Ik sjoch in doar wiid iepen stean...

It's much more like home now. With a place finally to store all my things, I'm beginning to feel a lot more grounded. 2 weeks in Canada, 9 days in England and 6 days in Holland followed by close to 2 weeks without my own place. Too long...a hobo's life. There were a few seconds during those weeks that I felt like just packing up flying back to Canada just so I could have a bed and a hot shower and feel like I was home. Well, I was already packed, everything I had was in my car, and I figured that it would be a matter of days....and it was worth the wait! The place I have now is overlooking a river on the 14th floor and there is everything around that I need. There are restaurants by the dozen, drycleaners by the dozen, and even a hoagie sandwich shop! They're all just down the elevator and I don't even need to leave the building. Ofcourse there's not much chance of that happening...

I finally got around to uploading some pictures of the trip.


Here's a picture of Paul, Kevin Nolan and I in a pub on Matthew Street in Liverpool. Kevin Nolan is the captain of Bolton Wanderers. Here's a profile on him.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/profile?id=7902&cc=4716






Below is a picture of Paul's cousin Yvonne and her daughter Laura. They live in Wales and they took us for a tour of Chester one day. Unfortunately I misplaced their email addresses for the time being. I hope I can find them or they send me theirs again.

This is a picture of Paul's Uncle and Aunt, their son Gary and his girlfriend. I thought she looked like Cameron Diaz. They were really cool to hang out with. We had a nice dinner there with some wine, champagne, cheese and crackers...the works!

Below is a picture of my Mom's older brother Kees and my aunt Rimmy. They live in a typical modern house in Friesland. It's always great to talk with him because he knows about all the football in Holland.

This is my Aunt Nelly and Uncle Geert. Their son, Titus plays in the band ilanois. She's my Mom's sister. Paul and I stayed with their son Jan Theun in Amsterdam.


When we were in Kollumerzwaag where my sister lives, we went to this small pub, the only one in town. We met this guy here, JD. Really cool guy and I hope he gets to see the pic on here, I guess he's been e-mailing Paul and asking for it!



The day I went to see my uncles and aunts, Crystal and I stopped by my Pake and Bepe's gravesite. I hadn't been there since she passed away last year so I wanted to go there and pay my respects. They were great grandparents! There were many times when we couldn't communicate in English or Friesan but we understood each other. When we went there, it was cold and very windy. I think it was my Bepe trying to say something to me through the wind....


When I was at my cousin Friso's I met their kids. I forget the little girls name but the older boy is Fokke and he's really into football. Ofcourse!! We played for a little while in the livingroom with Fokke's friend who played goalie. We had lunch there and then Friso and I went for a walk around the small town and had a good chat.



When Paul and I went back to Liverpool for the last day, we were treated to a final meal from his uncle Dominic and Auntie Anne. They were great hosts while we stayed there. One thing about the meals in England is that they're roasting hot! They put the plates in the oven and then put the food on the hot plates before they serve it to you. So you're literally sweating while you eat! There's also a pic of David and Carmela and his brother Johnny and his mom.