ANNA - WINTER 2005 - 2006

In October 2005, we went to a wedding in Chittagong, where I was dressed up in my little salwar kameez. My mother pinned the shawl to my kameez, but even that did not work so she took it off. Still I attracted lots of attention. Sinterklaas, who came to Bangladesh shortly after that, was a totally different matter however. Not only was I just one among many other sweet children, I also thought the guy with the white beard and the black helpers were extremely scary. My mother kept telling me that two of those were just my brothers Vincent and Victor. This brought her in trouble, as some of the other visitors found it totally unsuitable that she should raise doubts in my mind about the existence of Sinterklaas. And I did not believe her anyway. The sheer size of my present managed to dry my tears, but I refused to say a word to Sinterklaas or even come near him.

 
The nursery has given me in the beginning f this year an "observation report for the academic year 2005/6". I appear brilliant, if you read my achievements:
  • I can work independently
  • I use the learning center constantly
  • I follow school rules and procedures
  • I indicate feelings about myself
Luckily, there is also something she cannot do yet:
  • I cannot classify and categorize sets.
My mother thinks I know enough now, to go and earn some money for her. That is why she made me, after all.

Above, I am sitting on the car together with my friend Fleur. One morning, 7 o'clock, once I went out to the garden, climbed inside the car, sat next to the driver and told him:
"OK, you can go to Fleur house now."
I am not sure what Fleur's mother would have thought about my arrival on this time of day. Fleur and her parents also came for Christmas dinner to our house, when my grandparents stayed with us. A group of Christian Bangladeshi came to perform Christmas songs and dances for us, but I could not even recognize one song.
You can also see me and my daddy in our best suits for Christmas. My mother bought the only available Christmas dress in Dhaka - for a 1-year old, so well above the knee. That is why you don't see my legs. We celebrated Christmas in the Dutch Club with my grandparents, and I was the star of the evening, dancing and dancing until I dropped.

Click for larger picture of all of us
With my grandparents, we made a trip to the Bandarbans and Cox's Bazar between Christmas and New Year. We were back just in time for champagne and oliebollen. Before I knew it, they already went back to the Netherlands, but for a long time I called every couple with gray hair "Opa and oma". After that, the cold came, that is to say, it was about 15 degrees. But if you have no heating inside the house, it can be terribly chilly! I got sick in that period, and only wanted to sit with my ayah Sumi. Sumi is my favorite anyway, as my mother is always at work.

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