11/04/2008
Election Day
Today is Election Day in the USA. And after the strange and chaotic procedures of 2000 and 2004, The Wombat decided to see for himself if everything will be going nice and fair. So, posting outside The White House in Washington, our attentive friend will keep an eye on who will be its next inhabitant!
8/06/2008
A Folk-y Day in Belgium
Summertime is Music Festival Time! And last friday The Wombat hopped in the car to visit the Dranouter Folk Festival in Belgium.
After a long drive (and a few dashboard naps) our furry music lover arrived at the smal village of Dranouter, right on the French-Belgian border.
And what a beautiful place for a folk festval! Rolling hills, green fields, blue skies: it was going to be a pefect day!
In the evening the folky marsupial watched the wonderful ladies of Varttina and their traditional Finnish folk on the main stage. The highlight of the day, however, was a one-off performance by Tori Amos. Her first solo concert in some years, and her first as an independent artist, it was something special! Just like the rest of the crowd, The Wombat loved every minute of it!
Afterwards, The Wombat was lucky enough to meet Tori and to thank her in person for her gorgeous show. Tanks, Tori!
And before you know it, it's the middle of the night. The music over, the dark sky full of stars. A perfect day it was!
After a long drive (and a few dashboard naps) our furry music lover arrived at the smal village of Dranouter, right on the French-Belgian border. And what a beautiful place for a folk festval! Rolling hills, green fields, blue skies: it was going to be a pefect day!
First things first: Getting an entrance bracelet and a program. And the planning; who plays where and when?
The Wombat decided on seeing singer/song writers Eva De Roovere and Isabella A and the fun loving De Dolfijntjes first. And between the acts there was a lot more to see and do.
In the evening the folky marsupial watched the wonderful ladies of Varttina and their traditional Finnish folk on the main stage. The highlight of the day, however, was a one-off performance by Tori Amos. Her first solo concert in some years, and her first as an independent artist, it was something special! Just like the rest of the crowd, The Wombat loved every minute of it! Afterwards, The Wombat was lucky enough to meet Tori and to thank her in person for her gorgeous show. Tanks, Tori! And before you know it, it's the middle of the night. The music over, the dark sky full of stars. A perfect day it was!7/25/2008
Thank God I'm a Country Wombat!
Being a bit of a Country Wombat, our line dancing marsupial was overjoyed when the legendary Dolly Parton played the Ahoy' Arena in Rotterdam last month. And of course, The Wombat just HAD to be there!
And what an experience it was! With a great band, great performance and great hair (among other great things...) the show was absolutely fabulous! Jolene, Little Sparrow, Coat of Many Colours, Baby I'm Burning and of course I Will Always Love You: all Dolly's hits were there, just like Shinola, The Wombat's current favourite from her latest album Backwoods Barbie. And the crowd of fags, drags and good old country folk loved every minute of the show!!
Afterwards, The Wombat had its wish come true when bumbing into Dolly herself!!! Perhaps Miss Parton was just as impressed by The Wombat as the other way around. Sadly, due to her busy schedule, they couldn't talk for long: after an inpromtu, but heart-felt duet of Islands In the Stream, she had to leave.
I will always love you, Dolly Parton!
And what an experience it was! With a great band, great performance and great hair (among other great things...) the show was absolutely fabulous! Jolene, Little Sparrow, Coat of Many Colours, Baby I'm Burning and of course I Will Always Love You: all Dolly's hits were there, just like Shinola, The Wombat's current favourite from her latest album Backwoods Barbie. And the crowd of fags, drags and good old country folk loved every minute of the show!!Afterwards, The Wombat had its wish come true when bumbing into Dolly herself!!! Perhaps Miss Parton was just as impressed by The Wombat as the other way around. Sadly, due to her busy schedule, they couldn't talk for long: after an inpromtu, but heart-felt duet of Islands In the Stream, she had to leave.I will always love you, Dolly Parton!
6/15/2008
Wombat As Police Woman
Last week Joan As Police Woman released her gorgeous second album To Survive. Being a great fan of her first album, The Wombat was very excited she was playing The Melkweg in Amsterdam to promote the new release. The concert exceeded TheWombat's expectations!
After the show, The Wombat got to meet Joan to complement her with her performance. Although our Furry Music Lover was a bit shy at first, they got along great, chatting away about their common fear of Magpies and joining the Police Force. "Thank you, Joan, for a great show!"
After the show, The Wombat got to meet Joan to complement her with her performance. Although our Furry Music Lover was a bit shy at first, they got along great, chatting away about their common fear of Magpies and joining the Police Force. "Thank you, Joan, for a great show!"
6/09/2008
Wombat Kong
Being in New York for the first time last month, The Wombat couldn't resist: he HAD to climb the Empire State Building!!
