Strandpaviljoen De Kust

It's an early Saturday morning, but De Kust is already quite crowded. It is clearly a popular hangout, and people seem to have come on time to ensure that they get the best lounging spots with a view on the beach. I'm not sure what kind of look De Kust is going for. 'Aggressive' might be a good description: it's all cow skulls, buffalo skin and army nets. Its terraces are large, very large, and filled with wooden sculptures of Buddha and tribal icons. De Kust is in Kijkduin and the crowds here are definitely different from the ones in Scheveningen. Where in Scheveningen, the public is mostly a mix of surfers, hip partygoers and tourists, here there is a more local feel. Most people look like regulars, completely at ease in De Kust's many lounge couches.

We cycled here through the Dunes - quite a long trip, that we mostly spent chatting about the fact that the earth is a globe and how this means that when it is morning in the Netherlands, it's afternoon in Indonesia and night in America. It's a topic Rihanna Gaga often returns to lately and a metaphor I came up with, namely that it's very much like a carousel, seems to make it more clear to her. Rihanna Gaga has lots of energy, this Saturday. Last Thursday was the last day of school and her birthday is tomorrow. On Wednesday, we had a party for her friends, that we spent doing a scavenger hunt through the beautiful nearby rosarium of the Westbroekpark. Tomorrow, friends and family will come.

And what a year it has been! As hesitantly as she started school, everything being new and overwhelming - as much for us as for her, I would say - she is now an extremely confident girl. She's always been incredibly headstrong (I will never forget how angry she was, three days old, when I did something wrong and had to delay giving her her bottle: she didn't cry, did not flinch - she just glared at me with utter annoyance) and I think it is this characteristic that really got her through in the end. She has a large group of friends around her and seems to genuinely enjoy life to the fullest, most of the time. Inventive, creative and smart - albeit a bit lazy, sometimes - and with a great sense of humour. It really is very nice being her dad.

As for me, I am tired. Not only because I did not get enough sleep - Rihanna Gaga was up during part of the night because she couldn't sleep, something that doesn't happen a lot - but also because it's been a tough time. There were the tensions of buying our first house, doing two jobs at two different parts of the country - and not really liking one of those jobs very much. Well, at least that seems to have come to an end. Last week I heard that I can continue full time as an assistant professor again. Back to research and teaching! The road towards this goal was bumpy, though, with an incredible stressful job application and interview. To say nothing of the doubts of whether I am really good enough to work in academia.

But all that is irrelevant now. The sky is almost without clouds, there is a fresh sea breeze to counterbalance the summer heat and De Kust's couches are cozy. Rihanna Gaga is off to the trampoline and I order an apple juice for her, as well as a tea for myself. There's a set breakfast that looks simple but appealing: mini bread rolls, boiled egg, ham and cheese, as well as some salad (€8,50), so I order that too. Rihanna Gaga said she'd like to have a pancake, and although those are ont he menu, they will only be available after twelve o'clock so we will have to forego those.  Rihanna Gaga comes back from the trampoline and asks me to get the activities book that she got from one of her friends for her birthday. It's a nice, Gruffalo themed book, with lots of stickers and opportunities for drawing. We do a few pages together and then the food is brought.

As usual, Rihanna Gaga gets the croissant - there is a small one included in the breakfast. She also takes a few cherry tomatoes from the salad, the boiled egg and two small bags of chocolate sprinkles. She's in a chilled out mood and lies down on the couch while eating. I eat the three breadrolls with ham and cheese, and the rest of the salad. I also take the fresh orange juice that comes with the breakfast. It's small and nothing special, but perfectly alright for the price. When we're finished with the food, Rihanna Gaga asks if she can have a chocolate milk as well, so I order one. When it's brought, she is jumping on the trampoline again, but soon she returns to have her chocolate milk and work in the activities book together with me again.

After a while, she wants to go to a nearby playground, so I pay and get up. When I arrive at the playground, Rihanna Gaga is already turning on a horizontal bar, getting on a climbing frame and swinging from rings. We spend a good deal of time there, before getting on our bike to return home.