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Gerbie on tour 24
So this is christmas
and what have you done
another year over
and what have you done
War is over, if you want it!
For starters some words of one of my all time favorites. It's christmas time again. Even though that is a weird idee, considering that yesterday it was 38 degrees and at nighttime even a sheet would have been exaggerating it. But even over here one will encounter christmas trees and decorations are not missing either. I myself went to a big christmas concert last weekend, in a park, among some 100.000 others. Apparently some sort of local tradition to sing christmas carols together every year.
I have been in Sydney again for a short while, but by the time you are reading this I will probably be in (the bus to) Canberra. During this break I have done the things I left out during my first stay here. The obligatory visit to a football match, something I try to do in every country when possible. This time I visited a game of the Sydney Olympic, a club, looking at the name not completely surprising, from the Greek immigrants here. I realise that the Aussies are not all too keen on footy, but it was still a surprise to find out that English speakers were an exception in the stadium.
Finally I have also been walking in the Blue Mountains, correct myself, at the edge of the park. Not a very big train journey away, but a completely different feel to it, almost like a different world. Apart from spectacular views, a nice waterfall, a lot of natural beauty and many tourists, there was also a very nice little train, going up a hill at 52 degrees, the steepest in the world apparently.
For those of you who have got some spare time during the holidays and want to see or read some more, I mention a few links. Known to some of you, new to others.
My pictures have got their own site now. A lot still needs to be done, before it looks like I'd like, but it's a start and there's plenty of pictures there already:
http://welcome.to/gerbie7
Some of my travel stories can be found on two different sites. My own site has Dutch and English stories:
http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/Gerbie/reisindex.html
And via
http://www.korteverhalen.com
though that's a Dutch only site...
My football stories (I still refuse to call it soccer), usually end up being travel impressions as well. Like the travel stories in Dutch and English on my site:
http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/Gerbie/voetindex.html
and Dutch only on the site of my own club:
http://move.to/gfc
Finally I have been writing some cycling stories, again in Dutch, to be found on a site of a friend of mine:
http://welcome.to/cyclosim
And the last site to promote is my live journal. This is a journal I keep on the web, with I also use as an archive for all these newsletters, since I left november last year:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/gerbie
I say thanks to all the people who have sent me christmas mails and cyber-christmas cards and for those that will follow without any doubt (hint). It is impossible for me to answer them all personally, so via this I wish you all twice whatever you wish me!
And talking about cards. I have decided to only send a very limited number of post cards via the conventional way, the pigeon mail. Not only is email a brilliant alternative (faster, cheaper, easier), by now most of you have probably had one already. But should there still be anyone out there who thinks they deserve one, for whatever reason, I am looking forward to reading about it. Call it a contest, call it blackmail, call it inventive, call it anything you like, but over here, right now, I promise to send a card to those of you who send the most original request. Reward: An old fashioned post card for on your mantle piece.
Finally I have got one last request. I appreciate every mail, but I get a bit annoyed by some forwarded messages. I don't believe in ill argentine kids with a laptop next to their bed, nor am I interested in cheap loans and hot ladies on my screen, I have received seven snowballs and mr Hotmail is threathening me to delete messages with my mailbox being overfull. I like a good joke, but if it takes up too much space please mail it to gerbie7@gmx.net, or consider if I could live without it. Thanx for your help.
I wish everybody a very merry christmas and a happy new year!
Until next year,
Gerben
So this is christmas
and what have you done
another year over
and what have you done
War is over, if you want it!
For starters some words of one of my all time favorites. It's christmas time again. Even though that is a weird idee, considering that yesterday it was 38 degrees and at nighttime even a sheet would have been exaggerating it. But even over here one will encounter christmas trees and decorations are not missing either. I myself went to a big christmas concert last weekend, in a park, among some 100.000 others. Apparently some sort of local tradition to sing christmas carols together every year.
I have been in Sydney again for a short while, but by the time you are reading this I will probably be in (the bus to) Canberra. During this break I have done the things I left out during my first stay here. The obligatory visit to a football match, something I try to do in every country when possible. This time I visited a game of the Sydney Olympic, a club, looking at the name not completely surprising, from the Greek immigrants here. I realise that the Aussies are not all too keen on footy, but it was still a surprise to find out that English speakers were an exception in the stadium.
Finally I have also been walking in the Blue Mountains, correct myself, at the edge of the park. Not a very big train journey away, but a completely different feel to it, almost like a different world. Apart from spectacular views, a nice waterfall, a lot of natural beauty and many tourists, there was also a very nice little train, going up a hill at 52 degrees, the steepest in the world apparently.
For those of you who have got some spare time during the holidays and want to see or read some more, I mention a few links. Known to some of you, new to others.
My pictures have got their own site now. A lot still needs to be done, before it looks like I'd like, but it's a start and there's plenty of pictures there already:
http://welcome.to/gerbie7
Some of my travel stories can be found on two different sites. My own site has Dutch and English stories:
http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/Gerbie/reisindex.html
And via
http://www.korteverhalen.com
though that's a Dutch only site...
My football stories (I still refuse to call it soccer), usually end up being travel impressions as well. Like the travel stories in Dutch and English on my site:
http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/Gerbie/voetindex.html
and Dutch only on the site of my own club:
http://move.to/gfc
Finally I have been writing some cycling stories, again in Dutch, to be found on a site of a friend of mine:
http://welcome.to/cyclosim
And the last site to promote is my live journal. This is a journal I keep on the web, with I also use as an archive for all these newsletters, since I left november last year:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/gerbie
I say thanks to all the people who have sent me christmas mails and cyber-christmas cards and for those that will follow without any doubt (hint). It is impossible for me to answer them all personally, so via this I wish you all twice whatever you wish me!
And talking about cards. I have decided to only send a very limited number of post cards via the conventional way, the pigeon mail. Not only is email a brilliant alternative (faster, cheaper, easier), by now most of you have probably had one already. But should there still be anyone out there who thinks they deserve one, for whatever reason, I am looking forward to reading about it. Call it a contest, call it blackmail, call it inventive, call it anything you like, but over here, right now, I promise to send a card to those of you who send the most original request. Reward: An old fashioned post card for on your mantle piece.
Finally I have got one last request. I appreciate every mail, but I get a bit annoyed by some forwarded messages. I don't believe in ill argentine kids with a laptop next to their bed, nor am I interested in cheap loans and hot ladies on my screen, I have received seven snowballs and mr Hotmail is threathening me to delete messages with my mailbox being overfull. I like a good joke, but if it takes up too much space please mail it to gerbie7@gmx.net, or consider if I could live without it. Thanx for your help.
I wish everybody a very merry christmas and a happy new year!
Until next year,
Gerben
