Lisbonita

Walking along Lisbon's tree-and-poo-lined streets, in deliciously sweltering days that make you sweat when you think, with warm nights, stunning sights, carnivourous meals, sangria and incredibly hospitable hosts... I am reminded again why I travel.

And in my first experience as a Couchsurfer - I have hosted a few times, never before guested - I can certainly recommend it. For those who aren't familiar, www.couchsurfing.org is an international site where users can either stay or host for free in their own homes. Of course, a bottle of wine or a dinner or a gift is a basic courtesy to extend to the host.

The daunting idea of having a complete stranger in your home (or you in theirs) is made much less daunting by having users complete extensive profiles of themselves, along with references from people they've met via their travels.

You can also filter your preferences when searching for a place to stay (i.e. age range, gender, etc) and make explicit guidelines for people looking to surf at your place (i.e. no smokers, female/male only, no Republicans, etc.). It's also a great way to see a city outside of the normal tourist-greased conveyor belts.

And so it is that I have to mention Rita and Raquel, two Portuguese sisters who are my first ever hosts (and I am their first guest).

I normally have a strict rule to not mention details of my personal encounters on this blog, but these girls deserve special mention. I didn't know people like this still existed. Sweet, polite, charming, fun, incredibly helpful... If all couchsurfing experiences are like this, hotels will go out of business.

They have quickly helped make Lisbon one of my favourite cities. More as the week progresses...

More Peniche

"Surfing's the source, man... swear to God" - Point Break, 1991

Images and impressions from the past week as 7 straight days of surfing comes to an end, both mercifully (for the old body) and unfortunately (for everything else).

• Sitting at Bar do Bruno, the perfectly situated beach bar and restaurant that sits overlooking Baleal Beach at 4:30 on a Friday afternoon, overlooking stunning waves under a massive and cloudless sky.

• The sun is warm but the constant breeze keeps things cool. The coffee is a mellow roast, and my skin is roasting mellowly.

• The iPod is paused occasionally to hear the sound of the waves; in-between, "Cuatro" by Cafe Fuego, "Release the Pressure" by Leftfield, "Goodbye" by Junior Boys, "Straight to the Bank" by 50 Cent and 20 more tracks shuffle me into the weekend.

• Across the deck, a girl of about 5 years old raises her Princess Barbie camera (yes, I have nieces) and takes pictures of her parents, quickly showing them her handiwork afterwards.

• Next to me, a group of four late teenage girls chatter on happily in Portuguese, which to me still sounds like drunk Russian.

• The beach is very busy, but not overcrowded. People and shapes are easily identifiable nearby, and further out they are moving silhouettes with the sun behind them.

• Surfers of all levels are tackling waves of all sizes. The good ones make it look so easy; my body screams that it is not.

It's easy to see the romanticism of the surfing lifestyle - wake up, wetsuit, waves, eat, repeat.

The week was excellent; come here if you want to learn to surf and learn to chill out. The service in the cafes and at the camp could not have been friendlier; the level of instruction (as mentioned in a previous post) is very high. So am I (naturally, of course) as I'm off to Lisbon for the week.

From bed to beach - could get used to this...

Instructors Gabi and Turko - beautiful people who teach by season in Argentina, Brazil, and Portugal

Bar do Bruno; it is also the surf camp base, where you wetsuit up and wax (eloquently)

Video review and a lesson on the history of surfing

Peniche for Your Thoughts

A quick apology for the lack of posts this past week. Apparently it's important to be able to move muscles in order to type, and after three days of intense surf camp, this has not been possible until now.

Greetings from Baleal Surf Camp in the sunny hamlet of Peniche, one of the westernmost points of Europe. Peniche is about a 90-minute drive from Lisbon and has some of the best surfing on the continent, and is loaded with top surf areas all only a few kms away from each other.

The routine is one that one could get used to - wake up early, hit the camp and get wetsuited-up by 9, exercise for a good 10 minutes for warm-up, hit the waves for 60-90 minutes, stretch. Repeat around 1pm. Crumple into a ball of fatigue by 4 for a siesta, and try your luck in the waves with some friends on your own around 7pm.

As for progress, we'll use percentages. Day 1, the waves win a good 90% of the time; Day 2, you shrink that down to maybe 60%. By Day 3, you are winning the majority of the battles and getting up more often than Hugh Hefner.

This is likely due to the level of instruction, which is fantastic. Turko (a long-time pro on the world tour) and Gaby are a surfing couple from Argentina who make it all easy for us, despite the pain from using muscles that haven't used since, well, ever.

More on the camp and the experience later in the week... now back to the ibuprofen injections.

Right Said Ted

After the month-long bender known as the World Cup, I figured it was time to feed my brain rather than my liver.

Enter TED. Specifically, TEDx Amsterdam, a combo live event and video screening of the TED main event in Oxford.

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design and has attracted a considerable global following from its website at www.ted.com. Covering big-picture issues like climate change, human interactions, charity and crowdfunding, this recent event was a meeting of the minds. And I'm of two minds when it comes to the whole thing.

I sincerely appreciate TED's aspirational aspects, its desire to inspire. Speakers from all walks of life who aim to rise above the fray of YouTube videos and inane, illiterate pop culture and really make a difference.

At the same time, I can't help feeling 75% of it is straight from the pages Stuff White People Like, full of quasi-interesting nuggets that people consume to feel and sound smarter for a week. (The same way Malcolm Gladwell aficianados sound at parties - the next time someone uses the vacuous term "tipping point", you are free to laugh at them).

The Amsterdam event was held at Boom Chicago, a theatre/comedy club venue. It opened with - and mark this name down - Noam Vazana. She's tough to categorize as she went from jazz to classical to pop on multiple instruments, but she had a voice that had most people turning their heads to each other and say "whoa". Here is a sample. The rest of the four days covered a ton of material and can be seen on the TED website now and in the coming months.

Overall, once again, virtue triumphs over cynicism though, and there some great ideas on this planet. Despite all the problems happening right now around the world, there are some exceedingly bright and well-intentioned people working on the solutions.

Some quotes, insights, and other items of interest from the event:

• Costa Rica is apparently the happiest place on earth.
• "Chance favours the connected mind".
• TED speakers love them some graphs - parabolas, reverse parabolas, pie charts, bar charts, delicious pie-on-the-bar charts.
• "Sustainable development in the Anthropocene is not Utopia". A) I concur or B) Oh no he dih-int!
• Irony: the gentleman who spoke so eloquently about the challenges our planet faces in terms of over-consumption was considerably overweight.
• Fun speaker: Ze Frank. Google this guy.
• Interesting: the Harvard Origins of Life Initiative.
• "Incremental change is no longer an option". Except perhaps at toll booths and peep shows.
• "You can't wake a person who's pretending to sleep". This is actually quite profound when you think about it, and it refers to many people exercising willful ignorance towards tough problems.

We Like to Party. We like. To party.

Nike's last Write the Future spots here say: Als je alles geeft, verlees je niet. (If you give it everything, you don't lose). It's pretty safe to say people here gave everything, and then some.

I'm sorry I lied in my previous post - the party was apparently not over.

Organizers decided to go ahead with the full celebrations to welcome home the Dutch World Cup team on Tuesday, with a 2-hour canal parade and a big celebration at Museumplein.

Depending on what you read, anywhere from 500,000 to 1 million people filled the streets and canals to say thank you for a thrilling four weeks to Bert and his boys.

The result was really all things Amsterdam - alternately chaotic, cheesy, charming, cool, crazy, and canal-filled. And confusing (we did lose, right?).

From the impossibly schmaltzy Guus Meeuwis - whose melancholic traditional songs are popular with millions of Hollanders but make some of us want to make a van Gogh of it and cut off our ears - to world-class DJ Armin van Buuren, it was a massive love-in, sing-along and dance party. The players were visibly moved. The refrain most often heard from them and from commentators was "Can you imagine if we had actually won?"

I caught part of it all live on a break from a TED conference (more on that in a subsequent post). Was it a little odd to be hearing "We Are the Champions" all over town when we were, er, not? Yes. But the overall spirit and outpouring of appreciation was enough to muzzle pretty much anyone's inner cynic.

Check out the full 4+ hours here. It does a far better job of capturing the images than the few photos I managed. I've outlined a few key timestamps below, but it's worth clicking on random spots as well. Another amazing day.

02:32:55 - pre-canals

02:40:00 - the canals

03:42:40 - intro to the players

04:00:00 - players get down

04:03:20 - amazing panoramas of the scene and the city

04:06:00 - Wesley Sneijder serving beers (let's see LeBron do that) + panoramas of the city

04:11:25 - a good minute-and-a-half montage of the entire day

Fans buying these obviously missed the first half where the Dutch could have gotten 2 reds

And Now...

The party is over. At least for today.

The collective mood in the hours leading up to the World Cup final on Sunday, July 11 2010 was so upbeat, so crackling with positive energy that it didn't seem possible that Holland could lose.

The streets and parks and bars were jammed, smiles everywhere, orange even more everywhere (sorry - my English also has a hangover).

Impromptu conga lines, the most amazing outfits ever conceived, and after a brief ominous grey lull, a sunny and clear late afternoon and evening - all this meant that some 2+ hours prior to kickoff, I already felt that I had experienced one of the greatest days of my life.

The day moved from cycling and soaking up the scene to meeting friends and witnessing Leidseplein's happy madness, moving through and boogying with the masses at Museumplein (singing K'naan's World Cup anthem with 100,000 = pretty awesome), and then settling in with friends at a packed neighbourhood pub for the game.

It all made the ending somewhat more bearable, really. It was like filling up the gas tank with so much enjoyment that there was still some left after it all. The loss was less crushing than it was deflating, numbing, like the air coming out of a big orange balloon.

And as much as people were hoping to share an all-inclusive party, there's some comfort in sharing a common sadness too.

Game notes:

• The two teams both had their chances - Robben with the two most glorious ones. Fitting that they played in South Africa - it's true that no man is an island, but I bet Robben wishes he were on one right now.

• For every complaint that Dutch fans may have about the number of yellow cards handed out, they're extremely lucky that de Jong's boot to Alonso's chest wasn't immediately a red.

• The Oranje had every chance to win this game and played very well against a more talented Spanish side. Let's hope that the next chance comes sooner than 32 years from now.

Everyone was primed for a party - and wow can the Dutch party. And they don't stay down for long - biking home through a peaceful Vondelpark after midnight, I came across a group of about 25 Oranje fans holding an impromptu dance party right there on the pathway.

You can feel the country's sadness today, and my heart goes out to lifelong Nederlanders and the players who did the country very proud.

But with a terrorist bomb killing over 70 people watching the same match in Uganda, perspective (and a reminder as to how lucky we are) is sadly always close at hand.

Museumplein 3:30pm

Leidseplein 4:30pm

Leidseplein 4:30pm

Museumplein 6:oopm

Gameday

The goosebumps have started early. Some 8 hours remain until kickoff.

Officials are expecting over 100, 000 on Museumplein tonight, and the masses are gathering already. The temperature is a deliciously muggy and sunny 28.

Tuesday, win or lose, there will be a massive celebration honouring the team. Win - and there's a long parade through the canals of Holland's capital city, culminating in a celebration on Museumplein; Lose - and the parade is not happening, but the celebration on the 'plein will go ahead as planned to welcome the team back.

This is a once-in-a-generation event - it's been 32 years since Holland last appeared in a World Cup final, and it could well be another 32 years until they do so again. Think of the odds: 180+ countries start the quest for the Cup every few years, and only 2 make the final.

Game-wise, it's a match-up of styles, somewhat similar in terms of ball control, somewhat different by virtue of upbringing - the Spanish, more emotional, fiery, dynamic; the Dutch, more stoic, measured, though no less passionate about the game.

My prediction? Dutch squads, long guilty of over-confidence (and losers as a result), have found the perfect opponent. Spain is so good, so deep, that you simply can't get over-confident. They are a natural humility pill.

But the Netherlands wins it, 3-2. Coolness reigns over fire (although you'd better watch your head, van Persie). Dirk Kuyt nets two goals for the Dutch as the Spaniards focus all their efforts on stopping Sneijder and Robben.

I feel very fortunate to be here for the experience.

Hup Holland Hup!!

History in the Making

Spain vs Netherlands. The Eighty Years' War between the two countries, aka the Dutch War of Independence, went from 1568-1648. The Ninety Minutes' War goes this Sunday at 8:30pm.

So while the bad blood between countries has been diluted by some 362 years of peace, the excitement is mounting in the days leading up to the big match.

Some other interesting perspectives regarding Spain and the Netherlands:

• The orange colour sported by the Dutch dates back to Willem van Oranje (William of Orange), who was the main leader of the Dutch revolt that kicked off this war. He was also known as William the Silent. He also often had gastric problems, upon which occasions he became known as William the Silent but Deadly.

• Neither team has won the World Cup before.

• Holland's last appearance in the finals was 1978; Spain has never made it.

• Spain is currently ranked number 1 in the world football rankings, Holland number 4. Gabon is 42nd. Canada 63rd.

• Spain is famous for many things, including the running of the bulls. The Dutch, never keen to admit they don't know something, are famous for the running of the bull---t.

More facts to come as the weekend devolves into a haze of celebrations, heat, and a once-in-a-generation event for both countries.

Finally

That wild-eyed look? A mixture of joy and fear

This is turning into a Dutch opera. With heroes like the fantastically named Giovanni van Bronckhorst, assorted villains like Diego and Robinho, a steadily rising plot line thick with tension, and a rapt audience of millions, the only thing still left to be decided is whether it ends in operatic tragedy or joy.

Last night's Netherlands vs Uruguay match raised the bar again - not so much for the quality of play, where the Dutch still haven't put on a complete 90-minute effort - but in terms of passion on the field and in the streets of Amsterdam.

A brief summary:

• The venue was a small neighbourhood pub, with outdoor screens and the best seats in the house thanks to an Aus-some friend. The gezelligheid of watching the game as though you were sitting on your front porch with 100 friends in a cozy neighbourhood is undeniable.
• The Dutch dominated the play early, with some decent chances on offense and the defense relieving the opposing players of the ball as easily as taking candy from an Uruguayan baby.
• I wonder: What's it like, Giovanni, to score one of the greatest goals in World Cup history? That shot will be replayed for the next century.
• The Dutch let up for some reason and after 20 minutes straight in the offensive zone, Uruguay ties it up. Uruguay - Forlan. Dutch - Forlorn.
• Halftime - a quick stroll down the block in search of food. Chicken sates with peanut sauce. Magnifique.
• A nervy second half with two more excellent goals by the Dutch, and some unwanted close calls in the waning moments.
• The choppy ending to the game, with the referee obviously owning a side business in Holland selling heart medicine and defibrillators, kinda mutes the celebrations momentarily. But then...
• A 5-minute walk to Museumplein to check out the madness before hitting the town. (Videos of the scene have been made and posted to YouTube... for some reason they are not working however. Tips are welcome as to where else I can post them, as they take forever on this site. I will update with a new post once they are viewable).

Even Beesie was nervous before gametime

Our seats

Time to water the tulips

The Dutch are in the World Cup Finals since 1978!

Bye Bye Brazil

The Boys from Brazil met the Heren van Holland in the quarterfinals this past Friday, and the result was simply one of the defining moments of Dutch soccer.

I started the search well-before kickoff for a suitable spot and somehow turned into Goldilocks:

• Too hot: Museumplein - standing in the direct sun for 2-3 hours, likely behind some very tall people? There must be better options.
• Too cold: Cafe Quinto, a small neighbourhood pub that looks fun as it is jammed inside and out for games. Brutal service before even sitting down. Did not feel like giving them money for the next 3 hours.
• Just right: the venerable Barca once again, with loads of screens, a great seat and even better scenery.

Some numbers:

