Thursday, December 15, 2011

Thanksgiving at the Mission Home, Makkum, and Sneek

It seemed almost like over-kill to have yet another Thanksgiving dinner (the third for us this week), but it is impossible to turn down an invitation to go to the mission home and meet with the other senior couples for a lovely meal and good company.

Sisters Anderson and Van Komen with the Bushes.

I love Sister Van Komen.  What a spiritual, talented, capable woman.


President Brubaker seems to know his way around a kitchen.  It looks like he's in charge of dishing up the potatoes.

Caught in the act of mashing the potatoes, the Brubakers show their pleasure in having the senior couples at the mission home.  They are wonderfuls hosts.

Elder Van Komen is on his way to the microwave with the stuffing.  Mmmmmm....

Some of the men knew they were better off to stay out of the kitchen. 

Sister Anderson makes herself useful by filling the water glasses.

Everything tastes wonderful!  These couples know how to cook, and enjoy the proceeds.

No one should go home hungry today.

Elder and Sister Everton.  Is she sleepy or just meditating?

Elder and Sister Van Komen.  We'll miss these wonderful friends we've made while serving here in the Netherlands.

The following Saturday we took a road trip to Makkum, a small dorp (village) in the northern part of Holland.  This is the home of a second famous porcelein produced in this country. 

Along the way we saw farmhouses with very steep, pitched roofs.

The Makkum factory is called Tichelaar.

The main difference between Makkum porcelein and Delft Porcelein is in the color.  Delft is always blues and white, while Makkum is very colorful - using almost every color in the spectrum.

I actually like this kind better because of the variety of colors.

This is a charming farmboy milking his cow.

This beautiful windmill was painted onto tiles.  So pretty....

This vase is beautiful, and the price reflects its value - it's on sale for 864 euros.  A steal!

Even more costly was this pretty platter.  It was over 1200 euros.  We didn't buy any today, for obvious reasons but it was a pleasure to see.

Outside the factory we caught this man trying his hand at catching some fish.

He wasn't the only one enjoying the pastime.

We traveled on to Sneek (pronounced Snake) where we enjoyed the atmosphere of this old city.

This old water port is famous in Friesland.

It is one of the gates through which the ice skaters who are in the eleven city skating race pass through.

The race was scheduled to happen last year because of the extremely cold winter.  This year, as you can see, the water isn't frozen at all and it is December already.

There is nothing more unpredictable than the weather in Holland.  We've had a very mild fall and winter.

A final picture as we leave the city of Sneek - the ever present water tower.  They are always a work of art.  I will miss this beautiful country.

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