400 years Dutchies in NY

This year the Dutchies and Americans celebrate the discovery of Mannahatta and founding of New Amsterdam 400 years ago. As a Dutchie living in NY I had a great time to enjoy all the activities that are organised for this very special memorial!

This September, was precisely 400 years ago that Captain Henry Hudson sailed his ship the Halve Maen (Half Moon) up the river that now bears his name. On the banks of the Hudson, a trading post was later set up and called New Amsterdam, now New York City.

Few New Yorkers, let alone Americans in general, are aware of their city’s Dutch roots. Actually, many people think the British founded New York and the Dutch don’t have such a clear identity here — unlike the Irish, for example, who have their own St. Patrick’s Day.
Hopefully, the NY400 Week will have changed all that. New York and the Dutch hosted a great program of events, giving the Netherlands an opportunity to show its best side: from culture, theater, design and architecture to water management and finance.
One of the highlights during the NY400 week was the sold-out Dutch Dance Event on Governors Island with Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren. Everybody, including me, went totally crazy on the beats produced by this world famous, no. 1 DJ in the world, while overlooking NY Harbour and the skyline of Manhattan, a once in a lifetime experience!

The crowd was young, diverse and even Princess Máxima and Prince Willem-Alexander were grooving with Armin at the dance event. The surprise visit by Princess Máxima and Prince Willem-Alexander (who had had tea with the Obamas on the Friday before) was the icing on the cake.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg was also impressed. He is confident this campaign will help that more Americans will visit the Netherlands in the near future.

It was the time to be extra proud of being a Dutchie in NY!

Visitors - It runs in the family - Part 3

The latest of family that came to visit NYC brought some beautiful weather and great fun to the City. My brother Floris with his Danielle were in town for catching up, shopping, culture, good food and sports entertainment. I would say, the usual ingredients!
It all started on a Saturday morning with a nice walk in the park and some good brunch in Café Ronda, one of my favorite places to start the day in the weekend.

That day we wondered over fifth avenue and the first shops were checked out. So, thanks to Floris and Danielle we did one of the biggest tourist attractions: take the FREE Staten Island ferry. To be honest, I had never taken the ferry before and it was pretty cool to see the south tip of Manhattan from the water, the Statue of Liberty and turn around at the dock to grab the next ferry back to Manhattan! Another place Danielle wanted to go to, and I had never been, was The New Museum in Soho. It's design is modern, it looks like some stacked pile of big boxes, and it gives you a whole new museum experience, at least it gave me one.
So, one of the great advantages of having visitors is the fact that you will do things you would normally not!

That week the US Open tennis championships were in town, the world's top tennis players were competing for one of the few Grand Slam titles that are available during the year. We had tickets for an evening session at Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York. A 30 minute subway ride from Manhattan, these grounds hosted a fantastic evening with spectacular tennis by Raphael Nadal and Serena Williams. Both won their matches, but neither of them did win the tournament..!

Floris and Daan, it was very special having you guys! I had a great time, enjoying the good conversations, fun and having your company around for the days you were here!