5/29/2008
I Know You're Married, But...
Last night, The Wombat was at a Martha Wainwright concert at Paradiso in Amsterdam. It was the first time our Furry Friend saw Martha live, and it was great!!! What a wonderful performance. Some of the many highlights were You Cheated Me, In the Middle of the Night and her gorgeous cover of Stormy Weather. Lucky Wombat will be seeing her again tomorrow, but not before Martha and The Wombat took a picture cheek to cheek.
"Geeze," The Wombat admitted, "I know you're married, but I've got feelings too!"
See you tomorrow, Martha!
"Geeze," The Wombat admitted, "I know you're married, but I've got feelings too!"
See you tomorrow, Martha!
5/25/2008
Postcards From the Edge
Back on board of the Grigory Mikeev, The Wombat helped preparing what has to be 'The Most Soutern BBQ'(TM)!
While others were preparing food or trying to get the BBQ heated up, our furry globetrotter took care of the punch, adding one or two secret ingredients for this special evening.
And it WAS a special evening! The food was great and, not in the least thanks to the Wombat-Punch, everybody was having a great time! Diver Greg did his best to get The Wombat to reveal the secret ingredients (but with very little succes).
The next day, the Grigory Mikeev set course: further south...
... and on the way passing Port Lockroy. Discovered in 1903, it has been used for whaling and it served as a militairy base. At present, though, it houses a small museum and the world's most Soutern Post Office! (Though a postcard still hasn't arrived!)
After all these festivities and cultural interludes, The Wombat went on another expedition into the Antarctic Wild.
First our marsupial adventurer came upon a small troup of Chinstrap Penguins. They seemed, however, more interested in shaking off their loose feathers, than in inter-animal discussions. What a shame. Obviously, these Chinstrap Penguins were not as curious and open minded as the wonderful Gentoos!
A bit further down the rough coast, the little brave one encountered another South Pole inhabitant: a lone Fur Seal. After trying several times to make contact, The Wombat was not able to get more than a few words out of the Seal. Apparantly he had other things on his mind.
A little disappointed, The Wombat returned to the ship. Discussing its findings with diver Debbie cheered The Wombat up a bit. Although not every encounter was as expected, our furry friend had learned a lot about Antarctic life! 
After returning to Argentinian main land, The Wombat took a couple of days to relax in the beautiful city of Buenos Aires. On a big map on the Plaza de la Republica The Wombat could overlook the distance travelled from Tierra del Fuego to the capital.
After the obligatory snapshot before the giant Obelisk on the Plaza de la Republica, The Wombat did some sight seeing. But after this wonderful, exciting and exhausting expedition, the best thing was...
... enjoying the peace and quiet in the shadows of the trees in the Japanese Garden of Buenos Aires, dreaming of all things still to come.
While others were preparing food or trying to get the BBQ heated up, our furry globetrotter took care of the punch, adding one or two secret ingredients for this special evening.And it WAS a special evening! The food was great and, not in the least thanks to the Wombat-Punch, everybody was having a great time! Diver Greg did his best to get The Wombat to reveal the secret ingredients (but with very little succes).
The next day, the Grigory Mikeev set course: further south...... and on the way passing Port Lockroy. Discovered in 1903, it has been used for whaling and it served as a militairy base. At present, though, it houses a small museum and the world's most Soutern Post Office! (Though a postcard still hasn't arrived!)After all these festivities and cultural interludes, The Wombat went on another expedition into the Antarctic Wild.First our marsupial adventurer came upon a small troup of Chinstrap Penguins. They seemed, however, more interested in shaking off their loose feathers, than in inter-animal discussions. What a shame. Obviously, these Chinstrap Penguins were not as curious and open minded as the wonderful Gentoos!A bit further down the rough coast, the little brave one encountered another South Pole inhabitant: a lone Fur Seal. After trying several times to make contact, The Wombat was not able to get more than a few words out of the Seal. Apparantly he had other things on his mind.A little disappointed, The Wombat returned to the ship. Discussing its findings with diver Debbie cheered The Wombat up a bit. Although not every encounter was as expected, our furry friend had learned a lot about Antarctic life! Yeah! It was a great expedition!!
But not over yet!
After returning to Argentinian main land, The Wombat took a couple of days to relax in the beautiful city of Buenos Aires. On a big map on the Plaza de la Republica The Wombat could overlook the distance travelled from Tierra del Fuego to the capital.After the obligatory snapshot before the giant Obelisk on the Plaza de la Republica, The Wombat did some sight seeing. But after this wonderful, exciting and exhausting expedition, the best thing was...... enjoying the peace and quiet in the shadows of the trees in the Japanese Garden of Buenos Aires, dreaming of all things still to come.5/04/2008
Southland Tales
Sailing the rough waters of the Southern Ocean, the Grigory Mikeev, with on board our brave Marsupial, set course to the South Pole.
