This is probably the last breakfast at the beach on a Saturday. It is time we switched back to our regular Mondays, so this week will probably have two breakfasts at the beach.
For now, we're heading to the souther beaches, very likely for the last time. Not a lot of beach clubs are open early in the morning here and we have been to most of those that are. In fact, we have to walk all the way to the last beach club of this group to find one we haven't yet visited that isn't closed or only open to private parties: Beachclub Down Under.
The sky is dark grey, but the temperature is quite high. As we enter the terrace, I hear a familiar guitar solo: the final solo of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb". I hum along - Pink Floyd is a guilty pleasure of mine. It's the live version from 1987, in which the guitar solo goes on forever - and ever, and ever, and ever. Normally I despise these rock egotrips, but this is very, very good. In fact, the rest of this live version is pretty mediocre, but the guitar solo really takes the song to another level.
As could be expected, Rihanna Gaga cares not for this music. She quite likes early pink floyd - the psychedelic, Beatlesque songs written by the group's first singer, Syd Barett, were some of the first songs I sang for her. They are very much like nursery songs anyway and I know them better than the children's songs from my own youth. But the type of dinosaur rock that is the later Pink Floyd doesn't appeal to her. However, that is exactly what they continue to play at Down under: a selection of songs from Pink Floyd's last two records - the ones without the group's main songwriter. Many people hate these two collections of songs and I must admit: they are pretty awful if you look at it objectively. However, I must admit I quite enjoy these tunes and can sing along to all of them - which I do. If Rihanna Gaga were in her teens, she would probably be very embarassed by her dad right now.
Both my girlfriend and I order the set breakfast, consisting of orange juice, yoghurt with muesli, a bun, a croissant, cappucino, cheese, ham and bacon and eggs (€9,50). It arrives fast and is pretty good. Rihanna Gaga nibbles on bits of bread we give her and drinks large amounts of orange juice through a straw. She seems to be enjoying herself, walking around the table on the terrace where we sit and babbling away happily. At a certain moment, a big black labrador breaks loose from the group it belongs to and approaches her. She's usually quite interested in animals, always greeting them with a cheerful 'hi!' But this one comes to close and she starts to whimper, so I pick her up. The dog itself is clearly harmless, a friendly soul. It ignores Rihanna Gaga and swallows whole a plastic cup containing Nutella. A woman notices the dog has gone and hastens to take it away from us, apologising for the inconvenience. I tell her its alright, really.
The woman returns to her group, consisting of several couples of thirty-somethings who are discussing the night before, which was apparently quite exciting with too much alcohol and random people randomly hugging each other. "Why don't we have exciting nights like that?" I jokingly ask my girlfriend. But frankly: I couldn't care for nights like that anymore and that's not because I'm a father now (though being hungover around a noisy child must be terrible - but then again, being hungover is always quite horrible anyway). It's never as much fun as it sounds and I stopped having these kind of nights long before the baby came. It's probably a positive thing about having a baby when you're a bit older (I was 36 when Rihanna Gaga was born). I've seen it happen among many of my friends who had babies around when they were 30, that they - especially the men - tend to blame the baby for the sudden end to their nightlife and freedom. But this happens around this age for anyone, baby or no baby - it's a natural thing and having a baby a bit later in life makes you realise that.
Down under doesn't have an elaborate design like some other beach clubs. There is one moderately sized Buddha statue inside, a Chinese looking one. For the rest, the decoration consists mostly of surfer parephernalia: boards, suits and other surfer related stuff. The atmosphere suits the decoration: a laid back surfer vibe that can be found in more beach clubs around here.
Rihanna Gaga is getting tired. When we walk back to our bicycle, she refuses to be carried and insists on walking herself, holding my hand. When my girlfriend tries to take her other hand, she refuses this as well, with an insulted look on her face. The message is clear: she's a big girl now!
For now, we're heading to the souther beaches, very likely for the last time. Not a lot of beach clubs are open early in the morning here and we have been to most of those that are. In fact, we have to walk all the way to the last beach club of this group to find one we haven't yet visited that isn't closed or only open to private parties: Beachclub Down Under.
The sky is dark grey, but the temperature is quite high. As we enter the terrace, I hear a familiar guitar solo: the final solo of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb". I hum along - Pink Floyd is a guilty pleasure of mine. It's the live version from 1987, in which the guitar solo goes on forever - and ever, and ever, and ever. Normally I despise these rock egotrips, but this is very, very good. In fact, the rest of this live version is pretty mediocre, but the guitar solo really takes the song to another level.
As could be expected, Rihanna Gaga cares not for this music. She quite likes early pink floyd - the psychedelic, Beatlesque songs written by the group's first singer, Syd Barett, were some of the first songs I sang for her. They are very much like nursery songs anyway and I know them better than the children's songs from my own youth. But the type of dinosaur rock that is the later Pink Floyd doesn't appeal to her. However, that is exactly what they continue to play at Down under: a selection of songs from Pink Floyd's last two records - the ones without the group's main songwriter. Many people hate these two collections of songs and I must admit: they are pretty awful if you look at it objectively. However, I must admit I quite enjoy these tunes and can sing along to all of them - which I do. If Rihanna Gaga were in her teens, she would probably be very embarassed by her dad right now.
Both my girlfriend and I order the set breakfast, consisting of orange juice, yoghurt with muesli, a bun, a croissant, cappucino, cheese, ham and bacon and eggs (€9,50). It arrives fast and is pretty good. Rihanna Gaga nibbles on bits of bread we give her and drinks large amounts of orange juice through a straw. She seems to be enjoying herself, walking around the table on the terrace where we sit and babbling away happily. At a certain moment, a big black labrador breaks loose from the group it belongs to and approaches her. She's usually quite interested in animals, always greeting them with a cheerful 'hi!' But this one comes to close and she starts to whimper, so I pick her up. The dog itself is clearly harmless, a friendly soul. It ignores Rihanna Gaga and swallows whole a plastic cup containing Nutella. A woman notices the dog has gone and hastens to take it away from us, apologising for the inconvenience. I tell her its alright, really.
The woman returns to her group, consisting of several couples of thirty-somethings who are discussing the night before, which was apparently quite exciting with too much alcohol and random people randomly hugging each other. "Why don't we have exciting nights like that?" I jokingly ask my girlfriend. But frankly: I couldn't care for nights like that anymore and that's not because I'm a father now (though being hungover around a noisy child must be terrible - but then again, being hungover is always quite horrible anyway). It's never as much fun as it sounds and I stopped having these kind of nights long before the baby came. It's probably a positive thing about having a baby when you're a bit older (I was 36 when Rihanna Gaga was born). I've seen it happen among many of my friends who had babies around when they were 30, that they - especially the men - tend to blame the baby for the sudden end to their nightlife and freedom. But this happens around this age for anyone, baby or no baby - it's a natural thing and having a baby a bit later in life makes you realise that.
Down under doesn't have an elaborate design like some other beach clubs. There is one moderately sized Buddha statue inside, a Chinese looking one. For the rest, the decoration consists mostly of surfer parephernalia: boards, suits and other surfer related stuff. The atmosphere suits the decoration: a laid back surfer vibe that can be found in more beach clubs around here.
Rihanna Gaga is getting tired. When we walk back to our bicycle, she refuses to be carried and insists on walking herself, holding my hand. When my girlfriend tries to take her other hand, she refuses this as well, with an insulted look on her face. The message is clear: she's a big girl now!
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