what is different here and there

There is more to our Illinois trip and I will publish that later. In the meantime, I will talk about all the little differences I noticed.


I'll start with cultureshock. There wasn't much either way, but when I got to the US, it was really hard for me to think of floors in the American sense. Having the ground floor considered as zero makes sense to me. Back here in Holland, the only thing I noticed is this. Dan and I have a sort of agreement that whoever drives gets to choose what is broadcast on the car stereo. I was driving the other day and remembered this and for a split second I thought, "Why aren't I listening to NPR?"


I noticed a lot of seeming new-to-me things back in the US.


When we got to the Philadelphia airport, I couldn't believe how cold the AC was. There is some airconditioning here, especially in public buildings. But it never gets *that* cold.


Also, while waiting at the airport on the curb, all the cars seemed to be glisteningly clean. I also noticed that the US seems to have a lot more Japanese cars than we see here, particularly Toyota and Infiniti. One might expect to return to the US from Europe and notice how big the cars seem. I didn't feel that way, but in Holland, there is a good variety of car sizes. This is as opposed to France, where every car is no bigger than a compact.


On the subject of autos, I couldn't believe how the gas stations have evolved! Maybe Arizona just hasn't caught up, but in Illinois, there was live TV and radio broadcast at the pump. Given the fuel issues the US has been facing, I noticed little stickers on the pumps advising of the limits of gas that could be purchased. Finally, I saw an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper in a minivan window that said "Hyper Miler." My sister explained this phenomenon to me - basically, people alter their method of driving to create greater fuel efficiency standards for their cars.


At the Village Fresh Market that opened up in Carpentersville, I noticed that the shopping carts finally have what European carts have had for years. A coin slot! The carts are chained together and to release one, you must put in a coin. To get your coin out, you must return the cart. Here, it costs 50 eurocents to get the cart out of the corral. I think it's generally 1 euro in France. There, it was a quarter. There were no stray carts anywhere to be found in the parking lot, so even a quarter is enough to incentivize people to put the cart back. Although this method was only limited to this grocery store, hopefully it will catch on.


To buy certain cold remedies, I had to pick up a card and present it to the pharmacist. This is in accordance with state regulations regarding the sale of products that contain pseudoephedrine. I also noticed many kids had toy guns, which I have seen only once in use here (as a gift from a pancake house) and excluding water guns.


Finally, while I was in the US, Randy Pausch passed away. I had never heard of him until then, but his story was really amazing. Pausch was diagnosed with incurable, terminal pancreatic cancer. When they leave academia, professors often give a "last lecture" and invite friends and family to attend. His inspirational last lecture became a YouTube sensation and he went on to write a book based on the lecture. He said that his hope with the book was "[an attempt] to put myself in a bottle that will one day wash up on the beach for my children." He became one of ABC's three person's of the year and one of Time's 100 most influential people in the world.

Illinois, week 2

So after Dan left, the girls and I were left to our devices.

Monday 7/21 - pre-nap stop at Dolphin Cove. Dolphin Cove is part of the Dundee Township Park District and has all the features for kids in the summers. There are two waterslides, a wide kids's slide where multiple kids can go down, a smaller kid slide, a gradual approach into the water. In addition, there is a huge shaded sand area with running water perfect for sandcastle building and tons of sand shovels, pails and tools. There are large umbrellas for shade at the pool, a large grassy knoll to sit on, and covered areas for eating (you can bring your own food if you want). The girls had a blast and we ended up going there a few more times, including the day we left Illinois to come back here.

fantastic!

That night, we went to dinner at Lou Malnati's Pizza in Lakewood. Lou Malnati's is a Chicago area pizza restaurant chain. Marla had mentioned it to me at our lunch on Saturday and I couldn't get it out of my head. Oddly, I ordered the Chicago-style crust pizza, rather than their original crust pizza. I think I was in a pizza warp since I customarily order the Chicago-style crust at Gino's East, another Chicago-area pizza restaurant. It didn't matter, however, because the pizza was excellent!

a beautiful sunset at Lou Malnati's

Tuesday 7/22 - my mom and I went out to dinner a Francesca Campagna, a Chicago area chain of Italian restaurants. Because the chain is so small, they're able to maintain high standards. I always order vodka martinis at Francesca's because the bartender has excellent bleu-cheese stuffed olives that are served with them. He was on his usual par this evening. My mom enjoyed salmon and I had a lobster-based pasta dish. My mom and I had a great dinner, a great prelude to her birthday, which was the following day.

a perfect martini with bleu cheese olives

Wednesday 7/23 - It was my mom's birthday & she was in good form. We started, of course, at the Lavender Cafe and a lot of her friends stopped by. We spent the day at Dolphin Cove. My cousin Nick and his wife Pookie had us all over for dinner at their lovely home in nearby Algonquin. My Aunt Janet was there along with Pookie's parents who we always enjoy seeing. In addition, Nick & Pookie have two adorable kids named Isabella and Ercole who are about the same ages as Liliane and Amelie. Since Melinda and her boys also came, it was a veritable kidfest. Did I mention that our hosts prepared incredible shrimp on the barbie, as well as sumptious pork chops? Pookie even had mini monster cookies, which I love since they are a true Iowan (where I went to college) specialty.

