Oprima el Cinco Por Asistencia en Espanol

Call any major business or government service in the U.S. and the automated voice response system answering the call will ask you if you want to be helped in Spanish.

Typically a friendly voice in Spanish will ask you to push a number on your phone if you want to change the language. Also, public announcements in some airports, the safety video on some airlines and much more is done in two languages: English and Spanish. (Not to mention all the Spanish language ads, radio and TV stations here.)

The reason is clear, there are tons of Spanish speakers in California and in many other parts of the U.S. and businesses and government want to cater to that large audience. It makes complete sense.

But imagine a business doing this in the Netherlands, the country known worldwide for being open and progressive. It wouldn't work.

If the Postbank or ABN Amro would offer customers the option to do business in Turkish or Moroccan, it would cause a riot among Dutch people. It would cause a mass exodus of Dutch customers saying that the action is contra integration of immigrants. Everyone needs to learn Dutch, is the rule.

Silly.

Princess Cake

A friend and former co-worker introduced me to Princess Cakes. This has become my favorite cake in the U.S. I had a nice piece last week, the occasion was a work party and I took the opportunity to pick the cake and share the delight. It was a hit.


The original, I believe, comes from Sweden. It beats other U.S. cakes and pies because it is light and not ultra sweet. The traditional cakes in this country have a thick layer of frosting that will make your teeth fall out on touch and have you running for something to drink immediately because of the super sweetness.

I highly recommend getting or making a princess cake for your next party. Locally, Copenhagen bakery in Burlingame makes a killer Princess Cake.

Dolphins

You won't often find me being lazy on a beach. This year, I only did it once. Two afternoons some weekends ago I sat on Manresa State Beach near Santa Cruz, CA. It was part of a short camping trip with two Dutchy friends. One brought his surf board, the other brought super strong sunscreen (turning him into a zombie) and work. I brought Harry Potter and finished it.


It was relaxing to just sit and read, getting up every now and then to throw a frisbee or cool off in the ocean. But what really made going to the beach worthwhile was seeing dozens of sea lions and dolphins, right where the waves broke. So close by, almost close enough to swim with them. The surfers with their wet suits were actually right in between the dolphins.

One could briefly mistake the fin on their backs for a more ominous creature, but this definitely weren't sharks. Sorry, no good pictures of the dolphins. They were too small and too far away to spot with my little camera.

Labor Day Weekend

Today is Labor Day. Back home that's celebrated on May 1, as it is in many other countries. But, according to fellow Dutchy Blogger Christel, that date is associated too much with socialism, so the Americans picked their own date.

So, what do people to on Labor Day? It is considered to be the last day of summer. So, the tradition is to fire up the BBQ or go camping, or both. I had hoped to go camping this weekend, but didn't realize that this was perhaps the biggest camping weekend of the year (Memorial Day at the end of May being a good runner up), so all spots were taken when I tried to book.

That messed my plans up a bit and Christel and Cindy also had to make other plans. They opted to go to Calistoga and stay in a B&B instead. That's a nice way to spend the weekend, in the heart of the wine country with nice countryside and good restaurants and cute towns. Not too shabby at all, something that would be tough to match in Holland, or you'd have to drive to France. (Calistoga is about 1.5 hours north of San Francisco.)

I stayed home. Also nice, after having been on the road. Plus, I was able to do some work. (Yes, work on Labor Day weekend.) We have several deadlines coming up and those need to be met. Aside from that, I hiked up Montara Mountain with friend Michelle and joined her and several Stanford profs for a game of Settlers (Kolonisten) along with high-end pizza and beer.


On Sunday I took my new bike for a 40 kilometer ride along the San Francisco Bay. One problem: the tires are a little low on air and no U.S. bicycle pumps fit on the Dutch valves! Still, I was able to add some air using a small hand pump. The San Francisco Bay Trail is gorgeous. Along the way you see kite surfers and wind surfers as well as an abundance of birds. On the way, I stopped at Jamba Juice for an all-fruit smoothie.

And on Monday, I hit tennis balls with my friend Miki, had lunch in Palo Alto and looked at an apartment there. I will skip this one, even though the location is fantastic. It is a converted attic, which makes the ceilings very low. Also, the bathroom is tiny. The living room is on the small and skinny side, which (with the low ceilings) can give a feeling of claustrofobia. (Especially if you're tall, like me.) So I am still on the house hunt.

That's my holiday weekend. Now I have to do some more work.

Oh, and summer sure isn't over here. It has been very hot the last few days. Temperatures well into the 30s (celcius).