My first holiday in The Netherlands

(PARA ESPAÑOL MIRA ABAJO)

(Aangezien het ditmaal een verslag over Nederland betreft, heb ik het in het Engels met een Spaanse samenvatting getypt zodat mijn Latino-vrienden ook eens mee kunnen lezen. Volgende keer weer vertrouwd Nederlands!)

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After living in my native country for 27 years, followed by traveling over 16 months throughout Latin-America, it was a kinda weird to enjoy my first holiday in my own country. As for the first days, just to be at my parents home doing not too much was the first point on my non-existing agenda. A few days later, my older brother Aeron, his girlfriend Sietske, and their child Madou also came by visiting from their home in Ghana (Africa). With younger brother Jort and girlfriend Nicola joining in during Eastern, we had the whole family together for the first time in almost 2 years!

Check as always www.picasaweb.google.com/dennisvoes for photos and enjoy (like I did) my nephew Madou’s first experience with eastern bunnies and painted-egg-collecting traditions, walks in the rural neighborhood of my parents, enjoying lunches and dinners together (oh damn what did I miss those heavenly Dutch cheeses, fries, bread, döner kebab (thanks Boelie!), and Belgium special beers!!!), helping Jort and Nicola to move into their new paradise in Amsterdam, celebrating my aunt Marlies and uncle Cees’ birthday in the Veluwe forest, and even shopping (shopping!) with my mom in Roermond. It’s good to be back!

Next to all these great moments, I also encountered some consequences of my travel. Accustomed to Latin-Americas relaxed vibes, I couldn’t agree and didn’t want to join in on the hurried-up agenda-determined punctual life expected by our Dutch working society. Together with the books I read on the goal and effect of indigenous ayahuasca rituals, it really felt like our society has stolen a part of our childhood and freedom. ‘Just do normal, then you’re doing crazy enough’ is one of those typical Dutch expressions on which I couldn’t agree less… With different views on what is considered ‘normal’, ‘accepted’, or ‘good behavior’, I want to find a new way to adapt to and blend in my own culture and society. And I gained another motivation to further explore how indigenous rituals enhance and serve the bond between human and nature while traveling to the deepest layers inside yourself – but that’s another story.

One little fellow who isn’t worried about those things at all, is my almost-3-year-old nephew Madou. Spreading his joyful big smile just touches my heart playing along with him as being a child myself. When happy, he smiles. When sad, he cries. When angry, he shouts. What happened to these oh so natural behaviors when we grew up? I really love children, even more after seeing my nephew again, for their wisdom of knowing they are important and not (yet) having ‘learnt’ to be ashamed. Well, the pictures tell enough! So if you want another dance Madou, anytime! :-D

Dancing (or actually jumping) also occurred when celebrating our freedom on the 5th of May with a music festival, now 67 years after the end of world war II. Strange though we had to smuggle in our special beers at a liberty festival… Sadly, the day after it was already goodbye-time as Aeron, Sietske, and Madou went back to Ghana, so time for me to hit the road on bicycle and visit my friends throughout the country!

After some delay I started the 91km-journey to my student city Nijmegen at 4:30pm, naively optimistic to get there in 4 hours while forgetting water and food for on the way. Well, sparing you the details, the photos of special-beer-consuming activities on the terrace of Deventer the next day proofs that I made it. Oh damn what did I miss that: starting a sunny morning with the divine taste of strong delicious special beers while becoming rather drunk with my best friends along the way, watching an important children’s event on the local town square. Finishing off with a big plate of mixed grill we could turn back home feeling fully satisfied.

After visiting several more friends the next 2 days, I continued cycling to my cousin Rian in Utrecht taking some scenery pictures on the way. Cycling on to Leiden already after 1 day, while continuing to The Hague the day after, was tough but I needed to make it to my appointment at the head office of the Dutch government to extend my passport. So far, it required 2 weeks of many bureaucratic emails and long phone calls with the Dutch government to discuss how to extend my passport to prevent becoming illegal, not able to provide the apparently required living address. You can imagine my frustration disappeared and my smile returned when they told me I could come back in 5 days to get it! With this burden off my shoulders, I cycled back along the beach and dunes, entering a sunny weekend on the market and in the parks of Leiden. Inbetween the business of eating herring, enjoying more special beers and smoking a relaxing joint in the sun, I also presented Mexican chilaquiles to my friends Visnu and Caroline, while the best Peruvian ‘papas a la huancaina’ so far were presented to me on Dutch soil… (thanks Javier!)

