Moeder en Vader

My parents certainly made the most of their stay in Amsterdam. They have been very busy visiting the Van Gogh Museum (If interested, see "Holland. The Original Cool." video below for the correct pronunciation of "Van Gogh"), The Anne Frank Huis, The Heineken Brewery, The Houseboat Museum and Vondel Park.

My mom was also able to get to the Kinkerstraat for some shopping and my dad just dove into the Dutch way of life: He got a haircut "from the future" at a local barber shop and calls himself Google's official bike transporter (He assisted Francisco in getting the Google bike back to our flat).

As an early Father's Day gift, I took my parents on a canal cruise and to a cheese tasting room (I realized afterwards that this was a horrible idea as next year's golf balls are going to look pretty pathetic). We had a great time and each have a certificate documenting the fact that we are all official cheese tasting experts. Very useful.

Speaking of food, my parents took us out to a restaurant called Moeders, and it was the best Dutch food I've tried since my arrival. We ordered the Hollandse Rijaattafel and were able to sample traditional Dutch dishes: sausages, spinach potatoes, sauerkraut, meatballs, bacon, french fries with mayonnaise and beef stew. If you happen to visit Amsterdam, I highly recommend it (but you need to make a reservation).

Moeders

Just when I thought that dinner would never be topped, my mom bought a raclette for the flat. We spent the next night cooking our favourite meats and vegetables at the kitchen table (With cheese that we, as experts, selected ourselves). It was delicious and we look forward to grilling again with our future visitors.

My mom and dad are now sadly on their way home (be warned, you may not recognize Pat with his ultra modern haircut) and Matt and Sarah (my cousins) have arrived safely in Amsterdam. Our goal this week is to replicate "The Original Cool":

We already have one thing working for us: we will be strolling around Holland with totally cool Francisco, a new celebrity, who guest stars in Amir Johnson's video: