Dutch night out

Last night, I went out at night for the first time since the evening I spent with Willemijn and Karlien in Loosdrecht which was on June 14th. It is now September 9th. Wow, that is 3 months....a pretty long time ago!

Marcus, with whom I used to sing in his Reggae band has reverted to Dutch chanson and is trying to break though. His first CD is expected in November, and last night he was introduced to the Amsterdam public.

The Dutch chanson, is called 'het Nederlandse Lied' and finds its origin in de Jordaan, the former working class neighborhood (now yuppee) of Amsterdam. Every year two significant festivals are held. The festival on the Elandsgracht (not too far from the Anne Frank House) and the Jordaan festival on the Westerstraat and Lindegracht. Marcus made his debut at the Elandsgracht festival last night and was placed second to last in the line-up. The Elandsgracht is traditionally the place where the Dutch stars are discovered. Johnny Jordaan, Tante Leen etc. Also made their debuts there.

Adrienne, my eldest sister and her husband Jacques had

told me that if I wanted to visit anywhere I ought to mention it. We went to the festival and it was great to see Marcus on such a significant stage! Despite the huge mess-up of the sound technician who had lost the soundtrack and an MC that was obviously jealous of Marcus' talent, he really pulled though excellently. His hard work is showing results and I am baffled at the speed with which he has made the switch to 'het Nederlandse lied' and the quality of his sound.

It was a great night! I was happy to witness it, and Adrienne was also back in her old neighborhood. Therefore it was also a bit of a trip down memory lane. We closed off the night at a fantastic Thai Restaurant called Rakang. Where I said 'hi' to Leco, the Dutch celebrity make-up artist, thinking that I knew him. Actually, I do know him from my AVRO years...but I don't think he knows me. It suprises me how make-up artist can become celebs too. Anyway...I guess that anywhere Leco eats, must be good enough for me. ;-)

It was fabulous to be out doing normal things. I was able to do this all using my wheel chair and crutches. It is really strange; sometimes you see people in wheel chairs where your focus is on the wheel chair. Sometimes you see a person and then realize that they are in a wheel chair. In my case people don't seem to really see the wheel chair at all. I wonder how long I will need my chair. Perhaps for ever, perhaps not. All in all, my body did not resist a great night out with a few drinks. Stage 1.