Fighting off seasickness, The Wombat was overwhelmed by the panoramas of endless blue skies and the waves of the grey Ocean. Finally our friend laid eyes on the Antarctic Peninsula through the port-hole. The Wombat couldn't wait to set foot on solid ground!
Together with Rico, one of the divers of the expedition, our furry friend made plans on discovering the icy world out there. In a small boat they took of, off to see the penguins!
Almost immediately after landing on the rocky beach there were penguins galore! Careful at first, The Wombat set off making contact.
Quietly our adventurer aproached the nearest walking bird and concluded it was a Gentoo Penguin. As there was not much of a hiding place on the rough shore, The Wombat soon got noticed...
After the initial awkwardness, however, The Wombat and the Gentoo got on great! The Wombat got to learn a lot about Antarctic life, and particularly about penguins.
It was only when it started snowing that Gentoo returned to its friends, leaving The Wombat to ponder about this interesting meeting.
After this little solo expedition, our cuddly friend returned to Monica, the head of the group of South Pole Adventurers, to tell about all its findings. What a great start! But there was still more to come...
Fighting off seasickness, The Wombat was overwhelmed by the panoramas of endless blue skies and the waves of the grey Ocean. Finally our friend laid eyes on the Antarctic Peninsula through the port-hole. The Wombat couldn't wait to set foot on solid ground!Together with Rico, one of the divers of the expedition, our furry friend made plans on discovering the icy world out there. In a small boat they took of, off to see the penguins!Almost immediately after landing on the rocky beach there were penguins galore! Careful at first, The Wombat set off making contact.Quietly our adventurer aproached the nearest walking bird and concluded it was a Gentoo Penguin. As there was not much of a hiding place on the rough shore, The Wombat soon got noticed... After the initial awkwardness, however, The Wombat and the Gentoo got on great! The Wombat got to learn a lot about Antarctic life, and particularly about penguins.It was only when it started snowing that Gentoo returned to its friends, leaving The Wombat to ponder about this interesting meeting.After this little solo expedition, our cuddly friend returned to Monica, the head of the group of South Pole Adventurers, to tell about all its findings. What a great start! But there was still more to come...4/04/2008
South of the Border
After months of preparation and hard training, at the end of February The Wombat left for its most daring adventure so far: Expedition South Pole! 
After almost 2 days of travelling the brave Marsupial finally got to Tierra del Fuego, Argentine's most southern point. Arriving in style, The Wombat rolled into the town of Ushuaia on the steam train “El tren del fin del mundo”.
Here, The Wombat met its fellow adventurers. After getting acquainted and exchanging some travelling stories, our cuddly friend started to explore the lovely town of Ushuaia and its surroundings.
The rough landscape of Tierra del Fuego bode well for what was to come!
Later that day, The Wombat, charismatic as ever, made some new friends. Laughing and talking together, The Wombat and Penguin stayed up until the wee hours.
After only a few hours of sleep, the next morning the next chapter in this big adventure started: The Wombat boarded the Grigory Mikeev, the little ship that would bring our friend and its fellow explorers to the land of eternal snow and ice! Through the port-hole, The Wombat took a last look at Ushuaia.
And next: off they went. To boldly go where no Wombat has gone before!
After almost 2 days of travelling the brave Marsupial finally got to Tierra del Fuego, Argentine's most southern point. Arriving in style, The Wombat rolled into the town of Ushuaia on the steam train “El tren del fin del mundo”.Here, The Wombat met its fellow adventurers. After getting acquainted and exchanging some travelling stories, our cuddly friend started to explore the lovely town of Ushuaia and its surroundings.The rough landscape of Tierra del Fuego bode well for what was to come!Later that day, The Wombat, charismatic as ever, made some new friends. Laughing and talking together, The Wombat and Penguin stayed up until the wee hours. After only a few hours of sleep, the next morning the next chapter in this big adventure started: The Wombat boarded the Grigory Mikeev, the little ship that would bring our friend and its fellow explorers to the land of eternal snow and ice! Through the port-hole, The Wombat took a last look at Ushuaia.And next: off they went. To boldly go where no Wombat has gone before!
3/28/2008
Fame!
Tonight, The Wombat went shopping at the Fame Music Store in Amsterdam. And for a special reason: Wim T. Schippers - artist, writer, actor and alround genius (and the Dutch voice of Ernie from Sesame Street) - would be signing dvds of his legendary tv shows. Of course, as a big fan of his work, The Wombat was queueing up!
