Horse Racing and Kite Surfing



So now that summer is finally here in Holland, we have taken advantage of every ray of sun we’ve been deprived. Since getting back from Mauritius, Kees has been obsessed with kite surfing, as his Mauritian instructor had forewarned. Along with kite surfing, he’s trying every other water sport he can get his hands on. Every chance he can get, he’s taking out his new boat, which is parked on the outskirts of Amsterdam central, a perfect location. Last week we went out 3 times, and managed to get Kees up on his wake board (which is really his kite surfing board!) and that made him super happy.

 We’ve also been digging into the sheds and clearing stuff out, in preparation for the move we’ll be taking at the end of the year. We found an old kite that he’d used for buggy kiting on the beach years and years ago.

We unpacked it in the field to test it out. Man, I’ve actually never flown a kite before, especially not such a big one! They sure are powerful!

After a few test flights, being cautious but without a safety cord to release the kite if the winds got too strong, Kees decided he’d had enough and was scared of flying away to Germany.

Holland always has such a big blue sky, it’s stunning. After over 4 years in the country, I really can’t get sick of the open stretches of green fields, separated by canals and windmills in the background.

When we got home we realized we had free tickets to the horse races in town. This was also a first time for me and I was  so happy we went. All the horses were being brushed, fed, saddled and readied for the exciting competitions. The connection between man and horse was touching. This was a trotting race with the small buggy fastened to the back. I couldn’t help but think about how close the riders face is to the horse’s butt….

We made bets and cheered our horses on. #3 gave us a good run for our money but fell back on the last round. After 3 rounds we decided to bet on all the horses, we wanted to win something!!! In the end we walked away with 15euros…let’s just not say how much it cost to get that 15E.

It was a wonderful night and I’d love to go again. Kees and I both mentioned how we’d love to have a horse at least ONCE in our lives… so who knows. The future is always full of surprises.

Savannah Grace