The sky is bright blue as we walk to the beach in the brisk early Monday morning air. It's a short walk, as we are heading for Strandpaviljoen Boonoonoonoos, which is the beach club closest to our home - just about 10 minutes by foot.
It's a breakfast at the beach as it's meant to be: we arrive around 9:30, so this is the earliest breakfast in many weeks. Rihanna Gaga slept till 8:30 today, so we could go to the beach straight after her breakfast. Normally, she'll wake around 7 o'clock, have breakfast and then get tired around 8:30, meaning we can only leave the house after she's had a nap.
She probably slept so long because she went to bed quite late yesterday: the two of us went to Amsterdam to visit a good friend of mine and we stayed for dinner. We arrived back home around 9 o'clock in the evening, far past Rihanna Gaga's bedtime. But she didn't complain: she loves travelling by train, and she liked the buzz of Amsterdam's busy streets.
When we arrive, there's some disco music on, to which she immediately starts dancing. Later on there's mostly lounge and trip hop playing, songs with lyrics like "Don't stress, it ruins everything, even happiness". Sitting at the terrace of Boonoonoonoos this beautiful Monday morning, it would be hard not to take this advice to heart. The sun is shining and Boonoonoonoos has a decidedly relaxed atmosphere. Painted bright blue, its walls are covered in murals of tropical islands and the terrace is livened up by several olive trees. Inside, the decoration is late nineties over-the-top, with plastic chandeliers, lots of green plants and comfortable couches. The most striking thing at Boonoonoonoos, however, are its Buddhas. Unlike a beach club like Bliss, Boonoonoonoos is not going for numbers, but for size. Two gigantic Buddha statues adorn the terrace, one lying buddha in the front and a sitting Buddha in the back. Of course, the combination of its Carribean name (beside being the title of a Boney M. album, "Boonoonoonoos" is a Carribean word meaning 'happiness') and these Thai looking Buddhas is a bit odd, but this beach club is clearly not designed around a unified theme like some other places around here. It's more a rather postmodern affair with everything that slightly denotes 'tropical', 'relaxation' and 'dont stress' - paintings of surfboards and beaches, candles, Buddhas, a Carribean name - thrown into the mix.
We order the set breakfast (€11,50), which is a lush affair containing a small croissant, two thick slices of bread, fried eggs, sausages, ham and salami, gouda cheese and French cheese, salad, fruit and yoghurt, orange juice, chocolate sprinkles, jam and butter. Rihanna Gaga is rather keen on sampling everything that is laid out on the table, drinking the orange juice through a straw and picking pieces of fruit, bread, salad and egg from the table. I also feed her some yoghurt. When I want to start eating myself, I discover that there is no cutlery, so we walk to the main building to get some. When we return, a crow is eating the croissant. The sassy animal knows no shame and continues to eat until I shoo it away. It keeps hanging around, however, looking out for a chance to pick other things from our table. The waitress tells me they have tried everything, but can't chase the bird away. Only when the seagulls arrive later in the day - coming for the French fries and other greasy food - it leaves.
It's about 10:30 when Rihanna Gaga is visibly getting tired. We pay and as we come back for Rihanna Gaga's stroller, I see the crow quickly flying away with the rest of the croissant.
It's a breakfast at the beach as it's meant to be: we arrive around 9:30, so this is the earliest breakfast in many weeks. Rihanna Gaga slept till 8:30 today, so we could go to the beach straight after her breakfast. Normally, she'll wake around 7 o'clock, have breakfast and then get tired around 8:30, meaning we can only leave the house after she's had a nap.
She probably slept so long because she went to bed quite late yesterday: the two of us went to Amsterdam to visit a good friend of mine and we stayed for dinner. We arrived back home around 9 o'clock in the evening, far past Rihanna Gaga's bedtime. But she didn't complain: she loves travelling by train, and she liked the buzz of Amsterdam's busy streets.
When we arrive, there's some disco music on, to which she immediately starts dancing. Later on there's mostly lounge and trip hop playing, songs with lyrics like "Don't stress, it ruins everything, even happiness". Sitting at the terrace of Boonoonoonoos this beautiful Monday morning, it would be hard not to take this advice to heart. The sun is shining and Boonoonoonoos has a decidedly relaxed atmosphere. Painted bright blue, its walls are covered in murals of tropical islands and the terrace is livened up by several olive trees. Inside, the decoration is late nineties over-the-top, with plastic chandeliers, lots of green plants and comfortable couches. The most striking thing at Boonoonoonoos, however, are its Buddhas. Unlike a beach club like Bliss, Boonoonoonoos is not going for numbers, but for size. Two gigantic Buddha statues adorn the terrace, one lying buddha in the front and a sitting Buddha in the back. Of course, the combination of its Carribean name (beside being the title of a Boney M. album, "Boonoonoonoos" is a Carribean word meaning 'happiness') and these Thai looking Buddhas is a bit odd, but this beach club is clearly not designed around a unified theme like some other places around here. It's more a rather postmodern affair with everything that slightly denotes 'tropical', 'relaxation' and 'dont stress' - paintings of surfboards and beaches, candles, Buddhas, a Carribean name - thrown into the mix. We order the set breakfast (€11,50), which is a lush affair containing a small croissant, two thick slices of bread, fried eggs, sausages, ham and salami, gouda cheese and French cheese, salad, fruit and yoghurt, orange juice, chocolate sprinkles, jam and butter. Rihanna Gaga is rather keen on sampling everything that is laid out on the table, drinking the orange juice through a straw and picking pieces of fruit, bread, salad and egg from the table. I also feed her some yoghurt. When I want to start eating myself, I discover that there is no cutlery, so we walk to the main building to get some. When we return, a crow is eating the croissant. The sassy animal knows no shame and continues to eat until I shoo it away. It keeps hanging around, however, looking out for a chance to pick other things from our table. The waitress tells me they have tried everything, but can't chase the bird away. Only when the seagulls arrive later in the day - coming for the French fries and other greasy food - it leaves.
It's about 10:30 when Rihanna Gaga is visibly getting tired. We pay and as we come back for Rihanna Gaga's stroller, I see the crow quickly flying away with the rest of the croissant.
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