Pippin

Early July we picked up Pippin, our new child, from the breeder. He was the last one to leave the nest, 9 weeks old. It was a traumatic experience and he was very restless and noisy in the car, finally dropping off to sleep when we turned into our street. Then our new life started...

Pippin was named after one of the hobbits in Lord of the Rings, who was somewhat naughty, always hungry and had a tendency to test the boundaries. All of this has proven to be true! Anyway it feels like having a baby again, with interrupted nights, early mornings and many hours of attention. To keep our sanity we set up a puppy fence in the living room, with his own space to play and sleep.

Pippin has quite some self confidence, and we have been exposing him to as many areas and activities as possible. In principle he has two short walks in the streets around the house, some playtime in the garden and one excursion to a park, the beach, puppy training or Mary's parents. He is allowed walks of 10-15 minutes only, and still sleeps 16 hours a day.
From the first day we have been training Pippin to be obedient, to come back when we call him, to sit, and even to swim. He has bursts of high energy and takes long breaks in between, mainly asleep!

Pippin, just before he left his mother

Drinking water in the garden

We often need to carry Pippin to make some distance

Sundowner in the garden

Paula and Jasper watching Pippin run back to Mary

Pippin found a friend

Almost everything can be destroyed: we allowed a garden glove this time

Piet and son

France: after the lockdown

On the 15th of June the French borders opened for foreigners, and on the 18th we drove to our house. After working from home for 3 months, and limited activities in general, a change of scenery was very welcome. Luckily our new village neighbours inherited two Corona horses, and before we came they put them in our garden to eat the grass. This made getting the garden under control a lot easier, and we could settle quickly into our routine of cycling, hiking and working around the house.

The weather was great, and after 10 days our visitors started arriving. First our friend Jan, who is living permanently in the French Pyrenees, dropped in. Then Piet's sister and husband, and Paula and  Jasper arrived as well. Piet and Jan cycled up Alpe d'Huez, something that was long overdue, and the evenings were spend catching up, and comparing notes on life during Corona in Belgium, France and The Netherlands. Also the wine cellar was attacked with some enthusiasm.
After two weeks we had to return to The Hague to pick up our new baby, whist Paula and Jasper stayed behind to do some mountaineering. Due to the rabies vaccination that is required we will stay in The Hague for 6 weeks, before returning to France. Luckily Paula, Dorien and friends have made sure the house is occupied the whole summer!

Relaxing at our house, with the neighbours cat Thomas

Walking back from Refuge du Chatelleret

A marmot near Chatelleret

Jan is cycling up Alpe d'Huez

Jan and Piet did Col d'Ornon as well

 Marc and Mary near Refuge de Carrelet

 Paula is descending from Aiguille Dibona

A few more pictures

There has been little change in our lives, despite the lifting of some of the Corona measures. We have been working at home, with limited social activity. Luckily we had the freedom to walk and cycle without restrictions, and we made good use of it.

In addition we are in anticipation of our new family member, a Viszla pup. Mary has been receiving daily updates from the breeder: video's, pictures and newsletters. Early July we will be able to pick him/her up; in the meantime we are getting the house ready...

The pups receiving their first solid food

Kitesurfers in Monster

Mary in Katwijk

Renaat and Peter waiting at the Maassluis ferry

Piet and Renaat pausing in Hellevoetsluis

Brothers and sisters

Family expansion

These are strange Corona times, all of us feeling grounded with limited social activity. Piet and Lars are working from home; Paula, Dorien and Jasper are trying to follow their university classes virtually as best as possible. As Proteus and Slopend are closed there is no sport, so both Paula and Dorien ended up with a racing bike, and are regularly making rides around Delft. We are taking care of Mary's parents, who have self-quarantined, doing the shopping and checking in twice a week. Holiday plans, business trips and all other non-essential outings have been put on hold.
The main advantage of the Dutch government measures is that we are allowed to go out for a (mental sanity) walk or bike ride, and we are making full use of that freedom. Piet is clocking record kilometres in absence of other activities, and after several solo rides he teamed up with his cycling buddy Peter, who lives 100 m away. Other days Piet and Mary go out together on the bike for shorter rides. In the end complying with the 1.5 m society is not that difficult. 

And there is some exiting news as well. Firstly, after careful research, Dorien and Lars found two kittens, and collected them two weeks ago. Their flat has been upgraded to a cats' paradise, and they settled in quickly. The cats are from the ragdoll race and called Dobby and Arthur, and suitable for an indoor life.

