moved to: http://zulu-in-nl.blogspot.com/: Holland

Showing posts with label Holland. Show all posts

>> Apr 28, 2010

i think, i'm fast becoming a spring person

i love taking walks on a pretty & warm day. i love warm days

i had terribly missed warm days.

i'm so glad they're back in style now :)

say hello to bjorno

the cuddliest, tail-less {sad story} burmese moutain dog you ever did see.

we're tight.

check out his crazy eyes :)

>> Nov 14, 2009

today, slivka invited me to go with her & the kids to the "sinterklaas parade" in the centrum

having only been here for 6 months & never experienced this tradition before, i was excited to go

in the Netherlands, Sinterklaas is the main occassion for gift-giving

Santa claus has elves... as Sinterklaas has zwarte pieten

a little bit of history

we arrived about 30minutes early & because of that had "front row seats" haha.

it was quite the spectacle & the kids were so excited to see sinterklaas!

anyway, here are a couple pics

zwarte piet, safi, lian

zwarte pieten handing out candy & pepernoten

wish i'd made a video of this marching band...they were REALLY good

this last one is a personal favourite :) :)

asterix, or is it obelix? busting a move

what's the time? wait... what?

>> Oct 25, 2009

so, don't you hate it when you come from a country that doesn't have daylight savings

and you move to a county that does

and you get up, get dressed, get the kids ready (i'm fulltime with them for the week)

rush them downstairs for breakfast, so we can be on time for church

THEN, you realise

you're AN HOUR EARLY!!

and nobody, thought it wise to inform me of this very important fact

fabo.

Leeuwarden Time

>> Oct 24, 2009

i drove my sister & nephew to schiphol this morning

their flight was at 10:30, so we had to leave the apartment at 06:00. whoa

disturbing observation:

on the 1st of June i recall the sun rising at 04:15

it's now october & it only starting rising at 07:35! is this healthy?

its so late. too late.

& it started getting dark again at around 17:30!
the end.

it was such a blessing to have family here for a week... even though we didn't get to do a whole lot, it was just so comforting having them around.

it felt like home.

we laughed. laughed alot. we spoke in zulu

we had bouts of sibling rivalry - i'd missed it :)

we shopped. and shopped.

we huddled together in the living room & watched comedies

& we just loved being together.
it was SO NICE not having complete silence in the apartment.

speaking of the apartment;
i bought a new ceiling lamp at ikea for a steal!
sonto's the handier one, so i asked her to put it up.
in the process, the lights tripped and now half the apartment is dark... and i have NO IDEA where the main switch board is! oops
ever tried getting dressed in hallway, because that's the only place with working lights?
interesting.

see, it's these memories that i'll treasure

leeuwarden today

>> Oct 12, 2009

the road to beetgumermolen at 12:25pm

heel mooi

dear left foot,

i'm sorry i hurt you...a little

i'm sorry i ignored your complaints whilst on the treadmill

& now you're little tender

forgive me soon... i don't like walking with a limp

& yes, i do have tiny chubby toes. we're not here to judge :)

postcards from the netherlands

>> Oct 8, 2009

one of the most popular forms of advertising here is, postcards.

in restaurants

at the cinema

post office (telling you that they're closing)

2nd hand stores -for only 10c

etc.

amazing, they're everywhere...and i've therefore accumalated a collection of the most random postcards ever

send me your address & we'll be postcard-pals :)

a change is coming

>> Sep 3, 2009

the sun sets at around 8pm

and rises just before 6am
the air's a little nippy
& it rains sporadically throughout the day

autumn's coming. the holland i've been told of is gearing to show it's face

when you just don't know when...

>> Aug 27, 2009

...you end up spending 3weeks at home, than the planned one!
it was FANTASTIC!
i arrived back in Holland on Tuesday morning...then took a 3hour train ride to Leeuwarden
then slept. like a baby.

getting my mvv took longer than expected.
i spent most of my time calling the netherlands embassy & consulate,
stressing about getting it or not
trying to find flights back for a decent price etc etc.

so, i'm the kind of person that doesn't really make a 'plan b
it's just not in me.
if it doesn't work out, i restructure :)
like george michael said - you gotta have faith (wait, did i just quote george michael?)
so, deep inside i KNEW i was going to get the mvv!
well, i got the temp mvv for 3 months, then i have an appointment at the IND in 2weeks for a temporary residence permit.
they then, take 3months to decide whether to give me the permit or not.

i tried really hard to enjoy my time at home...& after 2weeks i decided i'd just relax and let it be
i LOVE home!!

oh & i have a cold... not swine flu!

pics & more posts to follow soon.

oh happy day!