Thursday 7/24 - My mom's birthday celebration continued the next evening at La Tasca Tapas Restaurant in Arlington Heights. My mom has been celebrating her birthday here for at least the last five years. It's a great restaurant with all sorts of amazing tapas and excellent service. This year was no exception. It was great to catch up with my aunts and uncles at such a fun place.

Friday 7/25 - In the morning, we went with Sarah and her boys to the Dundee Township Park District's Randall Oaks Farm. When I was little, we would go there in the winter to go sledding and drink great hot chocolate (probably out of a package, but it was sooooo good!). Once in a while, someone would have a birthday party there and there would be pony rides. I think these things still happen today, but in addition, there is a great petting zoo. While we were there, we ran into Pookie & her kids, so it was even better. A toddler playground has also been built, so it was a good way to wear the kids down for their naps.

After naps, my parents brought the grandkids to a carnival. When I arrived, Liliane had a stuffed animal snake draped around her neck and was carrying a blow-up plastic hammer. She had had a fantastic time. Our nephews were equally excited with similar prizes. Apparently, you are guaranteed to win stuffed animals and the like when you play these games. One carnival worker offered to upgrade the snake if I would play a $5 game. As tempting as this could have been, I just channeled Helen Buttigieg (host of neat & my organizational hero) and turned him down. After that, we had dinner at the New Hunan Chinese restaurant, where we've been going since we were little. The children of the original owners now run the place and it's still good.

Illinois - week 1

On Monday, July 14th, we flew to Chicago from the Philadelphia Airport. As always, I was very grateful for the play areas installed by the airport authorities. The girls had a great time and it helped them burn off a lot of steam. Since our plane became delayed, they spent a good hour or so running around there.

To give you a background, I am from Carpentersville, Illinois, which is about 35 miles northwest of Chicago. It is one of four villages that make up the Dundee Township, along with East Dundee, West Dundee and Sleepy Hollow. The area, particularly that along the picturesque Fox River, is generally known as Dundee. When I lived there, it was more or less a small town. Today it is a verifiable Chicago suburb.

As it would turn out, a typical day for me involved waking up early and walking along the Fox River with my mom to Starbuck's in West Dundee. After that, I would go home, get the girls ready and head down to the Lavender Cafe for a second round of coffee and to see which friends/family members happened to pass by. [I have several cousins who have several children who all live in the area. Because the town part itself is still small, it we often (happily) run into each other there.] Then, we would bring the girls back home and they would play. Naptime would ensue and then we would find some more activities for the evening.

Anyway, back to the story. We landed at O'Hare in the early afternoon and my parents brought us straight to my favorite taqueria - Taqueria Los Cocos - in East Dundee. I ordered a carne asada & avocado quesadilla and Dan got a gordita. Mexican food is really delicious and something we don't find often here. Oddly, in Phoenix, I never seemed to be able to find Mexican restaurants comparable to the taquerias in my hometown and surrounding area (comparable in terms of style of restaurant). They are really informal places that have a very simple menu and quick service.

We got back to my parents house, regrouped a little bit. My brother Rich was there at the tale end of his summer visit to Illinois, so it was great to see him and his son Max. I was also delighted to meet Stella, my 6-month old niece, for the first time! Unfortunately, Rich's wife Jen had had to go back to California for work.

Within a few hours, people started to arrive for my dad's birthday barbecue. It was great to see so many friends and family right away!

Liliane helping out my dad with the candles.

My crew in Illinois. On left - my friend Sarah. On right - my cousins Chase & Brittany, sister Melinda, & cousin-in-law Pookie

Tuesday morning, we met my mom and her group of cronies at the Roll 'n Donut donut shop in Elgin, Illinois. In my opinion, these are the world's best donuts. Liliane, was thrilled to be there, along with her cousins and my friend Sarah's children.

Afterwards, Dan and I went to visit my friend Veronica who I met when I was in middle school. I couldn't believe how much her kids had grown since I last saw them last year! Liliane and Veronica's son Gavin had a great time watering her outdoor garden and dancing around to music. She was looking great as always!