After Beau died Mary continued helping her friends at the stable, and was riding or walking two or three times a week. But at some point she was looking for a new challenge, and an old plan, to raise a dog once Beau wasn't there anymore, was kicked off. First the question was pup vs. adult dog, and what type of race. After a lot of research we ended up with the Vizsla race, a shorthaired retriever, and a wish to raise and train a puppy. Mary contacted several people, and got ourselves on future breeding lists, with the aim to start sometime after the summer.

Then out of the blue came a call from one of the owners that her dog was pregnant with more pups than expected, and if we were willing to accept one early July. As our holiday plans are uncertain and we have flexibility we quickly accepted, and were invited for a get to know you, with the owners and their dogs. They explained many ins and outs about the race, and demonstrated their search and retrieve skills. Vizsla's are smart dogs, that need a lot of physical and mental exercise, and training from an early age is essential to keep them healthy and sane. There are many similarities with horses.... 

A few days later 8 pups were born, who will stay with their mother for 9-10 weeks. During this period we will receive a lot of information, and will be invited to visit the pups. The final decision on which pup goes where is made by the owner, with help from a puppy character expert, and no input from us. A whole new world, but it feels like getting a new baby. More to follow soon!

Dorien is playing with her cats

Peter and Piet on top of het Kopje van Bloemendaal

Mother Kedves with her 8 pups

 The pups are blind after birth

Champlis (II)

A rumour reached Piet's wine and dine society 'Het Derde Glas' that one of their favourite restaurants, Au Fils du Zinc in Chablis, was closing their doors. This caused a slight panic, but swift action was taken and a farewell tour was quickly cobbled together. In the end Piet, Paul and Frits drove down to France for a long weekend.

We left on Friday morning and after driving through the first snow in southern Belgium ended up at Faux de Verzy, a small forest near Reims, were many dwarf beech, chestnut and oak trees are growing, in between normal trees. This is a rare phenomenon, with twisted trees, umbrella branches and a weird magical feel. The trip continued to Cramant, in the Cote des Blancs area, for a stop at Bonnaire, one of the famous Champagne houses, that was also visited in 2019. Tasting and purchase was handled efficiently, to arrive timely at the next stop: Lac du Der.
Lac du Der is a large artificial lake that was constructed in the 70-ies to prevent floods in Paris, by capturing water from the Marne river. It is also a large bird sanctuary where thousands of cranes rest during their autumn and spring trek. This is one of the main attractions in the area. However, when we arrived it was suspiciously quiet, and there was not a single bird in sight. The grey weather, chilly wind, empty hotel (just the 3 of us) and closed restaurant contributed to a depressing atmosphere.
Luckily the nearby casino was open, and they served champagne and a proper meal. The next morning the lake was still empty, but on the drive north a few cranes were spotted foraging in a field. This was celebrated at Lonclas, one of the main producers in the tiny Champagne village of Bassuet. Our hostess managed to serve many customers, and convince us to leave with several boxes. On the way to Chablis lunch was enjoyed at Marius in Les Riceys (recommended). We had torrential rain during the drive, but after we stocked up at Brocard, 'valuer sur' for Chablis white wine, buienradar showed that the worst had passed, and we enjoyed a hike around the Grand Cru hill in the late afternoon sunshine.
The day was wrapped up in Au Fils du Zinc. The manager indeed confirmed that the restaurant would close within a few weeks. The good news is that they bought a new place in Chablis, which they will renovate and open towards the end of 2020. We enjoyed a great dinner and excellent wines, and will definitely be back to test the new place.
After another vineyard hike in the morning sunshine we drove back, and Piet got dropped in The Hague with his boxes. Next appointment: re-tasting with the whole group!

Faux de Verzy: a dwarf beech tree

Tasting at Bonnaire

No birds at Lac du Der!


A church on the banks of Lac du Der, which was moved when the lake was created; three villages were flooded


Discussion about Champagne at Lonclas, in Bassuet

Not our first visit at Brocard: quality Chablis and a lot of choice

View across the Grand Cru vineyards of Chablis

Art on a roundabout, Chablis

 Work in the vineyard: pruning the vines

Paula and Dorien

A few pictures from Paula and Dorien:

Paula completed her internship with Boskalis in Singapore just before Christmas, followed by a tour through Malaysia during the holidays with her student group. They visited Sabah (northern part of Borneo), and the area around Kuala Lumpur, making the most of their time in southeast Asia. The first weekend in January they flew back to The Netherlands, to complete their report. As soon as it was handed in Paula and Jasper flew to Spain for a week of rock climbing near Malaga. Great weather and great fun!

