In this week, I have a somewhat disjointed collection of images: a couple of garden parties, a strange Dutch walking event, and a sailing excursion off Amsterdam.
First the sailing. On Wednesday Randstad had invited its customers (of which I am one) to a day out on a replica of a classic Clipper ship, based in Ijmuiden, the “mouth” of Amsterdam harbour. The weather was lousy, and several of the guests got seasick. As long as we were still in the harbour, it was not so bad:
(Ricoh GR Digital, ISO 100)
Once we left the harbour, things became more serious:
(Ricoh GR Digital, ISO 100)
We then move on to firm ground. This time of year, a visitor to the Netherlands may see a strange sight in smaller towns: processions of (mostly) children walking without any obvious purpose. What you see is called “Avondvierdaagse,” which basically means that the group walks a predetermined route through the town and surrounding area four evenings in a row. In Hilversum, this meant walking 4 x 10 km. On the last evening many parents joined in, the children got flowers and candy, and because of the World Cup many people were in various shades of orange, the colour of the Dutch team:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 24-70mm L Canon, ISO 800)
Even the police were dressed for the occasion (and police on bicycles are a common sight in Dutch towns and cities):
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 24-70mm L Canon, ISO 800)
During the weekend, I was at two garden parties. First my daughter’s birthday party, held in our garden. It was a good thing the weather cooperated, I would not want a bunch of 12-year olds rummaging through the house:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 24-70mm L Canon, ISO 100)
We fed the children this:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 24-70mm L Canon, ISO 100)
…which prompted my daughter to borrow the dog’s collar and pretend to be begging for food:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 24-70mm L Canon, ISO 100)
Later that day, I attended a party organized by the Viewfinders photography club in Brussels, of which I am a member. It was held at the house of one of the members, just north of Brussels, and it was a beautiful evening indeed:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 35mm L Canon, ISO 800)
Since this was a photography club party, we had a slide show going outside, albeit with a modern twist:
(Canon 1D Mark 2, 35mm L Canon, ISO 800)