It's already approaching eleven when we arrive at Scheveningen's main boulevard. Rihanna Gaga has always been a sound sleeper, but the last two nights, sleeping has been difficult for her. As has eating. Something is definitely amiss, but it is hard to tell what. Is she teething? Is she ill? Is she going through a period where she's learning new skills that are tiring her out? There is no way telling, although, when she is like this, you end up guessing endlessly.
Although they occur very rarely, periods like these are tiresome, both for her and for her parents. One of the things that makes it bearable, is that my girlfriend and I have divided the days of the week when we take care of her. Mondays are for me (obviously), Tuesdays for her, Thursdays for me, Fridays for her, Saturdays for me and Sundays for her. Because a week has seven days, the Wednesdays alternate between us. It may sound a bit too rational and planned - and of course, if needs be we help each other out - but it really is the best parenting idea we've come up with so far. I hear so many parrents (of course, mostly mothers) complain about how hard it is to have a baby, and we never had that. We never argued about one of us doing more than the other and, most of all: we've never been too tired, because the next day, always, the other will take over and it has been like this almost from when she was born.
We're on our way to Cocomo Beachclub, on Scheveningen's main boulevard. Although the density of beach clubs is great here, you can't really miss Cocomo. Its colours will immediately catch your attention. Some of the beach clubs we've visited so far we're decorated in an extremely stylish way, with great care for detail, in tasteful shades of brown, white and grey. This is not the case with Cocomo Beachclub, as it visually shouts at you in a striking mix of purple, red, orange and yellow (all the more striking because its neighbour, Beachclub Bora, has exactly the same colours for its outside furniture). The pillows of the outside chairs and couches are all in these colours, standing around bright yellow tables. In between, there is straw and wooden parasols and sunshades.
Inside, the decoration is more subdued. The bright yellow remains the basic colour, with all the tables and chairs painted in this colour. The couches are, however, of untreated wood and covered with kilim pillows. On the walls, there's kilims too, and there are other ethnic touches as well, such as djembes hanging from the ceiling and Moroccan lampshades. It's a cloudy day, so we sit down on one of the couches next to a fireplace inlaid with mosaics. Rihanna Gaga's troubles seem to be forgotten: she's rather cheerful, turning round and around on the couch before sliding to the floor. Lately, she's been more obsessed with standing upright than ever, looking for opportunities to do so wherever she goes. She finds one in the couch, and later by the fireplace, where she stands while I feed her her fruit. After a while, however, she becomes very clingy. She's been so for a few days now, grabbing her mummy or me whenever she has a chance, climbing on our laps and even - for the first time in her life - attempting to kiss us.
The music is not her taste, so she ignores it mostly. A mix of mostly dreary ballads of the last thirty years is played, from Gloria Estefan to Alicia Keys, and none of them can make Rihanna Gaga dance. Instead, she plays with her little monkey and some other toys I brought along, crawls around and has great fun with Cocomo's colourful menu.
I order Cocomo's breakfast (€8,00), which is brought swiftly. Cocomo's breakfast is cheaper than most breakfasts around here and comes without the slabs of smoked salmon and cheese that are staple with most beach clubs. Instead, it includes fresh orange juice and a cup of coffee or tea, alongside yoghurt with fruit, a boiled egg, two slices of bread and a ciabatta with jam. I share the orange juice with Rihanna Gaga, as well as the mint tea I ordered with the breakfast and some pieces of bread.
One of the pleasant things about cocomos are the many plants, flowers and small trees in pots around the beach club. Beyond that, there's the sea. I forget sometimes how priviliged we are to live so close to the sea, but it really is special. There is something so tranquil, so soothing about the sea and the fact that here it is framed by flowers, plants and trees makes it even more so. In the background the waitresses are gossiping about their colleagues and the ballads keep coming. One of the waitresses tells me that Cocomo is thirteen years old and used to be "quite blank, not very colourful. Most of the beach clubs weren't back then". Well, that certainly has changed. She's worked here for ten years by now, she tells me.
For the first time during one of our breakfasts, Rihanna Gaga has pood. Luckily, Cocomo Beachclub has a baby changing station - a rare feat here, so that doesn't cause too much trouble. Then, after a while, she decides she's had enough. She starts to nag and cry and I decide it's time to leave. I pay and we make our way back home, where she will refuse to eat despite clearly being very hungry and won't sleep, no matter how tired she is. She does succum to both bread and sleep in the end, but this is definitely not one of her easy days. It doesn't matter - she's still the loveliest creature in the entire universe to me.
