And then the cafe turned silent for two minutes...
Today was Remembrance of the Dead day in the Netherlands.
It's a day where the Dutch commemorate all civilians and soldiers who died in wars or peacekeeping missions since the beginning of the Second World War.
At 8 o'clock in the evening on the 4th of may the whole country is silent for two minutes.
It's a respected tradition.
Public transport like trams and metros stop operating for two minutes for instance.
For as long as I can remember I have done this.
Being silent for two minutes.
I have always done this at home. But this year was different.
My brother decided to celebrate his birthday at a bar close to his home at 20:30.
So, I met up with my friend and fellow blockbrother @eqko (and friend of my brother) today for some after work beers and a burgers at 18:00 waiting for the party.
We had burgers and ice-cream after.
It was wonderful.
We then decided to walk to the central station to catch the tram to my brothers birthday cafe.
Halfway though we came across one of the amazing cafe's in Rotterdam called Kaapse Brewery.
We went inside for a sneaky one :) and low and behold my friend Fabio was in there.
Pure coincidence.
We ordered a beer and talked.
It was a lot of fun.
But 20:00 was approaching...
I was getting semi restless.
I want to respect our tradition. But how? In this busy cafe.
Then out out of now where I heard the last post being played on someones phone.
It's the last thing played before the 2 minutes of silence.
When it ended...
The whole cafe turned quiet.
For two minutes you could hear a pin drop.
In the centre of Rotterdam.
It's probably the most special Remembrance of the Dead day I have ever lived through.
I never in my life thought this could be possible outside of my home.
Two minutes later it was over and life continued as it always does.
Man, I am sure grateful for freedom.
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Saudações, grande exyle
Você é um dia excelente na Holanda. Cerveja e sanduíche com muita carne. Melhor que isso, impossível.
Quando eu vou a Holanda, quero fazer essas cervejas daí. Por que ouço daqui (Brasil), esse país é bem tradicional em fazer uma cerveja de excelente qualidade.
Muito obrigado pela postagem
Boa noite!!!
You guys were still able to enjoy yourself with such delicious food !!
So nice of you to share such sweet elements of your special day with us @exyle. That burger looks droolicious, and i love how the 2 minutes if silence was a complete surprise to you! Love good surprises!! Peace & Joy to you! Though I do believe we are not free in the current state of this corrupt world. Have you heard of or seen @wwf's book 'Graduating Life with Honours'?
I am glad we take the time to honour those who have given us freedom at great cost. I wonder if future generations will take the time. Here we are on the brink of a revolution. Their last revolution/civil war was less than 40 years ago. How quickly they have forgotten...
R3VOLution 💗💗💗 in their honour.
I think future generations will take the time. Mark never lived in a period of war and still, he is silent for two minutes. I think he will learn his children (if he has children) to be silent too.
I hope so that the civil war in your country is averted and that one realizes in time that war, certainly a civil war, does not solve anything, on the contrary.
Hey @exyle, thanks for posting Remembrance of the Dead day in the Netherlands, am glad you observed the day with respect and peace. Have a good remembrance day.
It's a wonderful tradition, my friend, when you pay tribute to the memory of the people and soldiers who died in the war! Of course life goes on and you did the right thing, that you decided to have a rest with your friends at the birthday of your brother, by the way I congratulate him on this holiday and I believe that these people died in the war, that now we would be free and happy! I fully support you all with this important tradition, to spend minutes of silence! Thank you Mark.
Great day you spent my friend @exyle!! How nice that they make this symbol of respect for those brave soldiers who now rest in peace....
The food looks delicious, I want to eat a hamburger right now with a "Maltín Polar" hahaha (a malt drink made here in Venezuela and part of our culture).
A greeting colleague :)
What a powerful moment. It's hard to get small families together for dinner, let alone a mass of people in recognition of an historical event. Thank you for sharing this experience with us; I learned something new today.
That does sound like an incredible experience to have witnessed! We have some similar traditions in the US, especially if you are anywhere near military bases. The fact that everyone respects the tradition and goes silent is so powerful really. It looks like you had tons of fun!
Ivy
We do the same on 11.11 every year @exyle and it doesn't matter where you are everyone stops. The last time I was in P.C. World and everyone just stood where they were. It's a bit like some sort of film where time stands still.
It always seems to be respected though, wherever you are.
In fact, last year, I thought it would be great if there were more occasions when people were required to stop, dead still. Altogether. I think it would have a really positive effect on us.
Have a wonderful weekend! 😊
That must have been strange as well in the middle of a store. I was happy people respected it even in a busy cafe.
Have a great weekend as well.