Just 3 more days …

Posted by Arthur in Movies, Pop culture

… and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull comes out!

We got tickets for the first show on Friday morning. Meanwhile it’s fun watching the videos and photos from the big premiere in Cannes yesterday. I’m trying to not read any spoilers but managed to accidentally read a few anyway. D’oh!

Disney and more has some great photos from the red carpet:

 

May 19th 2008 | 7:42 pm CET | No Comments »

No Smoking

Posted by Arthur in Life in Holland

When Ireland banned smoking in all enclosed public spaces in March 2004 it made big news. Critics said that pubs and restaurants would suffer, but the ban has actually been a huge success. Cigarettes sales in pubs dropped by as much as 60%, thousands of smokers quit in the first year and more non-smokers ventured out to the pub. Since Ireland’s success story most other European countries have adopted anti-smoking laws. More »

May 19th 2008 | 7:29 pm CET | No Comments »

Canoeing in Biesbosch National Park

Posted by Arthur in Life in Holland, Nature

Last weekend on Friday 9 May we drove down to the Biesbosch National Park south of Rotterdam and rented a canoe for a few hours of canoeing.

Canoe trail

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May 18th 2008 | 4:06 pm CET | No Comments »

The crazy borders of Baarle

Posted by Arthur in Funny, Life in Holland

Yesterday we went to Baarle Nassau to see my cousin Agnes at a pottery demonstration (see below). Baarle is a town in the south of the Netherlands with complicated borders that zig-zag through town. The border situation is the result of a number of complex medieval treaties, agreements, land-swaps and land sales.

Baarle Nassau
Amy on one of the borders

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May 18th 2008 | 12:47 pm CET | No Comments »

Our visit to Alsace in France

Posted by Arthur in Personal, Travel

Last weekend we drove to the Alsace region in France and visited the area around Strassbourg, especially the Vosges Regional Nature Park in the south and north of this region. We visited the Caves of Han in Belgium, Strassbourg, Kintzheim, Munster, Gérardmer, Épinal and La Petite Pierre.

View from Kintzheim Castle
View from Kintzheim Castle

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May 12th 2008 | 1:50 pm CET | No Comments »

I want to believe that there is a trailer

Posted by Arthur in Pop culture

For the last few days the official website of The X-Files: I Want To Believe movie www.xfiles.com had a countdown for the debut of the trailer. The clock was counting down to midnight (our time in the Netherlands), so we just stayed up to wait for this exciting event. Here’s the page at just 3 minutes to go:

X-Files trailer

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May 12th 2008 | 12:11 am CET | 3 Comments »

OMG! SPACE!

Posted by Arthur in Funny, Pop culture, Space

Last night Stephen Colbert had astronaut Garret Reisman on the show, live from the International Space Station, after being seen wearing a WristStrong bracelet.

Garret Reisman on The Colbert Report

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May 9th 2008 | 7:14 pm CET | No Comments »

Our visit to the Caves of Han

Posted by Arthur in Nature, Travel

Last week on Wednesday 30 April we drove to France and stopped in Han-sur-Lesse in Belgium to visit the Caves of Han or Grottes de Han.

Cave ticket center

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May 8th 2008 | 11:00 pm CET | No Comments »

Five years ago today: Ballooning in Egypt

Posted by Arthur in Personal, Travel

Five years ago today, on 28 April 2003, we did one of the most exciting things I’ve ever done. On this day we made a hot air balloon ride over Luxor and the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Seeing the sunrise over the Nile was a wonderful experience. Here are some photos of this exciting journey:

Luxor Balloon Ride

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April 28th 2008 | 10:55 pm CET | No Comments »

Our visit to the Kaasmarkt in Alkmaar

Posted by Arthur in Life in Holland

Today we visited the weekly Kaasmarkt in Alkmaar, which is apparently the largest cheese market in the world! This cheese market was started in 1365 and since 1939 Alkmaar has been the only place in the Netherlands to maintain the cheese market in this traditional form. It is mainly done for tourists now and held from mid-April to mid-September on every Friday morning from 10:00 to 12:30 on the center square of town.

Kaasmarkt, Alkmaar

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April 25th 2008 | 8:44 pm CET | No Comments »