The wonderful story behind miniature No. 35

On a flight to Canada, a father and son board the plane. The father is in his eighties and flying World Business Class for the first time. His son is a frequent flyer who flies almost every week. As soon as they step aboard, it’s clear that the son knows the interior almost as well as the crew. Dad can hardly believe what he’s being served on board. He tells me that he’s also quite intrigued by the Delftware miniatures he has heard so much about.

 

Miniature in World Business Class

At the start of every flight, I always personally welcome all passengers in World Business Class. I also ask frequent flyers if they collect our Delftware miniature houses and, if so, whether a specific number is missing from their collection. Unfortunately, we don’t have the entire collection on board at the same time. And the more complete a collection becomes, the more difficult it is to fill gaps.

Miniatures No. 35: East-Indies House in Delft

The father is every cheerful and has a delightful twinkle in his eye, which I can only hope to match when I reach that age. I soon learn that the family hails from Delft, so it seems like a good idea to give him a miniature replica of a classic house in that city. Bingo! We happen to have Miniature No. 35 on board, which is East Indies House in Delft. Using the KLM miniatures app on his son’s phone, I show the father where the house is located in the old centre of this university city.

Surprising memories

As soon as the father sees the address, he starts beaming from ear to ear. His wife used to live on the top floor of that building. He can even give a description of the interior. In fact, it was there that he asked his wife to marry him. When I later present him with the house, he accepts it with a look of pride and surprise on his face. I can only guess what thoughts and memories are going through this mind. To him this is so much more than just a numbered Delftware miniature filled with Dutch gin. He will, no doubt, give it pride of place in his home. I imagine it catching his eye from time to time, prompting beautiful, nostalgic memories of his younger years.

If you’d like to learn more about KLM’s Delftware miniature houses, click here to read a blog about the most covered miniatures.

 

Posted by:   Boris  | 
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Ronald de Neef

Lovely story – een lief verhaaltje ! Makes you want to fly KLM.

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