Hello everyone! It's a lazy Thursday (my day off from work) and because Lauren has been persistently nagging me to blog, I'm going to satisfy her thirst for juicy details about my life here in NL. Although there are not many I believe a few new things have happened since my last blog! ;)
I can't remember if I've already written this in the last blog but we have kitten now. His name is Pepi and he's seriously the sweetest little guy ever! He sleeps in the bed and cuddles any time he has a chance. Oh and did I mention he's my morning 6 am alarm clock? Oh yes, unfortunately every morning whether its a Saturday or not, he props himself up on my chest and stares at me while purring VERY loudly. Does he do it to Koen too? No. Just me. Smart little feline. Just like his momma. Anyways, we are very happy to have him and call me Eileen but I think we want another one! I already have the perfect name for him and everything. Just need to wait a while so we have enough money to pay for shots and vet bills. Exciting though! He really needs a buddy to run around with...
Aside from Pep, we´ve done a lot lately. For one, I´ve finally gotten my train pass for work and it´s absolute bliss. Not having to rush to the train station every morning and wait in the line to buy a ticket is great. I´ve never relied on public transportation so much in my life and although it is very convenient, I´ll be the first to tell you that it´s expensive and a pain in the ass. Not to mention might be making me gain wait. Yes, the Netherlands doesn´t have drive thru McDonald´s on every street but they DO have this great establishment by the name of Smullers. They sell fries, burgers, chicken sandwiches and more...Hate-love it. It´s also made me realize Koen´s obsession with french fries which makes me sick because he can eat it every day if he wants and never gain any wait. Stupid metabolism.
We´ve also gone to several Dutch parties with Koen´s friends which has been an adventure as there is hardly any English speaking going on. I think this has been the biggest challenge for me so far. Living in Spain wasn´t as difficult considering I spoke the language a little but here I´m completely lost. Koen has found some relatively cheap classes in Rotterdam that I should sign up for but hopefully over time listening to people speaking will speed up the process. The only conversational vocabulary I´ve mastered is ordering food, train station conversation, buying food at the store (want a receipt, do you want a bag, goodbye). But its pretty good considering I´ve only been here a month and a half. I must say its a very tricky language with all of the R´s and strange throat noises you have to make in daily conversation. One day Erin..One day.
Another challenge is the grocery store. Everything is placed in spots you would least expect them to be or aren´t in stores at all. For example today I wanted to make Koen and I chicken parmesan. Where are the bread crumbs...don´t have them. However to me the worst is that there is no ground turkey..my mom wouldn´t be able to live over here. Just beef and pork. And with things being in Dutch I find myself having a hard time deciding on pretty much everything unless Koen´s there with me. And I think I mentioned this in my blog from Spain but I have to bag my own groceries and it´s still as struggle.
Aside from the difficulties of living here, there are many perks. To mention a few:
-the local park: Koen and I go to this park by the apartment every now and then. It's so nice because it's an escape from the city life and everyone is just hanging out and grilling food. It's very relaxed.
-constant festivals: in Rotterdam there are lots of festivals almost every weekend and despite what theyre for they are a good time. The city is so crowded and theres music. Last weekend we went to this art festival with Jolanda, Hans, and Jelle on Wittedewith straat which is a very popular street with bars and restaurants.
-Mint leaf tea!!! This is my new favorite drink. A lot of europeans drink coffee after they've eaten dinner but personally, I'm so full from my meal that I cant stomach an espresso so my alternative is tea. I've found that many restaurants serve mint tea. It's basically mint leaves, honey, and hot water. Very easy to make, healthy, and warms your soul ;) I recommend it.
-I've probably lost weight from walking so much. In America, you are always driving everywhere and here I'm always on my feet. Whether its walking to the train station, walking to the city, or walking to the grocery store. We'll see how much I like this when the weather starts to change though :)
-Even if he's sick of me at this point, living here with Koen has been great. Spending a year apart was definitely worth and I don't think many couples can say that. I don't mean to get all sappy on you guys but I'm so much happier being on the same continent as him for once. He's really done a lot for me since I got here including cooking, grocery shopping, walking with me to places, and much more. I'd recommend everyone to study/work/live abroad because its a great experience but I don't think I could do it alone.
Things to look forward to:
-In about one month my parents are coming to visit after their trip to Ireland. I cannot wait and I'm so happy that they can experience Europe with me there to watch. I've never seen my parents in a foreign environment and I cannot wait to see the look on their faces when they witness their first coffee shop or walk through the red light district. Despite some similarities, it really is a whole other world over here! But hopefully they'll enjoy it and then maybe the rest of my sibs can come visit. Not seeing my family is very difficult especially since we've grown a lot closer over the past year considering the amount of visits I've made to Cary.
-My friend Kristen from App is coming to visit at the beginning of October. She's traveling to Hamburg, Munich, Austria, Prague, and Amsterdam! I'm actually kind of nervous because this will be my first American visitor and there's a lot to show her! :)
-Further, Koen and I have (briefly) looked at apartments in Rotterdam. I know Jolanda (Koen's mom) really misses being in her apartment and wére gonna have to find something soon so the process has begun. I'm excited but nervous because there's so much to do!
Anyways, I think I've rambled enough. Hope you guys enjoyed reading my post.
P.S. For those of you who I havent skyped with, get it together! I miss you! :)
