Happy to be Traveling

Ella’s already given you an introduction to the FENIX and the exhibit on the first floor of luggage that has traveled through Rotterdam in the last hundred years. The narrative that went with a suitcase that I enjoyed was the one where a gay guy from Rotterdam in the the 1920s made it a habit…

Inside the SS Rotterdam there were tipsy ghosts in full-skirted flower-patterned gowns serenaded by Frank Sinatra.  They sat on squat chairs designed for bustles to be draped over the back. Outside, on the deck, the promenading ghosts seemed to have been whisked away by the chill weather, but the stiff breeze offered an opportunity to get…

Our time at the FENIX was so poignant that it will take a few posts to describe. And by the way, gratitude to our friend Esther for telling us about the museum. The FENIX opened just one year ago. It was inaugurated by the queen of the Netherlands, Queen Máxima. FENIX is an art museum…

Back before there were cruise ships to luxuriate on while crossing the Atlantic, there were Ocean Liners. Like we saw in “The Titanic” or “The Poseidon Adventure.” Primitive compared to the wedding cake cities that tour the globe nowadays offering Broadway musicals and topical lectures, but still impressive if you think of the parties that…

Today (Monday), a slow day, a chilly day with a bit of rain.

Last night (Sunday)…A fish place with a different concept” is how they bill themselves.  The maître d’ handed us an oval tin of sardines with our table number written in sharpie on the top. “Would you like to start with a glass of cava?” she asked. “Well sure” I said as Grubb shook his head…

On the edge of Eendrachtsplein in Rotterdam is a sculpture made by Paul McCarthy in 2001. He called it Santa Claus. Since then it has been popularly nicknamed “Kabouter Buttplug” or the “Buttplug Gnome.” McCarthy said the object is officially a stylized Christmas tree and meant to be a comment on consumer culture. Maybe if…

Every time we visit Rotterdam we try to check out the latest cultural collections. The port city has a lot huge old style warehouses made vacant by the stacks of shipping containers on the docks. Empty warehouses, like abandoned banks, make great music venues and museums. Yesterday, after we checked into our hotel, we took…

Yesterday (Sunday), we had a last coffee and chat with Esther in Delft at a place called Anne&Max. Sadly, we said our goodbyes and hopped a train for Rotterdam. 12 minutes later, we stepped off the train in Rotterdam Centraal, headed down to the metro, took line D and just a few stops later popped…

Saturday morning we went to Tess and Josh’s for coffee. Tess is Esther and Hendrik’s daughter. And of course mother to the adorable Juneau and Cleo. And sweet kitty Marmelade with kitten Toast on the way. They live maybe 15 minutes walk from where we were staying, on a canal in a home they recently…

I have become fascinated with the collection of roofs across the canal from our apartment in Delft. I took a bazillion photos. Since we are leaving Delft today, I’ll spare you and just post two of the photos.

Lately on our travels I’ve become more aware of stores selling antiques. In the past they were just places I passed without much consideration. I was on a quest for the perfect pastry, the sublime work of art. But I’m becoming more doubtful I’ll find that melt-in-the-mouth non-flaking pastry, or be struck by an unanticipated…

Taken during our wandering over the past few days Above: Reflections and unidentified floating object Above: Just a neighborhood and cat splayed on prickly hedge Above: Art and antiques day.

I just need to mention we spent a lovely evening at Hendrik and Gina’s place in den Haag after our visit to the Mauritshuis. So much news to catch up on.  The last time we were here, three years ago, Hendrik and Gina had both contracted Covid and so we were only able to visit with…