Dorien continued her excellent performances in the short survival run races, and after several third places she managed to finish second in Zwolle. She is getting closer and closer to the top runners. She also had her BSc ceremony, and signed the official documents, completing the first part fo her studies. She started her MSc courses in November, and is now having classes together with Paula....

Paula in the Cameron Highlands, near Kuala Lumpur

Rock climbing near Malaga

Dorien crossing an obstacle in Zwolle

 Second place in Zwolle

Dorien presenting her BSc thesis project

 Signing the BSc diploma

A trip through Namibia

Piet has been working on projects in Namibia since 2013, and visited the capital Windhoek 10 times for meetings with the Ministry and other Namibian stakeholders. During his last visit in June he finally hatched the plan to bring Mary along, and visit the country properly. A reason was easily found as our 25th wedding anniversary was in July.
Piet did some extensive planning and arranged a counterclockwise trip from Windhoek, to the north, and back via the coast, with as main highlights Etosha National Park and Sossusvlei. In November Piet went to Windhoek for several meetings, and Mary arrived a week later on Saturday morning.
We rented a large 4WD, and made a first test ride to Daan Viljoen Game Reserve, just outside town. It was very dry and hot, and we saw a few animals only. After a braai with Piet's colleague Dennis we left the next morning to Waterberg Plateau National Park, an isolated mountain range in central Namibia. This set the stage for the whole trip, where we combined a few hours' drive, mainly on graded roads, with activities early in the morning or late afternoon. At Waterberg we joined a rhino drive, and did two short walks. We continued north to Etosha, where we spend two nights in a lodge just outside, and a third night inside the Park. Etosha is half the size of The Netherlands; most animals come to the numerous waterholes in the Park, where you can see and photograph them. The first day we joined a guide to get a feel for the place, and the second day we drove around ourselves. We saw many, many animals, with as highlights an afternoon bath of a large group of elephants, and a nighttime visit of three rhino's to a waterhole close to our accommodation.

The next day we did a long drive west towards Brandberg, to the White Lady Lodge. This is a pleasant oasis in the middle of nowhere, and here it was possible for Mary to go horse riding. We continued to the coast, and via the Cape Cross Seal Reserve, Hentiesbaai and Swakopmund ended up in Walvis Bay. At Cape Cross there are some 100,000 seals, and you can image the noise and smell! It was a tough visit as it was pupping season, and with a high natural mortality rate there were many dead pups lying around, mostly abandoned by their mothers. In Walvis Bay the abundance of flamingos, promised by Piet based on a previous visit, proved to be false; there was too much wind, and we only saw a few. The trip continued further south, with a stop in Solitaire, which is  a true outback locality, with a petrol station and many abandoned classic cars. After a night in Sesriem we visited Sossusvlei, with some of the highest sand dunes in the world. We climbed Dune 45 and Big Daddy, and enjoyed the famous scenery of Deadvlei, with dead, black trees sticking out of a white pan, in between red dunes. The day ended in Buellsport Guest Farm, with a horse riding tour on the farm for Mary.
The next morning we did a long hike in the Naukluft mountains, and after a relaxing afternoon Mary joined another horseback ride, whilst Piet did a drive around the farm, which is more than 100 km2. After a second morning hike we drove back to Windhoek, with a visit to Joe's Beerhouse, a real classic. We handed in the car the next morning, and after dropping by the small Shell office for a few hours, returned to the airport. In summary: a fantastic trip, and not our last holiday in Namibia!

Mary showing off our car in Daan Viljoen Park

Curious giraffes in Waterberg

Rhino's are heavily protected in Namibia against poachers

Hiking in Waterberg

Etosha National Park: giraffes at a waterhole

Etosha: a lioness is checking out her lunch

Etosha: rhino's at night

At Okaukuejo waterhole: a large group of elephants taking a bath

There were many young elephants in Etosha

Etosha: zebras quenching their thirst


Mary getting ready for a ride at Brandberg White Lady Lodge


A recommended stay!


Cape Cross Seal Reserve

In Solitaire 

 Between Walvis Bay and Solitaire

Bizarre tourism at Sesriem Desert Camp 

Deadvlei

Mary on top of Dune 45

Mary leaving for a ride at Buellsport Farm

 Piet at Buellsport Guest Farm

Joe's Beerhouse