Big Bear Buinen and Gronigen

Wednesday 18 May -  We played the Big Bear Festival in Zuidlaren for Rienk Jannsen and his great company "Strictly Country Records" on Monday in a wonderful concert setting.  We were part of the day's shows that included Chris & Sally Jones Band, Jim and Jennie and the Pinetops, Fragment (A great Czech. Band) Bill and Maggie Anderson and a Mother and Daughter Duo from Alberta Canada, The Myrols and more.  Afterwards there was jamming in the shower/locker rooms with Chris, Roger and Lincoln trading licks with Ned Lubrecki (banjo) (sp?) and Jon Weisberger (bass) of Chris and Sally's band, great stuff.  After the show, Rienk took all the bands out to a great meal and some fine cameraderie.  

 

We had yesterday (Tue) off and took care of a few chores.   Chris, Linc and I drove back into Gronigen, our favorite little City here thus far.  Once we got the parking figured out, we dove back down into the city center (Centrum) where all the cobblestone and brick streets are laid out like a wheel with the Centrum as the hub, greenways with walk and bike/scooter paths encircle the center, that in turn is bordered all around by canals where you see neat house boats and canal barges tied up neatly.  "Neat" could be the buzz word for "Dutch" IMHO.

 

Ï read in "Lonely Planet"a guide to Western Europe a section on the Netherlands that helped me understand how the society here can have such a liberal society and still maintain a healthy society.  I quote:

 

Society & Conduct:  The Dutch are know for their tolerance, which perhaps has stemmed from "verzuiling" (pillarisation).  This is the custom of dividing society into compartment or pillars which although seperate from each other, support society as a whole.  In this way any group that demands a place in society can have it, and the balance is kept by and overall attitude of ágreeeing to disagree.

 

Don't know much, but seems like a healthy idea to me....

 

Cecil