might have to reconsider having birthdays in the future.



The boat ride was on an electric boat. Here you can see the reflection of the water on the undeside of a bridge.



The canals wind under the old city of Den Bosch



It was warm sunny day. After the boat ride, Elder Calkins wanted an Italian ice. No one else was too interested. Some had no money left.  He and I walked down the narrow road checking out the options. We found what looked to be a good shop. It was busy so once we got service, I told the person helping us 'te samen' which means one order. The group realized Elder Everton was buying and all popped up to get thier favorite flavor. It was the best part of my birthday. 



Sister Everton got mango and I got lemon in honor of Desi who introduced me to lemon ice at Trevi fountain in Rome. Actually, I think lemon is my favorite now. I have my birthday tie on.

As we left the old town we passed the gold dragon that stands in the main round-about in front of the train station. I am not sure what the dragon means.

Early August

We helped the Elders Schulte, Bastian, Mueller and Favero move from an apartment on the North side of Amsterdam to a location on the South by the church. One thing they took with them was this surf board with signatures of the Elders who had stayed in the apartment. You might recognize this pose from a Beach Boy's album.

Peter made illustrations of the story of Lehonti for the sister missionaries.

Peter brought raw herring for our dinner. Sister Wassenaar on the right loved it but she is Nederlands. Sister Jeffs took one bite and turned green as did Sister Everton. I ate a bunch so we would not have it in the fridge. It was great with raw onions. Pictures of our grand children are on the blue door so we can see them often.



We went to the flower parade in Rijnsburg were we used to live. Most of the flower export goes through Rijnsburg so businesses sponser this parade every year. It was an hour long with every float and car covered with beautiful flowers.

Here I am working on Elder Schwartz's bike in Eindhoven (1 hour drive). He had a flat rear tire and rotting front tire. I replace both but it took three tries over a few days. The back was a different size than the front and then turned out to be a strange size so it was hard to find a replacement. Then we needed to adjust the brakes. I heard a few week later the bike was stolen. It was an old bike. Elder Schwartz had a big lock on it but the thief cut the lock. Big problem for the missionaries here.



More July

This is our Den Bosch district. Elders Andrews, Calkins, Brownell, Bastiaens and Everton. Sisters Jeffs, Reber and Everton. 



So everyone rides bikes. The bikes have seats for and aft for kids. This is Maare and her mother. She is about 6 months. I think we have seen younger kids up front. The kids and parents don't wear helmets

Here is a set of twins riding aft. Thier brother riding his own bike. I am impressed with the families in the Netherlands. They seem to be larger and more focused on the children than in the USA. We gave the mother a pass-along card but she was a bit unsure of our intent.





Sister Everton has planted flowers which we have on our balcony and at our front door. The get plenty of rain. We have had only one hot day this summer. Most of the time it has been raining and temperatures in the 60-70s. We live on the top floor of a 6 story flat.

 

This is the back side of a long boat that goes up and down the rivers. There is a cabin for the captain and his family to live in. They have their laundry drying today. The boat was moored near the Dordrecht city center.

This couple live in our flat. They participate in a group that dress in authentic costums and dance. We went to one of thier productions a few months ago.

This is our neighbor Dikie. Sister Everton is showing the layers of dresses she has on. The dresses were layered to keep the women warm in the winter.

This is Quinton. He was baptised by his father Jackson.



 

We had Soule and Peter over for dinner with Sister Jeffs and Reber. We learned that Soule is a voetbal (soccer) fan.

This is Sharon with Elder Osmond and Michelson. The Elders cooked lunch for her. She is daring. It turns out that she was an investigator that I taught in 1974. It was an amazing afternoon to catch up on things and reminisce.





This a well know violist playing at the baptism for a Sister in Gouda. Her husband is also internatioinally know. They have an academy in the Netherlands. She was playing a Bach Air from Orchestral Suite No. 3 with Sister Perry accompanying at the piano.

This is Moises. He speaks Portugese and Dutch. It was his birthday so we dropped by with the Sisters. He comes to church during sunday school every week.



We were running through the sacred grove after a lighting storm. At one point, we saw piecies of wood all over the ground. Then we noticed that this tree had been hit by lighting. It hit the tree about 30 feet up and traveled down the trunk to the ground.

  

Brugge, Belgium



We took the Sisters to Brugge Belgium for a p-day. Brugge means bridge. The old inner city is surrounded by a moat with a number of bridges. There are a number of points on the moat where you can take a river boat tour of the city.





Our tour guide and boat drive told us about the sights in French, Flams, German and English.




We were taking pictures of the sisters at this balcony when young lady offered to take one of us all. She was from Greece and had taken the lessons from the missionaries. She did not join the church but had a soft place in her heart for the missionaries.

 

Brugge has many old beautiful buidlings. It was hard to get good photo but a few of the close-up shots worked out like these flowers on a balcony.



We had to get a Belgium waffle. The look on my face indicates I just realized the belgium waffles that Seth or Matt makes are much better.

 



Memorial Day

On Memorial Day we drove to a cemetery and war memorial owned by the United States that is located near Maastricht in the South part of Holland. It was raining and cold so Sister Everton wore her wool tights. By the time we got there which was a 2 hour drive it was sunny and warm.

This is the inscription on the memorial. There are flags for each state on each side of the reflecting pond.



Our mission president placed a wreath for our church as part of the ceremony. At the end of the ceremony four fighter jets flew over in the missing man formation.



The memorial is surrounded by graves of the fallen.