Although they occur very rarely, periods like these are tiresome, both for her and for her parents. One of the things that makes it bearable, is that my girlfriend and I have divided the days of the week when we take care of her. Mondays are for me (obviously), Tuesdays for her, Thursdays for me, Fridays for her, Saturdays for me and Sundays for her. Because a week has seven days, the Wednesdays alternate between us. It may sound a bit too rational and planned - and of course, if needs be we help each other out - but it really is the best parenting idea we've come up with so far. I hear so many parrents (of course, mostly mothers) complain about how hard it is to have a baby, and we never had that. We never argued about one of us doing more than the other and, most of all: we've never been too tired, because the next day, always, the other will take over and it has been like this almost from when she was born.
We're on our way to Cocomo Beachclub, on Scheveningen's main boulevard. Although the density of beach clubs is great here, you can't really miss Cocomo. Its colours will immediately catch your attention. Some of the beach clubs we've visited so far we're decorated in an extremely stylish way, with great care for detail, in tasteful shades of brown, white and grey. This is not the case with Cocomo Beachclub, as it visually shouts at you in a striking mix of purple, red, orange and yellow (all the more striking because its neighbour, Beachclub Bora, has exactly the same colours for its outside furniture). The pillows of the outside chairs and couches are all in these colours, standing around bright yellow tables. In between, there is straw and wooden parasols and sunshades.
Inside, the decoration is more subdued. The bright yellow remains the basic colour, with all the tables and chairs painted in this colour. The couches are, however, of untreated wood and covered with kilim pillows. On the walls, there's kilims too, and there are other ethnic touches as well, such as djembes hanging from the ceiling and Moroccan lampshades. It's a cloudy day, so we sit down on one of the couches next to a fireplace inlaid with mosaics. Rihanna Gaga's troubles seem to be forgotten: she's rather cheerful, turning round and around on the couch before sliding to the floor. Lately, she's been more obsessed with standing upright than ever, looking for opportunities to do so wherever she goes. She finds one in the couch, and later by the fireplace, where she stands while I feed her her fruit. After a while, however, she becomes very clingy. She's been so for a few days now, grabbing her mummy or me whenever she has a chance, climbing on our laps and even - for the first time in her life - attempting to kiss us.
The music is not her taste, so she ignores it mostly. A mix of mostly dreary ballads of the last thirty years is played, from Gloria Estefan to Alicia Keys, and none of them can make Rihanna Gaga dance. Instead, she plays with her little monkey and some other toys I brought along, crawls around and has great fun with Cocomo's colourful menu.
I order Cocomo's breakfast (€8,00), which is brought swiftly. Cocomo's breakfast is cheaper than most breakfasts around here and comes without the slabs of smoked salmon and cheese that are staple with most beach clubs. Instead, it includes fresh orange juice and a cup of coffee or tea, alongside yoghurt with fruit, a boiled egg, two slices of bread and a ciabatta with jam. I share the orange juice with Rihanna Gaga, as well as the mint tea I ordered with the breakfast and some pieces of bread.
One of the pleasant things about cocomos are the many plants, flowers and small trees in pots around the beach club. Beyond that, there's the sea. I forget sometimes how priviliged we are to live so close to the sea, but it really is special. There is something so tranquil, so soothing about the sea and the fact that here it is framed by flowers, plants and trees makes it even more so. In the background the waitresses are gossiping about their colleagues and the ballads keep coming. One of the waitresses tells me that Cocomo is thirteen years old and used to be "quite blank, not very colourful. Most of the beach clubs weren't back then". Well, that certainly has changed. She's worked here for ten years by now, she tells me.For the first time during one of our breakfasts, Rihanna Gaga has pood. Luckily, Cocomo Beachclub has a baby changing station - a rare feat here, so that doesn't cause too much trouble. Then, after a while, she decides she's had enough. She starts to nag and cry and I decide it's time to leave. I pay and we make our way back home, where she will refuse to eat despite clearly being very hungry and won't sleep, no matter how tired she is. She does succum to both bread and sleep in the end, but this is definitely not one of her easy days. It doesn't matter - she's still the loveliest creature in the entire universe to me.
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten