Dutch in Translation

The art of acceptance is the art of making someone who has just done you a small favor wish that he might have done you a greater one. Martin Luther King, Jr. Everything comes with a price . I went to bed with this thought in my head. I woke up with the same thought. I asked myself, So you think everything comes with a price, right? Like what? Well, I came up with a few examples, like: Honesty. People might not like what you have to say, and could walk away or distance themselves. Justice. Not everyone can afford it, and I'm not necessarily talking about money. Success. Sorting your priorities means there are other things that won't make it.  Peace. Achieving it means you've gone through pain and/or suffering, and that's tough. Love. It isn't a bed of roses, is it? It's unavoidable to hurt and get hurt, but love must rise above it all.  Respect. Vulnerability can make you a target, got to learn to stand your own ground. Family. Having it near or far...

I'm not a big tv series fan for reasons I won't go into because I could most probably be misunderstood. Even so, sometimes there is this one show or episode that touches me in unexpected ways. Modern Love has just done that and I'll tell you why I recommend you watch it. First, I'd like to start by telling you a little more about where the TV series comes from. It's based on a weekly column of personal essays published in the New York Times. There is also a  podcast , of which I've been a fan for some years now. In it, you can listen to renowned actors reading the essays, followed by a conversation with the essay's writer.  But let's get back to the TV show. Episode 2 begins with an interview coming to an end,  between journalist Julie (Catherine Keener) and dating app  CEO  Joshua (Dev Patel) . A t this point is when the story really takes off by Julie asking him if he has ever been in love and, oh holy cow, here it comes. They're in ...

An undeniable fact is that coronavirus is not going anywhere anytime soon. The nightmare is how many will perish in the process. Then, what to do not to go insane?   There are a million and one rhetorical questions on our minds: How long will it take for it to get better? Will I get it or will my dear ones? How can I feel at ease when my family is thousands of kilometers away? Do I pose a danger to someone else? Will my finances survive this crisis or will my nerves? How can I not feel lonely or restless? How do I keep my sanity? How do I keep myself in one piece as to be there for those who need me? Infinite questions and very limited answers. Understandably, everyone reacts in different ways. We're going through extremely challenging times. Having to cope with what is going on in the world, at work, and with family could be overwhelming. My family lives in Mexico, my parents are 71 and 83, and if the situation here is difficult, I can't imagine how it's going to h...

Congrats! In our previous post about the Marriage of Figaro you learned (to read part one go here) :  1. What the Heck Is Going On? 2. Before the Curtain Is Up         Now we'll explore: 3. The Coolest Rap About Revenge              4. Infidelity? Rosina Wants Her Hubby Back!  5. Madness! Six Singing Simultaneously For this second and last part of our blog post about The Marriage of Figaro , we'll explore Don Bartolo's aria about revenge where he raps; Rosina with a recitative and aria telling about her plan, pain, love, and hope; and we'll close with a piece for 6 voices singing simultaneously! Before going further, let's review that in general, opera’s music can be divided into 2 different types: aria and recitative. An aria is a piece for one voice. A recitative is when the singing resembles ordinary speech. Ready? Here we go! 3. The Coolest Rap About Revenge ACT 1 Revenge is hurting someone in re...

If you don't get opera, this is for you!      What if we told you that opera is a super entertaining and addictive  soap opera ?! We know two things: opera is a dark territory for you and f irst times are always unforgettable, for better or worse. Therefore  we thought,  We need an opera both hilarious and fantastic! Unique and extraordinary! An unbeatable first!   Guess what? We found it for you! The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart. (To read part two go here .)       T op 5 things you'll learn : 1. What the Heck Is Going On?                       (Part 1) 2. Before the Curtain Is Up                             (Part 1) 3. The Coolest Rap About Revenge                  (Part 2) 4. Infidelity? Rosina wants her hubby back!      (Part 2) ...

Amsterdam      There were a couple of things we didn't want to miss before Karen's plane to tel Aviv. She asked to see  Spinoza.  I,  Operation Night Watch . The logistics on how to accomplish this on the same day of her departure were somehow tricky, to me. Good news is we pulled it together. We decided to take the train to Schipol, leave her luggage in lockers, and then go to Amsterdam for the day since her plane was late at night. My sweetheart had said, because he is a big catastrophe foreseer, that leaving the luggage at the airport was better than at Amsterdam Central. His prediction was,  "Amsterdam is a busy place. What if you can't find a locker? Better at the airport."  Then life happens. We were on the train to Amsterdam Central. If we wanted to go to the airport, we had to change trains in Utrecht. We decided against it. We'll just go directly to Amsterdam Central, find a locker and voila! And voila my darling was right. THERE ...

Eindhoven & Den Haag Fietsenstalling, Piazza, Eindhoven       I wish I'd had more time to show Karen Eindhoven's city center, but unexpected things happened and we ended up hurrying to catch a train to Den Haag. How come? First of all, and as you well know, it wasn't raining so the possibilities were endless! Anyway, after having visited La Piazza's underground bike parking lot, seen Sissy Boy's organic architecture from the inside with its original jungle-style restaurant, eaten a yummy toasted sandwich at Krok Madam  and while hanging out at Van Pierre , she saw a book on Escher and exclaimed, "Escher! Such an incredible mind!" Oh , I thought, should  we go to Den Haag?   Can we? Should we? Do we have enough time?  You might understand how I could not miss catching a train to Den Haag and visit  Escher in Het Paleis .       Before we get to Den Haag, I'll like to share two tips. One, have an extra OV-ch...

Nuenen &  The Potato Eaters Sculpture      The morning after our trip to Koblenz , and after I'd come back from tutoring at ISE, we got two of our bikes out of the shed: one for Karen and one for me. Before leaving, my sweetheart adjusted hers since she wasn't used to a high seat. After that, off we went! Hands up to Karen who biked around 11 km from Eindhoven to Nuenen and back!       The Universe is big and conspired by giving us a perfect autumn day, milky skies and a crispy breeze. Crispy. Why is crispy ideal? Because when you bike, you sweat! Sweaty clothes are not nice, not to me at least. I get sweaty and stinky, although I've found out that wearing cotton fabrics is the best solution. As long as my clothes are not synthetic, the smelly problem is solved, kind of; but enough of this, I think my thoughts are giving away too much personal information so let's go back to the bike ride.  Vincent van Goghplein  ...