Linnaeushof

When we drove up to the Groenendaal playground, we passed a big playground, it turned out to be Linnaeushof. So the boys asked to visit it, so yesterday we visited Europe s biggest playground. And I must admit, it is big and great fun.

It was warm yesterday, so the boys spent most of the day in the waterplayground.

And luckily for us, there was also a small train riding through the park, so son #3 wanted to take the train;, so we did 2 times.

And a day at the plaground with boys wouldnt be complete without a visit to the First Aid station.  Son #1 was running in some sort of merrygoround when we was hit in the face by some pushing rod. So I tried to stop his nosebleed, because I checked if it was broken, it was not, but when I couldnt stop it, we stopped at the First Aid and with some ice and an icecream on doctors orders, everything was OK.

Groenendaal playground

We had a quiet day at a playground in Heemstede, called Groenendaal. Great playground for smaller kids.

In the afternoon, we went back to Katwijk to fly some kites, because there was a lot of wind so there were not may people at the beach.

As you can see on the pic below, a whole different sight than last sunday.

Rijnsburg Marina

We saw an advertisement for the Rijnsburg Marina and thought it would be a fun idea to rent a boat for the day, so we did and had a great day.

You cant go more dutch than cows, the dutch flags and one of the arks that you encounter everywhere. We had a trip through Leiden and the Kaag, Noordwijk and Katwijk and then back to Rijnsburg.

Offcourse I took my crochet on board...

It was a day well spent, if you are in the neighbourhood, a trip that we can recommend. A trip through the canals of Leiden is very nice, and there are restauants and cafes eveywhere you go. We had lunch on a small artifical beach where the kids could swim and play in the playground. We also picked up my SIL and our nephew to have a trip to Katwijk for some icecream. 

And we ended the day with a BBQ at DHs cousin. So we got everything out of this tuesday.

Artis

We spent the day in Artis, the Zoo in Amsterdam. But this is what you see when it is very hot (for dutch standards)...

Most of teh animals were sleeping or lying in the sun. Which was very funny to see.

And we also know now where they found King Julian from Madagascar. OK, these are different Lemurs, but I can see the resemblance. The fun thing is that they are living on an island and you can walk between them while they are doing there thing.

And here is my own little bunch...

Katwijk aan Zee

Today we spent a wonderful day at the beach in Katwijk aan Zee, but as you can see, we were not alone...

Lucikly my PIL rent a small cabana at the beach with chairs, so we were OK, but if you were sitting on the beach? The boys have eaten diner and are now ready to go to bed, as it was a warm and exhausting day.

Berthe and the European Space Center

Yesterday evening we promised son #2 that he could stay up to see the ghost of Berthe. She is a ghost that lives in the castle of La Roche. She was killed by the fiancee of a knight that died in a tournement for her hand. He too was killed by his fiancee. And the legend tells that she comes out to haunt the castle every night during the summer.

 You can see Bethe on the right on the castle walls.

This morning we made a picture in front of the house with only my family, my cousins already left.

So we decided to visit the Euro Space Center.

The boys liked all the space stuff and son #1 even did a moonwalk with one of those specials machines.

 I though the space center was interesting but I missed a part where they show the future of space exploration, so it was a bit dated, I expected more information about our near future, what are new techniques, what can we expect?  But still, the visit was worthwhile.

kayak

 This was our view this morning, the castle of La Roche in the mist. But around 9.00 the sun was already shining and it was getting hot, luckily, because we planned on kayaking.

We ordered the short route, and some of the group were happy, as they paddled the course twice, as they hit the banks, got water in the boat, etc... But still good fun to do on a nice day like this.

Parc à gibier

 Today we drove to the nearby wildpark of La Roche en Ardenne. We were one of the first people to enter the park, and all the animals were standing near the fences, so it was obvious that they were expecting food.
So after a couple of minutes the van of the park drove up and the guy that was in charge of the feeding asked the kids if they wanted to join him feeding the animals. As you can see, they enjoyed themselves.

The two eldest kids were allowed to enter the cage of the fox and handfeed it some chicks. They were very impressed of this magnifisent animal. I also didnt know that he burries his food and then immediately comes back for more, now I know why the kill the entire henhouse...

They were also allowed to handfeed some eggs to the racoons. As these are animals we dont have in the wild, they were suprised how sensitive they are with the paws taking the eggs from them.

After some pancakes we drove to the local river and spent some time on the bank of the Ourthe. Unbelievable how they can stay in this icecold water...

La Roche en Ardennes

 This morning we decided to have a walk to the village with the kids. And as soon as we arrived at the main square, they saw the little tourist train, so I said we could ride it, so all kids aboard and we all got a cap, which we needed later on, as it was very warm and sunny.

 After lunch we walked to the castle where they have a bird of prey show, so we took all the kids with us and told them to stay down as the birds flew very close over our heads.

They started with a small bird and they got bigger and bigger.

Grandpa volunteered to have the bird walk over his back, but it turn out that a volture has no claws, so it doesnt hurt when it walks over you.

And when we left the castle grandpa and son #1 had a bow shooting contest.

PlopsaCoo

Today we visited PlopsaCoo. The kids loved it.

After we took pictures with all sorts of Studio 100 characters, we started with the Viking ride, great coaster for the kids.

The smaller ones had a look at Kabouter Klus, who visited the park.

For those who dont know where PlopsaCoo is, it is located in the Ardens in a small village called Coo, which is famous because it has Belgium s only waterfalls. It used to be famous for just the falls, but now Studio 100 bought a large domain and started an amusment park.

And after spending all day in the park, we left when the park closed, the kids were bushed, as were we...

Day 1

As you can see, we bought some baguettes and fried chicken and had a picknick at the banks of the Ourthe. The kids had a great time, even if the water was icecold.

This is our famous summer holiday picture, this is the third year that we make a picture like this, and it is funny to see how the boys get bigger and bigger. And this year, a pciture with their cousin.

Because the water was to cold for us, the adults, we had a swim in the local swimming pool, that had a nice temperature. And I managed to pictures of them in full action...

Home away from home

Today we left for our annual summer holiday, so the weather is great, the food is great, holiday, here we come...

And this is our home away form home... It is a cosy big house. Great place, the kids love it, because it has secret noeks and cracks and secret doors.