Schaatsen op de grachten

... or in English, skating on the canals. Yay!

Just as winter doesn't automatically translate to snow, it also doesn't necessarily mean ice. In Amsterdam, where winters are relatively milder, ice is a rare thing. There's too much moisture in the air here (I know, humid pa pala sa lagay na 'to) and the city is warmer than the countryside. Smaller canals and ponds outside the city freeze faster, but the canals in Amsterdam are a different animal altogether. 

So when the mercury (and the snow) began to fall, you could feel excitement rising in the air, prickling and spiking with every degree that dropped below zero. The city was literally abuzz with one question: "Are the canals going to freeze?" 

Freeze they did. This has led to my discovery of the one other thing, apart from summer, that creates happiness for the Dutch on a national level. And that is... the ice.  

Heading out to the canals was like seeing a Dutch painting come to life. I was particularly reminded of the Hendrick Avercamp winterscape displayed in the Rijksmuseum. 

Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters, image via Wikipedia

I've also discovered why ice drives the Dutch bonkers. Simply put, ice = skating. In Amsterdam, it means skating with a UNESCO World Heritage Site as your backdrop. The last time the canals were any good for ice skating was 15 years ago; some parts haven't been skated on since the 1970s. This winter, the city closed some of the locks, or gates, to help the canals freeze over faster. 

When Megamall opened its ice skating rink in the 90s, I was there on the very first day. So how could I possibly miss out on this?

Photo courtesy of Michelle

Join me on the ice, after the cut!

Yearender

What did you do in 2011 that you'd never done before?

LIVED IN EUROPE. (This is the big one!)
Traveled in Europe without having to apply for a visa.
Painted my own walls (in the bedroom and living room).

Picked up furniture off the sidewalk.
Celebrated Queen's Day in Amsterdam.
Used a bicycle to get around.

Learned Dutch. 

Found myself in Paris twice in one year.

Joined a running group and worked up to running for 20 minutes straight.
Grew my own herbs.
Had fresh flowers at home every week.



Wore a bathing suit at a park.

Drove a boat.

Started writing my very own blog column!
Volunteered for TEDxAmsterdam.
Went on a hot-air balloon ride!
Witnessed the changing of all four seasons. 



Sang at a wedding in the south of France.
Went swimming in a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Went swimming in the Atlantic Ocean.
Did my grocery shopping at a market (not a supermarket).

Learned how to sew (so far, a dress and cushion covers).

Learned how to knit (made a scarf).
Learned how to dance the salsa.
Learned how to bake (my favorite dessert: lemon tart!). 

Hosted a dinner party for 10.
Hosted five house guests, the most I've ever had at one time.
Bought serious rain gear (and wore rain boots).

Stepped inside a windmill.

Edited videos for money. 
*WHEW!*

Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? 

I don't make New Year's resolutions. But this year I set goals (something that always works for me when I remember to do it) and achieved many of them. That's something I will do again this year.

Did anyone close to you give birth?

Susie and Tinus, our dearest friends from Singapore, became the parents of a gorgeous baby boy named Max, the day before we moved to Amsterdam. We were his first visitors at the hospital!



Later in the year, another Max was born—this time to my friend Leslie in Amsterdam.



Did anyone close to you die?

Tito Rolly Cailles, one of our wedding godfathers, succumbed to leukemia.

What countries did you visit?

Switzerland, Portugal, Norway, Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, Turkey and the Philippines.

Walkabout

I had to take care of some work while my guests were gallivanting around Amsterdam, so it was only really on their last day that I got to take them around some of our favorite places.

While Cathy was getting some much-needed rest, Marlon organized a boys-only cycling trip to Vondelpark. He recently bought himself a proper Dutch bike, so Jonel took his old bike from Singapore out for a spin. 

Meanwhile, I went with Trina and Pia on a leisurely walkabout of Amsterdam's many little streets—specifically the Jordaan, a district that I've long wanted to explore.

It's been a while since I've just aimlessly walked around, and I was reminded how much I love this town. Whether old or new, there's always something interesting to see.

I've started learning Dutch (which deserves a separate post!) and expanding my meagre vocabulary bit by bit by bit. Each new word is like a key that unlocks a small part of the city at a time. Out of the indecipherable jumble of letters that Dutch often seems to be ("parang Ingles na minali-mali ang spelling", observed one guest), words now pop out with their meanings fluttering in the air like flags.

It's not unlike being deep in thought and not really seeing anything until you realize a friend is waving hello. This was how I felt when I recognized the word boom, meaning tree, on this building. Then I saw that nearly the whole block was painted with the names of different trees. A mini-revelation!

In a summer that's on the list of the five worst Dutch summers in a hundred years, I've come to realize that bright blue skies and big fluffy white clouds are a rare gift. We were blessed with them that day.

Shops, even when closed on Sundays, always beckon. I felt a bit of buyer's remorse upon seeing this armchair. This is exactly the kind of chair I wanted, but we ended up getting something else.

The things we see always seem to link back to people we know. We thought this pink turban would be perfect for Dada (or at least her alter ego, Doña Nelda)!

And bikes, of course, always mean Elaine and Paul. I wouldn't mind one of these turf crates for myself either.

I'd love to live in the Jordaan. There's so much character in its narrow streets. But I'm not so sure I'd like to live in this blister-infested house.

Crazy cat lady alert! It's the first time I'd ever seen a cat being walked. I wonder how Rogue would take to it?

Of course, there were the famous canal views. 

Never get tired of these. I wonder if I'll get to the point where I can tell the names of all the canals by sight.

I still have one big item on my must-do list that I haven't ticked off: rent a boat and go for a leisurely ride around Amsterdam with good friends and a bottle of wine. This is such a common sight and it always looks like the people in the boats are having so much fun.

We couldn't let our guests leave without tasting Winkel's famous apple pie.

After dessert, dinner: Dutch pannekoeken at the Pancake Bakery on Prinsengracht. Maybe not the best pancake place for me (I think the one we took Gutsy to was better, lucky girl!), but the only one that would fit a group our size. 

This is how we felt to have the happy house emptied the next day. LOL!



Okay, maybe I wasn't too sad... because when they left, I left with them and ended up spending a few days in Paris! But that deserves another post.