What is it, then... [by Toni Theilmeier]
Some FAQs on the 2004 Dutch Van International, with a Dutch glossary to help next year
...that makes a meet special? And very special they are, those International Van Meetings in Holland. (2CV van = besteleend)
Is it statistics? Perhaps. My guess is that roughly 50 2CV vans present in any location simultaneously is a figure which is hard to beat 26 years after the last one was made. (Ah, those were the days when you had fifty of them in any Dutch town you might care to look at.) (27 years = zevenentwintig jaaren)
Is it the weather? This year, most definitively no. (Ah, last year...) (sun = zonnetje)
Is it the programme? Dunno. Last year´s convoy was something you might tell your grandchildren about, but then so was this year´s Fun and Games Part on Sunday. This year the destination of the convoy was a children´s fun fair thing with attached chippy. There were two children in the convoy of 37 vans. (Ah, the view from the dykes in 2003...) (river ferry = pont)
Is it the organization? Most definitively, yes. It would be unfair to say there wasn´t any, but there was just enough to get everything going. Bare necessities, like, the 2CV way. Just as it should be. (Ah, those German meets... wunderbar, with reception desks working clearly defined hours!) (Where = waar, how = hoe, what = wat, when = wanneer)
Is it the signposting? OH, YES! So communicative! The lack of any double chevron signs at all makes it very important to communicate with all and sundry to find out where you´re heading. This year, three van crews (one from Denmark) met near Osnabrück, Northern Germany, 250 km away from the meeting place, because one of the three had been before and thought they could vaguely remember where to turn off the main road in Leersum. That´s the stuff life-long friendships are made of. Better still, several Germans went back together because they reckoned their combined food reserves would render their way out of the maze less hazardous. (Ah, look, Dad, a house, now we know where to go!) (motorway = snelweg)
Is it the spectator? Certainly. Every year, a lone Dutchman on a 1957 500cc BSA Plodder comes to visit the meet. The first year he came he marvelled at the vans, the next year he asked about the different types of A-series vans, last year he had bought an old wreck, and this year he bought bits for it. I guess he´ll be taking part in the event in about 2020 if he goes on at this speed. (Ah, those ongoing restaurations, gives you summat to do on long winter evenings!) (spares = onderdeelen)
Is it the participants? Well, mostly. Generally, the van crews are a great crowd. The fun we had, unbelievable. The knowledge amassed on the meadow, still more so. And, of course, what is a meet without attendees? However, there´s always the odd chap or two who complains about a lack of organization to someone who most definitively is not the organization, but who doesn´t have enough French to tell him that. Or someone takes anyone in a yellow van for the one who has just sold the last meeting tee-shirt. This time he was the one who did all the complaining, and to the same person, and I was the one in the yellow van. That´s what you might call bad Karma. (Ah, what people will complain about...) (mud = modder)
Is it TV coverage? Haven´t tried yet, sorry. (Ah, well...) (to switch off = uitschakelen)
Is it the spares car boot sale? Yes, and no. A lot of people brought a lot of bits, but a lot of it was not really up to a lot of other people´s standards. And, would you believe it, excepting those parts the Stichting Behoudt 2CV (a bit like a Dutch Spog) had, there were no van parts. (Ah, look, Dad, a van door! - Really? - Yes, a passenger one!) (nothing = niets)
Is it the countryside? Most certainly. Well, I´m biased as I grew up a few dozen miles away, on the other side of the German border. Rows of Poplars, several big rivers, no hills for hundreds of miles, this is a mixture which spells beauty. Then add some Dutch villages, and there you are. (Ahhh...) (picturesque = schilderachtig)
Is it, then, the vans? Well. Some, yes, and some, no. Unbelievably there were still some of those involved in the oldest-contact-breaker-competition, and those who will not think twice to bolt on plastic rear wings. However, there were also some very nice vans about. (Ah, great = geweldig)
Right then, see you there next year. Tot volgend jaar.