Liliane did have real clothes.

Tuesday evening, we went to another favorite Mexican restaurant - El Molino. We enjoyed some tasty margaritas. While we were there, our nephew Eric lost his tooth! Despite having six children under age of 5 in tow, the restaurant treated them all to ice cream for dessert.

My parents & all their grandkids.

From left to right: Eric Jr., Jack, Liliane, Max, Amelie & Stella.

We spent Wednesday morning at the Lavender Cafe, where my sister's friend Stephanie popped by. Stephanie is about to move to Maui, so it was good to catch her before she took off. The turrets of a fairy castle that my mom has always admired at another house was moved to our house (the other house had been set for demolition and the owner gave my mom permission). Gnomes inhabit my parents' front yard there, so the fairy castle became a part of their territory.

the fairy castle, in its entirety (turrets in background)

Eric - one tooth less, six dollars richer

That evening, we dined with Melinda, Sarah, and Jason (Sarah's husband) at Sushi Station. At Sushi Station, the sushi encircles you via conveyor and you can just choose your sushi on an as needed basis. At the end, the number & color of your plates are tallied to determine the bill. It was delicious!

On Thursday, my Aunt Pam and cousin Anne-Marie came down from Chicago to visit us. We had lunch with them and with some other friends and relatives at Famous Dave's barbecue restaurant. It was very child friendly and Liliane ended up dancing to the music in the waiting area afterwards.

Friday night, Dan and I went out to Morton's to celebrate our anniversary. The Morton's Summer Special was still in effect, so we took advantage! Although I tried to consume the food with utmost moderation, I still wasn't able to finish my dessert. There was also a giant bottle of wine there, bigger than a Methusaleh. It could serve well over 100 people - I think even more, but I forgot to write down the statistic. I know the pic on the left looks like a pregnancy photo - I simply had a distended stomach from all the food! And I am assuredly not pregnant!

the giant bottle of wine had been sold for $2500

On Saturday morning, Dan, the girls and I headed downtown to Greek Islands to meet up with my friend Marla. Marla moved to Chicago from Washington last year and had never really had a chance to hang out with Dan or meet the girls. Marla was doing well and is engaged to a great guy. I am glad she is in Chicago because I will probably be able to see her more often.

Sunday was Dan's last day with us. There was one place we hadn't visited, so we went. Benedict's is a restaurant that filled a needed void a few years in the Dundee Township - brunchery. Their food is amazing - all of it - and I love the kitchiness of the country decor. Here is some personal trivia - my first job was as a busgirl at a restaurant called Duran's that occupied the same space. Later that evening, we bid Dan adieu at the airport.

You may be noticing that many of our outings involved food! Although we eat well here in Holland, some things are simply not the same! Especially things like a real coffee cake!

Allentown, Part Deux

We're back in Amsterdam now, but I thought I'd try to wrap up our trip in July to the US before telling you about what's been going on here.

On Friday, July 11th, Dan and I learned that the electric oven from 1976 in our house in Arizona needed to be replaced. We ended up spending some time checking out new ovens at Lowe's and Best Buy. We ended up getting an oven that is a actually a double oven on the bottom as well as a coordinating microwave to go on top. Yeah, I know...very exciting!

Friday, we were also able to stop at Yocco's which is famed in Allentown for its hotdogs. It also serves fried pierogies as a side dish, which is not uncommon in this part of the country. At some point, Sarah Ferguson came to visit Yocco's during a tour of the US.



Saturday morning, we all piled into the minivan and went garage saling. We were making pretty fruitful finds when a large rock got stuck in the tire. Fortunately, we were able to make it back home and AAA came and changed the tire. Later, Dan and his dad went to the Phillies-Diamondbacks game in downtown Philadelphia. Dan's mom, the girls, and I went out and shopped at my favorite stores Target and Wegman's. The D-Backs ended up winning. Go Arizona! If I recall correctly, we had cheesesteaks for dinner this night picked up at the Brass Rail restaurant by Dan and his dad on their way home from the game.



Sunday, Dan and I celebrated our 6th anniversary by having a delicious breakfast, sans kids, at Panera. We then spent the afternoon shopping and acquiring things that we can't get easily over in Holland, or even Illinois (our next stop), such as Boscov's fudge. That evening, Dan's Aunt Mary Jo and Uncle John came over and, as always, we had a good visit with them.
On Monday morning, we had one last bite of East Coast type bagels and shoved off, en route to Illinois where my parents are spending their summer. It was sad to leave after having such a great time!
Liliane in her Dora tent at Grandma's House