Scream for Ice!
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Page Under Construction- Will deal with ice skating- particularly the '11 Cites Race' of Holland, and a 'Fire Tong Punch' festivity which follows an evening of skating..
Plans are in progress for a "Golden Skate" rollerblading race to mimic the winter ice-skating races of Holland. The name of the event will be the 'Haerlem Rose' (tulip) race. ('Haerlem' was an old fashioned variant of 'Harlem' in the U.S. and 'Haarlem' in Holland.)
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| 11 Cities Marathon in Holland |
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| Race Route |
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The biggest ice skating event in the world is the 'Eleven Cities Marathon' of Northern Holland. The marathon takes place on the coldest day of the coldest years and is one of the biggest festivals in Hollands!
Each winter the Belgian Club of Northern California kicks off the year with a skating event at one of the local Ice Rinks.
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The 'Fire Tong Punch', or 'Brandzangenbowle', festivity is based on the German 'Feuerzangenbowle' tradition. It is centered around watching a Flemish comedy film while drinking mulled punch.
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| Plus Ice Hockey |
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| ...and regular ice skating |
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| The coastal town of Haerlem, in Holland, can be considered to be a window of the Netherlands to the world. The valiant resistance by the citizens of Haerlem (in particular the women) against invading Spanish troops marked the beginning of the Dutch war for independance from Spain.
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The wreck of the ship, the 'Nieuw Haerlem', in the bay of Cape Town served as the beginning of the Dutch colonialization of South Africa. While waiting for a return ship to Holland, the survivors of the 'Nieuw Haerlem' laid the groundwork for the establishment of Cape Town.
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| The home of Northern California Roller-blading is "Car-free Sundays" on Canada Road in Silicon Valley. (San Mateo County Parks photo) |
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| The "Bicycle-Sunday" road connects to an excellent roller-blading path along Crystal Springs reservoir which is open every day. (San Mateo County Parks map.) |
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