(just LOOK at this city!)
this is the time of year when all of the TV shows are having their season finales and we have to consider how we are going to spend our evenings until they start up again in the fall. like most of the world, one of my favorites is “ted lasso” about the american football coach from kansas who somehow lands a job in london coaching “futbal” for AFC richmond. while there have been many heartwarming episodes over the past three seasons, my most favorite aired in december and detailed when the team had a “friendly” with the dutch ajax team. * SPOILER ALERT if you are behind in your TL viewing!
we spent nearly six years living in amsterdam (both of my children were born there) so that city and the dutch people hold a very dear place in my heart. we actually streamed that episode (called “sunflowers” after van gogh’s painting) while flying to europe to visit amsterdam over christmas and i was just beside myself. “ted lasso” did a fantastic job of sharing some of the most delightful aspects of dutch culture, top among them the hard to define “coziness” or “gezellig” concept that encompasses environment, relationshiops, feelings, cuisine and experiences. after the team lost their match to the dutchies, rebecca, the team’s owner, was walking through central amsterdam (one canal over from our old apartment) and distractedly wandered into the bike lane, which is essentially like an american highway. with all of the bells ringing and irritated bikers zipping by her, she loses her balance and falls into the canal. (that was always a HUGE fear of mine, more for theo, who was a bit of a runner, than for me, even though i can be quite clumsy… i used to have conversations with myself about what would be the most prudent course of action if theo did fall in - should i just dive right after him with my big parka on or take a few seconds to remove it so i would be more agile in the water? fortunately, we were never confronted with this problem but once his little boot DID fling off as he was being strapped onto the back of his father’s bike and plunk into the water. first husband had to borrow a long pole from the sex shop on the corner so he could fish it out. the suede booty was never quite the same - canal water is disgusting!) fortunately for rebecca, a kind dutchman who lives on a houseboat sees her fall and helps her onto his boat. he washes her clothes, offers her a shower, cooks her dinner, gives her a foot rub and the whole evening is the perfect embodiment of “gezellig.”
(rebecca having dinner with the dutchman on his houseboat)
(our old apartment on the herengracht… we were on the second floor with the five windows)
(in front of our building when theo was a baby)
(the kids on our old stoop)
we experienced our own “gezellig” as soon as we arrived in the netherlands because christmas is the coziest time of year in amsterdam. while the canal bridges are strung with lights all year round, in december the whole city is hyper lit up. each neighborhood has a particular design that arcs over the streets and the shops and individual houses layer on even more lights. it feels like a fairytale. since it was early in the morning when we arrived, we headed straight to a classic brown bar for koffie verkeerd “coffee weird” or coffee with milk. most dutchies drink their coffee black or with sugar… i think koffie verkeerd is more of an expat beverage. (ironically, they DO drink A LOT of milk. at van dobben, a beloved sandwich shop, most grown men wash down their bitter ballen sandwiches with a tall glass of “karne” or butter milk.)
(koffie verkeerd at cafe thijssen)
(lucy trying the karne melk at van dobben… not a total hit)
(the holiday lights of amsterdam)
(i love the stars!)
(dam square!)
(like a storybook!)
(same view in the daytime on a previous trip)
we hit all of our favorites: pompadour, our chocolate shop, of course, for toasties (sort of like a grilled cheese), almond cakes, hot chocolate and actual chocolates, the aforementioned van dobben for sandwiches ranging from paling (eel) to meatball to fried meat and potato (bitter ballen), de reiger, another brown bar with unbelievable dry ribs and loetje for their famous steaks.
(no trip to amsterdam is complete without a stop at pompadour)
(the ribs at de reiger are just AMAZING!)
we went to the rijks museum where we visited our favorites: dollhouses (me), ships (theo), milkmaid (lu) and night watchmen (first.) we read the crazy stories behind some of the paintings - one depicted two sisters getting their father drunk so they could seduce him - for some reason there were no other men around to procreate with and another one with a father who was being starved in prison so his adult daughter came to visit and sneakily breastfeed him, trying to keep him alive. those were interesting conversations.
(the wealthy merchants would have exact repiicas made of their canal houses… they are just fascinating!)
(theo loves these antique ships)
(lu loved this lady)
(you could spend a lifetime analyzing this dutch classic)
we took lots of boat rides… one had to be aborted because my time telling glitch came into play. my girlfriend texted me that she’d made a reservation for us at de reiger (rib place) at 17:30 - i took this to mean 7:30 pm, rather than the actual 5:30 pm. we hopped on a canal ride a little after 5 pm thinking we had loads of time. ultimately, first had to ask the captain if he would let us off so we could make our dinner appointment. there is a famous phrase in dutch, “niet mogelijk” which means “NOT possible.” i was sure we would get that response because historically the dutch can be pretty regimented. instead, our captain generously pulled over right near our restaurant and let us deboard… he had to make a 30 point turn in the canal to get back on his route. DANKE captain!
TL also touched on other classic dutchiness: bike riding and molen (wind mills) - jamie finds out that roy has never learned to ride so he buys two (stolen) bikes from a “vendor” and sweetly teaches him. they then spend the evening cycling out into the countryside in search of real dutch windmills. we also spent an enormous amount of time on bikes (we did not have a car while we lived there.) theo was cruising around the canals beeping at everyone with his little bell by three (this DID terrify me) but when we went to see the famous windmills of zaanse schans we hired a car.
(jamie teaching roy to ride a bike!)
(theo riding his bike in vondel park… this always felt a lot safer than along the canals)
(theo with the molens of zaanse schans)
the practical, super logical waitresses in the hotel where ted’s team was staying brought back the reassuring, no-nonsense dutch sensibility prevalent among nederlanders. and ted going to the cheesy american restaurant, “yankee doodle burger barn” reminded me of when we would get homesick and head to the hard rock cafe, which was also the only place you could meet santa in amsterdam.
(the team negotiating their evening plans in the hotel lobby… the waitress served as the referee)
(the hard rock cafe for american vibes)
(when theo met santa at the hard rock)
of course, the opening scene with the match and all of the orangemen on the pitch pulled at my heartstrings. while we were living there the dutch national team made it to the finals of the WORLD CUP only to place second to spain. despite that, the energy and support and love for that team was prolific and contagious and we were thrilled when the “parade” went down the canal outside our window so we could cheer the returning futballers for their amazing efforts.
(watching the canal parade outside our window)
(the city went bananas for the returning dutch team)
so i found that TL episode just wonderful and totally accurate in the way it presented our beloved city of amsterdam. DANKE “ted lasso.”