As an extra bonus, besides Wim T. also IJf Blokker, Rob van Houten and the wonderful Mimi Kok (a.k.a. Ge Braadslee) were there to sign the dvds they are starring in. The Wombat was loving it! Even in these hectic circumstances, our Furry Friend and Wim T. felt an immediate connection and had an interesting conversation about the state of contemporary television and the role of the media in todays society. Mimi Kok followed the discussion with great attention!
At the end of the evening The Wombat went home, carrying with him his treasured signed copy of "We Zijn Weer Thuis".
As an extra bonus, besides Wim T. also IJf Blokker, Rob van Houten and the wonderful Mimi Kok (a.k.a. Ge Braadslee) were there to sign the dvds they are starring in. The Wombat was loving it! Even in these hectic circumstances, our Furry Friend and Wim T. felt an immediate connection and had an interesting conversation about the state of contemporary television and the role of the media in todays society. Mimi Kok followed the discussion with great attention!At the end of the evening The Wombat went home, carrying with him his treasured signed copy of "We Zijn Weer Thuis".p.s. : As you notice The Wombat has recently returned from an expedition to the South Pole. You will be reading about this exciting adventure soon!
2/23/2008
The Big Chill
At this very moment, The Wombat is on its way to yet another BIG adventure: our cuddly friend is taking trains, plains and dog sledges to plant its paws on the South Pole. Yes, you heard it correctly, The Wombat will be conquering Antarctica! 
To get in shape for this great challenge, the brave Marsupial has been training to get used to extreme temperatures with daily visits to the deep freezer. Hardened by this routine, The Wombat feels confident it will reach it's goal: to be the first wombat on the South Pole!
Good luck, Wombat, travel safe!
To get in shape for this great challenge, the brave Marsupial has been training to get used to extreme temperatures with daily visits to the deep freezer. Hardened by this routine, The Wombat feels confident it will reach it's goal: to be the first wombat on the South Pole! Good luck, Wombat, travel safe!
2/18/2008
Spring Haze
"What a lovely weather!" The Wombat thought. Although it's only February, it almost feels like spring. A good day for a lazy stroll through the city.
Along the river Amstel everybody is smiling, turning their faces towards the sun to feel absorb the warm rays of light. The Wombat found a nice spot on a bridge to indulge in a little sunbathing.
A little further on, the spring feelings got even stronger when our furry friend found itself surounded by beautiful crocusses. "Flowerpower!" The Wombat exclaimed again and again, skipping through the field. Unfortunately one lovely afternoon doesn't make spring.
Besides.... very soon The Wombat wil have to endure some extreme cold!!
1/29/2008
Wombat on Movies
This week, The Wombat is hiding in the dark. No, not really hiding, watching movies!! Because The Wombat is visiting the International Film Festival Rotterdam. Maybe you didn't know it yet, but our small Marsupial friend is a BIG movie fan!
For this festival, The Wombat even has his own Tijgerpas, so it's easier to hop from movie to movie.
The Wombat has already had some wonderful cinematic experiences. Favourites so far? The funny and sad lives of the people in swedish movie You, the Living; The beautiful shot Paranoid Park; The truely, amazingly weird Dai-Nipponjin! Another favourite: the documentary The Reinactors, about the impersonators of movie charactars on Hollywood Blvd. "Will there ever be a Wombat impersonator roaming the streets of Hollywood?" The Wombat wonders.
For this festival, The Wombat even has his own Tijgerpas, so it's easier to hop from movie to movie.The Wombat has already had some wonderful cinematic experiences. Favourites so far? The funny and sad lives of the people in swedish movie You, the Living; The beautiful shot Paranoid Park; The truely, amazingly weird Dai-Nipponjin! Another favourite: the documentary The Reinactors, about the impersonators of movie charactars on Hollywood Blvd. "Will there ever be a Wombat impersonator roaming the streets of Hollywood?" The Wombat wonders.
Besides seeing all these wonderful movies, it's also great to absorb the hectic Festival atmosphere. The best place to do this is in the lounge of De Doelen, the epic centre of the festival: just get a cup of tea and sit down between all the other visitors, producers, directors and general movie-people!
However, even a BIG movie fan like The Wombat once in a while needs a quiet moment and some fresh air: reloading for the next movies!
(For more updates on the International Rotterdam Film Festival, go to: http://www.chokingonpopcorn.com/popcorn/ )
1/14/2008
To Paris and Back
It's been a while since you last heard from The Wombat, but now the second half of the Paris pictures are revealed. The Wombat felt like a giant after seeing the pictures taken in front of the Centre Pompidou. 'It was all a trompe l'oeuil,' The Wombat thought... (although it felt pretty cool to be this BIG!)
'Am I in the picture?', The Wombat curiously wondered...
In front of the majestic waters and art sculptures, The Wombat felt very much at ease...
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