• 32 - forecast high temperature in Amsterdam that day
• 24 - forecast high temperature in Rio that day
• 56 - coincidentally, the sum of the two above numbers and the approximate temperature inside Barca at kickoff time
• 30,000 - estimated number of fans on Museumplein, watching on the big screen. Watch the reaction here as the final whistle sounded, filmed by someone who clearly went to the Blair Witch Project school of film. Still awesome, however.
• 3:59 - the players line up at midfield behind a banner saying "Say No to Racism"
• 4:11 - how about saying "no" to Dutch defensive lapses? Brazil scores an easy one and things are not looking good as the favoured South Americans dominate the play early on.
• 4:30 - a third pitcher arrives at the table, clearly in an effort to stave off dehydration as the temperature inside is insane.
• 5:10 - Dooeeeelllllpunnnntt! Ok, so it has nowhere the same cachet as "Goaaaalllllll", but still. 1-1 tie.
• 5:24 - the Dutch are really owning the Brazilians in the second half, and Kuyt's brilliant header pass is sent on to Sneijder's bald dome, and he knocks it home. Two heads are indeed better than one. The sound is deafening and joyous and I am typing this with goosebumps at the recollection. 2-1 Netherlands.
• 5:29 - red card for Brazil's Melo, who is anything but as he angrily stomps on Robben. Enjoy the Red Card District, Felipe.
• 5:30 and on - large, booming cheers of "HOLL-AND" clap-clap-clap, "HOLL-AND" clap-clap-clap ring through the entire bar as the excitement builds towards the fantastic finish.

When the final whistle blows after a few more nail-biting moments, the place erupts. (*Note - the quality of the video-making might be due to an impaired operator or poor camera - you decide).

We poured outside right after and grinning, slurring, joyous conversations were had for a few hours, before an exceedingly well-timed pizza and quiet at a friend's apartment nearby. Wow.

Tuesday could be another memorable night, as the Netherlands face a weaker but still dangerous Uruguay. Stay tuned.

And for the more involved football fans, some thoughts below on the team itself:

• Robin van Persie may yet redeem himself, but he is choking quite badly. And with his jittery insecurity/arrogance and lack of smarts, I wouldn't be surprised if he puts Holland in a very bad position before this tournament is over.
• Keeper Maarten Stekelenburg looks rock-solid and should give the Dutch added confidence.
• Wesley Sneijder is in top form - he and Arjen Robben are reasons alone to think that the Oranje could win it all.
• Those who really know the game here say that midfielder Mark van Bommel is the best player on the squad so far.
• Dirk Kuyt is the everyman's hero, well-loved in Holland for his work ethic and unassuming nature - a big contrast to the many outsized egos that make up much of the rest of the crew. And he is playing some fantastic football.

An ingenious red and yellow card system, helpful for those times when the challenge comes from speaking

Intermission

Note the superior Dutch sock in contrast to the measly Brazilian flip-flop

Post-game outside Barca

Post-post game carnage

Canada Day

Today is Canada's birthday. And it's been interesting to see the country from the outside for the past 9 months, and to hear how people view it over here. Some observations...

• Saying "I'm Canadian" still acts as an almost automatic goodwill passport - 8 times out of 10, people respond favourably and with a smile. The other times, the person is usually neutral or completely disinterested.

• The overwhelming reaction to the word 'Canada' is either one of "ah, nature" or "ah, cold". I do try to explain that we have modern, hip, bustling cities as well and that I've maybe seen 2 moose in my entire life. But this doesn't resonate with the listener.

• Note to Canada Tourism - you've done an excellent job showcasing mountains and lakes to the overseas population - these images are seared into people's impressions of us. It's time to update the brand - mix in some of the coolness of Montreal's summer nightlife, Vancouver's restaurant scene, Toronto's diversity, and please anything, anything but Calgary's cowboy image.

• We may not realize it inside our own borders, but we may want to tone down the chirpy smugness of being rated so highly as a place to live. It's nauseating to see a major clothing manufacturer say "The World Needs More Canada" (imagine any other country saying this - we'd think it was the height of arrogance), or idiotic Olympic poets saying things like "Canada is the 'what' in 'what's new'" to a global audience. Lame.

• While we're at it, let's stop sewing our flag on our backpacks when we go abroad - no one else does this, and for good reason. Pride is great, but it's even better when paired with humility.

• Seeing first-hand how so many countries struggle with integration of immigrants, it is all the more impressive to see how Canada has done it. Not perfectly, of course, but it seems (to my fairly uneducated eyes) head and shoulders above Europe and its tribal mentality.

• We need a 'thing'. Italians have their food, Belgians their beer, British their humour, Swiss their cheese. Bacon isn't sexy enough, and neither is hockey supremacy nor Celine Dion. Hmmm...I guess nature and politeness are perfectly fine, but still there must be something more. Maybe before next July 1 we can come up with something - till then, happy birthday homeland.