Eliot's Travels

On Monday mornings, we have gym class in Ypenburg (the class lasts 1 full year). We were going to take the bus, but it was leaving the station as we headed across Westvest, so we took the tram instead. Carol, the teacher, is really great and engages the children in running, jumping and playing activities. She does a good job talking to Miles and Eliot in both Dutch and English, so they can participate. Eliot really enjoyed it. Miles was a hoot again. While Carol setup and explained the obstacle course, Miles started doing it backwards, without a clue to her instructions. He also pushed the scooter balancing on one foot all by himself. Pretty impressive for a not-yet-2-year old!

Afterwards, we went to Scheveningen Beach each via the tram. This is one of the things Eliot had on his list to show Aunt Julie. It was partly sunny, cool (60/65), and quite windy. The waves were big (for North Sea standards), and the beach was nearly deserted (it was a Monday afterall). We planted ourself by the Duckie signpost and rented a shade to block the wind.

The boys wanted to play in the sand and water, so that's what we did. Eliot liked to run in and out of the waves. Miles especially liked playing in the "bubbles" (sea foam) that landed on the sand as the waves receeded. There was one other group of people in the water while we were at the beach plus a surfer in a wetsuit. Other people were walking along the beach. The boys got lots of smiles and stares given how cold it was. Miles fell into the water, so we took off his shirt and switched to his jacket. Then he fell in the water and got his jacket wet - oops. Julie tried hard to keep her pants dry but missed a big wave coming in and got wet. The boys had a blast.

Miles looks for Eliot's feet that have disappeared in the sand
Miles gets naked before putting on dry clothes

After playing in the sand, we went into a cafe for some lunch. The boys wanted to play in the sand a bit longer before we headed back home on the tram. Julie, Eliot, and Miles play in the sand after lunch. Our project was to build a big sand pile. Once that was done, we walked to the tram line and caught the No. 1 home.

Riding the tram through The Hague, an older Dutch man yelled at us to shut up, that he hated Americans, that Americans think they are always right, just like Germans. It was quite a disturbing interchange and completely unwarranted, as Julie and I were quietly (for us!) discussing her work and office changes. Fortunately, we have expereinced very few exchanges like this during our time here.

posted by Whitney @ 2:10 AM