One of the cool things about traveling in a country where you have roots is that even though everything is completely foreign (It will be a long time before Seth can forgive the Dutch Department of Transportation for the way they regulate their roads), you keep running into things that are very nearly the same.

 

Being products of Dutch immigrants in community, upbringing, and education, we were amused to see very familiar names popping up in slightly unfamiliar contexts.  For example, there are several Roozebooms at my parents' church, but I don't think any of them sell RVs. 

 

I bet the Dekkers that I went to high school with would be surprised to find out they have a whole land waiting for them over there.  How does one get a land named after one anyway?

The names weren't restricted to the Dutch.  I know some Havenses, and I believe they're Irish in their roots. But who knows why some names show up in foreign places? 

 

I mean really, who knows?  This sign says "100% Bob, 0% Op."  You know that you get if you run that through Google translator?  "100% Bob, 0% Op."  Not very helpful.  Still, Bob, here's looking at you. 

We found that a lot of our old friends have moved into logistics since we've seen them last.  I used to clean carpets under these people.

 

And Heather, if you ever get tired of the ministry, you could ask your relatives for a job. 

 

Even, look, right there?  Is it? Could it be?  Yep, Atsma shipping!  Or something like that. 

 I'm not sure what James and Alli have been doing in the great NL, but it looks pretty successful. 

  I learned a long time ago not to underestimate college professors, but dancing isn't the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Dr. Veenstra, my speech professor. 

 

And then there are those random names that you just have to take a picture of.  "Give it to us wrawwww and wriggling, and keep nasty chips." 

 Of course, if one is looking for familiar names (and by this point, we were.  It was just too good to resist.), the best place to look is a graveyard.  Here, on the headstones of Toppenhuizen and Utwellinga, I found a few old schoolmates. 

I even found that I might be distantly related to some of them.  Let's see.  If Seth's grandmother is a Wijnja, and Geertje Koopmans was born in 1908, that would put here about great-grandmother age to the Koopmans I went to highschool with, so what would that make us? 

When the Dutch hyphenate their last names, they put the husband's surname first so that husband and wife will still be alphabetical.  So Megan Fopma-DeGroot, it's been done once already. 

And here's another coincidence of last names that could be a double relation.  Seth is an Atsma (and this is certainly one of his family line because he's a Gerben.  Gerbens run in the family.  So do Ruurd's [see below]).  I have a cousin who married a De Jong. 

 

And my folks have been friends with De Jagers since before I was born. 

 If you'll look closely, you'll see a Postma, a Kok, a Broersma, a de Vries, a Hettinga, and a Veldhuisen.  Bingo!  My card's full.