Sail de Ruyter ('the Writer'), Vlissingen

Extremely difficult for the uninitiated to pronounce the Dutch 'uy' combination. To help you somewhat, try pronouncing the English 'oo' but with your lips formed as though you actually want to say 'eye' (as in 'aye aye, Captain) instead. After a glass of wine or vodka, it should work.

Vlissingen is in Zeeland (yup, again) and the name metamorphosed into 'Flushing' as in 'Flushing Meadows', which is one of those places where the Dutch settled after they founded New York (which used to be New Amsterdam, if you remember your history book). Funny thing was when I was looking at the weather forecast for Vlissingen today and found the English MSN weather site, they called it 'Flushing, NLD'. Of course I mailed them right away and told them that tourists would never find the town 'Flushing' if they consulted a Dutch map.

Raining the whole day there, according to the weather report, so I procrastinated the whole day as well ... till right after dinner, when I decided to give it a shot. By that time, most of the crowd that had gathered to watch the tall ships participating in the sailing and boat show event had gone home to dinner and football, and so I almost had the whole parking area to myself, with some 15 other cars, all of us lucky; and dry, too, because the rain had stopped about an hour before I arrived.

Have decided not to go to France tomorrow, so I just might visit here again. Sail de Ruyter will close and I think the sight of those tall ships departing will be just grand. I hope they unfurl their sails.