>> Jul 5, 2009

... my sister arrived today!!!

swiss air. 08:55. arrival terminal 1. schipol airport.

then we booked our tickets for Paris next week!

what i've learned so far

>> Jun 11, 2009

the dutch:

are private people. they're not used to bubbly personalities :)
(some that i've met) are interested in other cultures... they ask questions
are blunt/get straight to the point
will ask your age, how much you earn etc.
wave about 4 times when saying goodbye to you.... they wave until your car is out of sight. i like that
regard themselves quiet highly - something i'd like to aspire to
dutch men (when dating/interested in a girl) let the female take the lead, or rather the first move! ugh, europeans :)
eat only one kind of lunch - bread with a variety of toppings, from cold meat & cheese to chocolate spread & sprinkles!!
use VERY small mugs - im yet to find a decent sized one to drink a nice cup of hot chocolate from
drink hot chocolate with whipped cream... lots & lots of whipped cream. yuuummy!

they interest me...

ps:

>> Jun 1, 2009

im still here.
....& i watched the sunrise.
this is the view behind me (from the study where the pc is).

apologies for the blurry pics, my camera's being silly.

da da da daaah im lovin' it :)

>> May 29, 2009

& no, it's not mcdonalds :) culture shock kicked & it didn't want to let me go for awhile! im not a fan of sadness & complaining, so i took awesome & kicked it right in the pants! :) i've started actually putting my bike to use now. yesterday, we biked probably a little less than a mile & chynna & i thought we were going to die. after accepting the fact that our hearts were still beating, i realised how much i'd missed exercising. i've been junking it up WAY too much & my body was responding in a not-so-good way. so, today i asked christian to take us on a different/longer route. we biked 2miles! not much for some people, but i haven't been on a bike in YEARS! talk about exercise. & there's NO BETTER way to do it than in Holland. this place was built for biking. especially this little 'farm' town im living in. we went at about 20:30 & the sun was just about setting. it was beautiful. a light breeze. the rays gleaming off the buildings. the endless rows of grass on the fields. music on my mp3 player was the backing track to an awesome day. the view & experience was priceless. just another reason why im learning to LOVE this place. today, was a beautiful day!

a reminder

>> May 21, 2009

today i had to remind myself of the post i wrote while making the decision to come to Holland. i'd titled it "i'd rather have the wind in my face" interesting how that title makes me laugh now. it's VERY windy in Holland :) odd how that happens. seems like i may have wanted this more than i thought i had. make sense? i've been thinking of starting to write in my journal, but keep getting to my blog sooner than getting to a store to buy a journal! each day is different. each day brings it with trials & triumphs. i spent today with one of my other family's. it's a public holiday here in Holland today (Ascension Day) so nearly all the stores were closed & the kids are on holiday - today & tomorrow. Slivka took me to the annual Flower Market here in Leeuwarden. It's in the centre of town a one mile long street with stalls both sides packed with flowers and plants. I surprised myself & really enjoyed walking around for about 2 & 1/2hours just looking at flowers & even bought a couple for the apartment! (the goal is to keep them alive) I tried to get some pictures, but it's a little difficult with hoardes of people walking around. we got there at around 11:30 and the crowds had alread begun. by the time we left, you could hardly see infront of you & im short, so this is naturally a struggle for me. haha ps: i still LOVE how bikes are the main mode of transportation here :)

Edam, Holland with Sam & Kate

>> May 20, 2009

My awesome travelling friends, were in Holland this past week.
I only found out they were there through a post that she'd written saying that they'd arrived.
I'm like "whaaat!"haha. yes, i was very excited.
Sent her an email & Chynna and I drove to The Hague to meet up with them on Sunday!

The drive is roughly 2hours & the tomtom (gps) is my new best friend :)
We met up at the Chapel is an ínternational ward'- is nice big & reminded me of home - loooved it! haha
Oh, the fun thing is, they have headsets for all the english speaking people & somebody translates the whole of Sacrament meeting for you.

After church we drove about an hour up North (in our direction) to a little old Dutch town: Edam.
There, we met up with Katie's sister Becka & her family.
We were all so starved so stopped off lunch at restaurant that so kindly had their menu in 4 different languages, so we didn't have to guess what we were eating.
Katie & I had the Dutch pea soup - surprisingly yuuuum!

Edam is a beautiful town with alot of history to share.
Chynna and I are planning on going again soon - preferably on a Saturday so we buy souvenirs & their assortment of cheese!

Edam is a must-see if you come to Holland!

spreekt u engels?

>> May 19, 2009

so i've been here a day less than 2 weeks! for some reason it feels like i've been for months. it's seriously the weirdest feeling. if you exclude the fact that i don't know my way around too well, i started getting homesick - really homesick - last week. i keep wondering my family aren't sending messages or calling, then i realise that i haven't even given them time to miss me! last week was hard. like really hard. i was an emotional mess... obviously, only at night though :) culture shock. that's what it must be. things are different here. maybe it's taking awhile for everything to settle. the dutch are not as friendly as south africans are. had a bad experience on a train - a couple were just blatantly rude to us & were hestitant to offer 2 young ladies a seat! what's that all about??! the stores ALL close at 6... well except for the grocery store that closes at 8 if you're still in the store at 7:50 they refuse to help you & tell you to "come back another day" customer service isn't a big thing around these parts. haha. i've met friendly people, who are genuinely nice & it's refreshing. EVERYBODY speaks Dutch & the majority find it very difficult to speak English - wow, it really is a foreign language here. it's a learning experience & im loving the adventure. looking forward to all that i have to learn. can't wait to have more fun with the kids!