Thursday, October 29, 2009

Sinterklaas and the Black Petes


I'm going to Amsterdam for my 30th birthday.

It's not that I buy into the hype about turning 30. Is hype the right word? Maybe not. More accurately, I'm not particularly intimidated by the idea of being 30. It's kind of a shame that I won't have a 2 in front of my age anymore, but more due to nostalgia than anything else. Plenty of my friends are over 30, and I haven't noticed anything scary happening to them. Though I have noticed that lately I derive great satisfaction from filling out any form that asks for my age. Twenty-nine! Still 29, damn it! But, in my head, I've been 30 for awhile. It's a side effect of planning everything months and months in advance.

Which brings us back to Holland. It's going to be a quick trip: my birthday is Tuesday 11/17, and I'll be back at work on Thursday. The point isn't really to see the sights. The point is to do something crazy for my birthday, because why the hell not? When a certain band announced a show in Amsterdam the day before my birthday, I was tempted. But when they announced a show an hour or so away in Eindhoven on the day itself, that decided it. A few days' vacation, and a memorable farewell to my twenties? Sign me up.

The plan is to meet up with some friends on that Saturday. In, um, Milan. Then on Sunday, P and I will fly to Amsterdam. Two awesome things are happening on Sunday about which I had no idea when this trip was booked. First of all, Andrew Bird is playing at Melkweg that night. Secondly, Sunday morning is when Sinterklaas arrives in Amsterdam on a boat from Spain, with his six to eight black men.

Hell. Yes.

Even if we don't make it to the waterfront in time for the actual arrival, I figure we'll be in time for residual merriment. And souvenirs. Oh please, let there be souvenirs.

4 comments:

Asteff said...

Daaaaaaamn.

Maudie said...

Oh man, Milan, too??? Yes, this trip sounds totally fab. Your 30th is blowing my 40th out of the water!

ms. yvon said...

fantastic!! andrew bird AND sinterklass?! just don't bring any greek bells into the picture. ;)

also: hell. yes. way to bring in your 30's, b!

auntie-m. said...

you don't know me...but we're the same kinda crazy!! i may have happened upon your post from poppymom's blog...who knows. i'm surfing, k?!

i want you to know i spent a wild night in amsterdam about 20 years ago....hmmmm that would make you ten and me OLD.

i recently found out a favorite musician from the 70's is lining up about 14 shows in 5 or 6 european countries. his name is chris rea...he's had pancreatic cancer and a farewell concert in 2005. he's back at it! i'm going to TWO shows in brighton and london england. yeeeehaw! i'm so excited.

moral of the story is...enjoy your trip with abandon...fuggedabout your age. i'm closer to 60 than i am to thirty and i'm still crazy after all these years having the time of my life for ALL my life (so far).

i wish you happy birthday and wonderful, fantastical adventures!!

-m.