remembering sunshine: beach holiday, june 08

the ritual is: when in rains, revisit the sun.  some way.  any way.  and it rains here.  a lot.  like today.  

here are my sun pictures.  ahhh.

we plan our 08 beach holiday for the end of june.  we know it will rain.  it always rains in holland in june.  and june in the rain just isn't right.  

so, we travel to crete for week.  the travel agency nearly guarantees us sun.  and we do end up receiving it, in abundance, at the GERMAN resort at which we are booked.  when our agent recommends the resort to us, she does inform us it is german, but we assume it is more international, given that she is putting a family of american non-german speakers there.  we should KNOW better than to assume these things by now...

we learn it really doesn't matter that we can't understand one word because we get SUN.  every day.  the first morning, chris and i drop joe and tally at "club roby" -- the kinderclub -- so we can get maximum absorption.  we watch them hang back initially in the crowd of little german children.  i envision joe thinking "you've got to be freakin' kidding me -- they put me in yet another place where i don't speak the language," but it turns out to be fine because one of the counselors is from holland, so she not only speaks dutch, but perfect british english.  the kids love her.  we pull out his netherlands football jersey and send him to club roby in it the next day, which effectively seals his status as "pet."  we've learned what works.

so the kids do their thing in the mornings with club roby and we take them into the pool for the afternoons, from 1-3, because the capacity crowd deserts the pool at this time every day.  there is NO ONE in any of the pools at this time. EVER.  everyone eats meals at the same time, swims at the same time, naps at the same time.  chris and i are amazed by this regimentation.  but we take advantage of it.  besides, this is the only time we can get a lounge chair by the pool.  we become convinced that our fellow holidayers towel-secure their spots in the dead of night because as anyone knows who knows this family, we are up with joe at DAWN.  and the deck is already, well, be-decked with towels -- before first light.

we all enjoy our holiday.  euro 2008 (the european football tournament) is on every night and because germany is doing well, everyone is happy.  the kids end up requesting more time at club roby, which allows chris and me a couple of days to ourselves.   we consider checking out the island, but decide "why go anywhere when we have what we need right here?"  ahhh.  the sun.