5-26-07 Maastricht

cont.
I know that some of the things we are seeing are just the result of a large number of people living together. A lot of the thing that I'm not use to are happening in the US; just not in Conway, AR or Crivitz, WI (the small town where I lived up North). On the other hand, I wonder how much we are missing because we are staying in hotels. I certainly wouldn't want to try and find host families for all of us, but hotels are generally more conforming to their guests. This one is even a Best Western.

Even tough we were hijacked yesterday. I had a great time. I know that if Mike and I had met Peter by ourselves, we never would have gone along for the tour he brought us on. I'm still not sure which of his stories to believe, and which ones were merely to lead up to his punchlines, but I had a great time anyway. I'm not certain what we would have seen the way the day was originally planned, but I was glad we did it his way.

Yesterday, I realized that everyone I've talked to is very good with European history. In America we have history buffs, and those individuals usually focus on a particular war or period of time. here it has been everybody, and most Europeans history. I thought that it was just the girl studying Dutch at first, but then it was also the concierge, the student worker at Maastricht, Peter, the women we talked to on the bus. They all made simple history references in conversation, seemingly without wondering if we knew what they were talking about. I felt a bit bad. I was always bad at history. I love the stories, but I can never keep the names and dates right.

My family is Irish Catholic, so cathedrals have always been a major part of my travels. The Dom was quite possibly the most beautiful one I have ever seen. I know that it has my favorite stained glass window. In the little prayer room off to one side the window was outlined and accented in the most beautiful teal glass that I have ever seen. I'm not exactly surprised that I liked it so much. I've always heard that European cathedrals would put American ones to shame, but I suppose I expected them to be too much for my taste. I expected to be impressed and awed, but I didn't expect to like it this much. There were sections that I found overdone. I wasn't as impressed by the pulpit as I was the tiling on the ceiling.

Just as much as I wasn't exactly surprised by The Dom, I wasn't exactly disappointed by the American Cemetery. The Cemetery was immaculate, beautiful, solemn, and every thing I would have expected from an American military memorial. I guess I just had different expectations for this one. I was looking forward to seeing how the Dutch created a memorial to the American troops. The Cemetery however is how the Americans create memorials. The dedication and gratitude that they show is moving, and I don't want to seem untouched, but I'd be lying if I denied that my expectations were not met. I am completely aware that it has everything to do with my expectations and is in no way the fault of the Cemetery. It was perfect.

Last night my feet and my husband were exhausted, so we stayed in to relax and go to bed early. While I journaled, I watched a couple Dutch cartoons and an episode of Will and Grace. It was interesting to see how they regularly switch between Dutch and English all the time. I laughed out loud when I saw a commercial with George Clooney. I know that Europeans watch American movies so I wasn't surprised to see him as a celebrity on the commercials. What struck me is that doing commercials in America is considered a sign of a failing career. I wonder if it is the same in Europe of if it makes them more excited about the star.

The caves were incredible! There were not at all what I was expecting and I am so glad we went. I doubt that Mike and I would have made the time if we were traveling alone because I thought that the tours would have been similar to cave tours in Arkansas. Expecting stalactites and stalagmites, we probably would have skipped it to do something else like a castle or cathedral tour. I'm glad it wasn't up to us. Jacques was a great guide and he and Christine were a very sweet couple.