Returning to the Hague I visited my friend Darien, which I met during my travels in Quito (Ecuador). After sleeping a week at his parents place in Quito through couchsurfing, ironically I slept at his place in The Hague as well as I was also homeless in my own country. After obtaining my passport the next day, I cycled back to Utrecht, where my friend Tom and I spontaneously ended up having dinner with Jort and Nicola. The following days were filled in helping my cousin Rian in her garden, visiting my friends Leon and Maaike ending up at a bar-concert and house-warming BBQ in Amsterdam, traveling back over Rotterdam enjoying a music festival in the park, the next day cycling back to Nijmegen to enjoy the sun in the park again, before cycling the last part back to my parents home, completing 540km in 2.5 weeks. Damn sure I’m going to miss my friends returning back to Latin-America!

And that happened quite soon. Enjoying the last 5 days with my parents, having a Mother’s day dinner, passing by at Jorts birthday, visiting aunt Willemien, sharing some home-made Colombian arepas and Mexican pie de limón and there I was in the air again, on my way back to Bogotá. Filled with moments convincing me to come back home again someday. Some day yes. But surely not before experiencing the Amazon jungle, gaining knowledge on medicinal plants, and experiencing jungle rituals!

Pap, mam, Aeron, Sietske, Madou, Jort, Nicola, Wim, Wilmy, Rian, Maarten, Renske, Robin, Rene, Petra, Remco, Vincent, Marnix, Belinda, Quintin, Marlies, Cees, Willemien, Nicole, Rolf, Boelie, Linda, Rik, Karen, Paul, Angelique, Manuela, Petra, Nathalie, Richard, Noud, Peer, Martijn, Voske, Jaap, Big Willem, Roy, Tom, Anke, Visnu, Caroline, Javier, Raymond, Joeri, Berry, Taco, Darien, Leon, Maaike, Steven, Lotte, Steven, Postbode, Jorrit… It has been supergezellig thanks a lot for all crazy times ans see you next time!!!


RESUMEN EN ESPAÑOL: MI PRIMERA VACACIONES EN HOLANDA
Después 16 meses y 2 días, estaba tan bueno para ver mi familia, amigos, y otros bastardos de nuevo en este lugar llamado casa. Y oh que maldita.. Con queso, pan, papas fritas, döner kebab y mucho mas la comida nativa tenía un sabor divino como un trago de Ardbeg Uigeadail (un whisky superbueno q no pude traer conmigo a mi primero viaje en bus en Texas). Mira las fotos como siempre en www.picasaweb.google.com/dennisvoes y disfruta conmigo el regreso de mi hermano Aeron, su novia Sietske, y mi sobrino Madou regresando de Ghana (Africa), la celebración de semana santa con toda la familia juntos después casi 2 años, caminando por el área rural de mis padres, ayudando a hermano Jort y su novia Nicola mudarse a su nuevo paraíso en Amsterdam, mi corazón tocada por la verdadera sonrisa tan hermosa de mi sobrino Madou (los niños son taaan sabio - incluyendo a mi madre), celebrando el liberación de segunda guerra del mundo con un festival de música... Siii es verdad, la lista es demasiado larga!

Después la salida de mi hermano con su novia y hijo, ya era hora de manejar mi bici por todo Holanda. Con mi actitud ingenuamente optimista (es decir: sin preparación, aunque determinada), me siento orgulloso de 540 kilometros en 2,5 semanas. Más importante, sin embargo, fueron los momentos entre medio, tener conversaciones con los amigos como si nunca me fui, a menudo durante actividades como consumir cervezas especiales o fumar marihuana en los parques Holandeses. En total, demasiado para capturar en el lenguaje vulgar… Pero si verdadera quieres saber más detalles: aprende inglés y mira las fotos!