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Things to do with Kids in Dubai
When you think of Dubai, the first thing that comes to mind is its glamorous skyscrapers, massive malls and extraordinary man-made islands. After all, most of us know Dubai as a haven for outstanding leisure, shopping and entertainment choices. But beneath its enormous steely high-rise structures lies an astonishing child-friendly destination which offers a roster of exciting options for kids of all age groups. So if you’re looking for amazing things to do with kids in Dubai, this list covers it all. But, Is It Now Safe To Visit Dubai With Kids? With the prestigious Safe Travel stamp and all stringent safety measures against COVID-19 in place, Dubai continues to…
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Going to the Little Monsters Ball Hardrock Cafe
Each year we try to do something special for Halloween, last year we attended the Little Monsters Ball Hardrock Cafe in Amsterdam. Halloween is on the rise in The Netherlands. Our son is still too young for haunted houses and fright nights, but luckily there are events suited for kids. Little Monsters Ball Hardrock Cafe The Hard Rock Café organizes a breakfast buffet on Sunday before or on Halloween. Every family had its own table and could get plates full of delicious food. You did have to wait in line before getting to the buffet. The staff was all dressed up for Halloween. The café was also decorated in Halloween…
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Fun at Ripley’s Believe It or Not Halloween
Halloween isn’t a holiday that’s originally celebrated in The Netherlands. But more and more events with an Halloween theme are popping up in The Netherlands. We love going to one of these events each year and a few years ago we celebrated Halloween at Ripley’s Believe It or Not in Amsterdam. We had a blast. Ripley’s Believe It or Not Halloween The whole Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum was decorated with cobwebs and other creepy things. This added extra to the Halloween sphere for us. Without the Halloween decorations the museum is already bizarre, but this made it extra special. We came dressed up for Halloween, all 3 of…
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Krka National Park: Waterfalls, swimming and hiking
Krka National Park has it all: beautiful nature, hiking and swimming opportunities, architectural, historical and archeological sites. We visited the Krka National Park in Croatia on a road trip in 2017 during a hot Summer. So the swimming part was very welcoming to us. Where is Krka National Park? Krka National Park is in Dalmatia in Croatia. To be exact in the northern part of Dalmatia, near Lozovac and Skradin. It’s close to Šibenik. From Šibenik to Krka National Park is 15 kilometers, about 20 minutes by car. Zadar is an hour driving with 76 kilometers. Split to Krka National Park is an hour and 15 minutes for 85 kilometers.…
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A family vacation close to home during the pandemic: Texel
When the intelligent lockdown was declared all our vacation and getaway weekend planning was put on hold. When they say stay home and only go out for necessary stuff, I’m not making plans for outings let alone a vacation. After a few months restrictions were slightly loosened, so we booked a long weekend getaway for Acension weekend, a vacation close to home. One of our first 2020 travels. We opted for Texel, an island in the northwest of The Netherlands. The reasons for choosing Texel are that it has beautiful nature, we’ve been here before, social distancing seemed achievable, biking is great on Texel and there are plenty of beaches.…
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Shenandoah National Park: bears and endless views
Back in 2015 we did a road trip through the USA, we drove from New York to San Francisco in 6 weeks. On that road trip we stopped at Shenandoah National Park. It was our first acquaintance with the Blue Ridge Mountains. They’re so beautiful! Where is Shenandoah National Park? Shenandoah National Park is in the Northwestern Part of the state of Virginia. Its located on a mountain ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The park starts in the Northeast at the town of Front Royal and runs all the way to Waynesboro in the Southwest. Some facts about Shenandoah National Park Shenandoah National Park covers over 200.000 acres and…
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Fun times at Disneyland Paris: with and without kids
We’ve been to Disneyland Paris three times: once before Yuri was born, in 1999. Back then it was still called EuroDisney. Twice with Yuri in 2014 and 2019. In 1999 we went in the Summer and spent one day at EuroDisney. In 2014 it was a winter visit with an almost 4 year old boy and last time was 20 years after our first visit to Disneyland Paris, again in the Summer. Both visits were 3 days, 2 nights. We’ve enjoyed ourselves every single time. In this blog I will highlight things to do in Disneyland Paris and how our experience was. At the end I will shortly compare Disneyland…
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Finding peace as a family
My husband was driving on highway 1, we had to be on time at San Francisco airport to catch our flight home. Home being Utrecht in The Netherlands. Far away from the beach and rolling waves I was seeing out of our car window. Yuri was asking why we had to go home, why couldn’t we keep on driving, he didn’t want to go home. Paul said shall we drive on? We all wanted to go further North on highway 1, was going through my mind. Half a half year before driving on highway 1 Paul, my husband, was unhappy in his job. That Monday in February, I was still…
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What to do during lockdown
Like a lot of families around the world right now, we’re in a lockdown. In The Netherlands there’s a soft lockdown. We still can go outside for groceries, a short walk, a motorbike ride, to help someone who can’t go outside or to work if you have an essential job. Group formation is forbidden, more than 2 people together is forbidden except when you form a household. Luckily we can still go outside in moderation. Sadly I have a cold and Yuri the flu, so we have to stay inside. Here’s what to do during the lockdown. What we’re doing during the lockdown Although things we can do and where…
