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Reviving Nostalgia: Our Journey with the new Denon DCD-1700NE CD Player
Last Christmas we bought a new record player to enjoy once again some old records that had been sitting on shelf unused for years. Listening to albums on the record player triggered us to put on a few CDs again. This turned out to be a disappointment. We had an old Denon Universal Disk player which we bought 20 years ago and which we used to watch movies on DVD and to listen to music on CD. We had stopped watching DVDs on the player already some time ago because it simply refused to load many discs. But now we…
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Stiemerheide Cycling: Enjoying Scenic Routes and Local Culture
On our second day at Stiemerheide we went for a day bike ride. The plan was to do a tour of almost 60k this time in the opposite direction compared to the day before. It was not as sunny as the day before but still warm enough to ride without a coat. We did take the, along in case the weather forecast was right and we would end up in the rain. After 13km we had to stop because one jumping cyclist in the party had a flat tyre when his rear wheel landed on a curbstone. Unable to fix…
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Enjoy a Scenic Bike Ride at Stiemerheide Hotel
On the day we arrived at the Stiemerheide hotel we went for a short afternoon bike ride of a little less than 40k. The ride went over mainly flat terrain with a little bit of variation in landscape but except for a short stretch along the Mechelse Heide nature reserve nothing remarkable. But it was a good ride to get used to sitting on a bike for a few hours again. The weather cooperated with enough sunshine to break out the sunglasses. Every now and then it even got too warm in the sun to wear a sweater but during…
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Dining and Stay at Stiemerheide Hotel: A Gourmet Experience
We spent 2 nights at hotel Stiemerheide and had dinner in their restaurant Moonstone. The hotel is next to a golf range so many people come to the hotel to play golf. The hotel has a bistro restaurant and then Moonstone which is a bit more formal. There is also restaurant Kristalijn which is more upper class and has a Michelin star. Restaurant Moonstone covers the middle ground. We had a 3 course menu with starter, main course and desert. The starter was slightly baked Tuna with a compote of Japanese pear. This was very good. The main course was…
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Bicycle Ride Eiland van Dordrecht & Biesbosch
During the Easter school holidays we went for a short trip to Dordrecht and explored a little part the region on bicycle. You can find tips on what to do in and around Dordrecht on the inDordrecht site. We chose a 43 km bicycle route Eiland van Dordrecht & Biesbosch through the city and the natural reserve Biesbosch. You can buy a map for 1 euro at the VVV in the city center and start cycling from there. We chose to start from our hotel and cycle to the VVV and there pick up the route after buying the map.…
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Dining Experience at Van der Valk Hotel Restaurant
During our recent stay at this hotel we also had dinner in their restaurant. This restaurant is also open to non hotel guests and you can simply make a reservation on their website like at any regular restaurant. The menu is diverse so you should be able to find something to your liking. We tried the Salmon Terryiaki on a risotto bed and a ribeye as main courses and Sashimi & Tataki, stir fried gamba and Ceasar salad as starters. Quality of the food was very good, better than I expected, especially considering the restaurant is very big. We also…
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Review of Van der Valk Hotel Dordrecht: Comfort and Value
I recently stayed in Van der Valk Hotel Dordrecht and I can recommend it. The location is a bit dull at a giant round about next to the high way but rooms are well isolated so you don’t hear any traffic once inside. It is located a few kilometers from the city center and we took our bicycle into town which was a 20 minute leisurely trip. We had a standard room which was more than big enough for 2. The room had a bathroom with shower and bath and a big window which was a gimmick. Drawback was that…
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No water, no life
‘No water, no life. No blue, no green. No ocean, no us.‘― Sylvia Earle
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Experience the Joy of Running: European Championship (Half) Marathon Weekend Recap
This weekend of 12 & 13 April 2025 the European Championship for half and full marathon was held in Leuven and Brussels. On New Year’s Eve our daughter decided to run the half marathon which was held in Leuven on Saturday. She aimed to run it in 1h40 and succeeded to reach her objective. I always use my age to justify being a lot slower than her but watching the runners on Saturday I could not ignore seeing a lot of ‘elderly’ runners that were even faster than her. Guess I have to blame it on my genes. Still trying…
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In search of Schrodinger’s cat, John Gribbin (ISBN 978-0-552-12555-0, Transworld Books)
I had this book lying around for a long time (it first came out in 1984 but I read the edition from 2012) and finally decided to give it a go. Mainly because of John Gribbin’s and the book having a bit of a reputation as a classic. I have already read many popular books about quantum mechanics which is why I left this one sitting on the shelf as I doubted what more could be told. But, to my surprise there was novelty compared to the books I had read before. In a nutshell this book is more modern…
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