A Year in Europe

Who’d have thought this day would come upon us so fast? We flew out of Sydney a year ago. It’s one of those strange sets of circumstances where it simultaneously feels like we’ve been here forever, and like we only just got here. Time has passed in the blink of an eye, yet has taken so long for some events to pass or come to fruition, that we thought they’d never arrive. We’ve learnt and grown so much, and yet, there is still so much further to go.

As my first semester of Dutch language class draws to a close, I realise there is still a long way for me to go. I try hard not to feel inundated or intimidated, and remind myself that I’m still learning and refining my use of the English language every day. Some days I’m a better self-motivational speaker than others. I plug on.

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Loving where we live

So much has happened, and continues to happen. Yet it’s all settling down and shuffling itself into a routine now. We both have local mobile numbers and Skype has been set up to keep in touch with those slightly further away.

Letters and postcards are being, and have been, sent to people we love, and with the abundance of beautiful cards available, will continue to be sent too! If you’re so inclined to return the gesture, leave me a message and I’ll email you our postal address! 😉

Himself heads off to the office each day, while I maintain house & home, and work at having merchandise in my store before it re-opens.

Things that continue to take my breath away and bring massive grins of disbelief to my face when I see them are the swans floating down the canals in the centre of town. Doing what swans do, just swanning around. Getting in the way of the boats.

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There are so many little alleys to explore, all with hidden secrets and gems to be discovered.

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So many times (to the frustration of Himself) we’ll be powering at speed down a street and I’ll stop and veer off to one side to get a closer look at a marionette,

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some intricate masks,

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or a shop where the entire theme is ROOD! (red) (I’ll take one of everything!!!)

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I could spend a lifetime exploring these streets. Everyday there is something new and different to find, explore, and experience.

Oh! And I’ve been knitting too! I’m finally on the edging of the shawl I began on Boxing Day back in Robinsons Bay!

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Just 44 more repeats to go!

Wild Ramblings

Oh Wow! So much has happened! In no particular order …

Café cats

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Orange Tulips

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Canal Tours

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Concept Store Gardens

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More canals

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More wonky houses in canals

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Some local flavours

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But best of all, we now have residents visas, bank accounts, and a temporary place to lay our heads. All this combined means that we now have our kittuns back with us!

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They have lots of exploring to do too!

Hitting the Streets

With so much to see and do, and not much time before Himself needs to begin at the office, we decided to hit the ground running. Armed with a batch of brochures helpfully provided by the hotel we were staying in, we headed to breakfast.

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With the assistance and input of a local, we reached the conclusion that we need to see everything, just not necessarily all at once.

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So we headed off to wander the streets of Amsterdam and soak up our new environment.

The architecture is magnificent.

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We keep being blown away just by staring at the buildings.

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It’s so different from Australia and New Zealand.

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Did you know the front of the buildings leans inwards in order to move in furniture? The stairs inside are too narrow and steep. These are still in use today, we’ve watched them be used.

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Before street numbers, it was the different shapes of gables that identified your house.

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And it doesn’t really show up in the picture, but can you see how the side wall heading back from the front of this house is slanted and not at right angles? I can’t imagine trying to furnish a house of this shape! *grins*

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Houses built into the canal. I’m in love!!!

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I laughed out loud when I saw this house, and yet there are many like it. I honestly am not sure how some of these buildings are still standing they are so far from square! But they have been for centuries now, and it’s beautiful!

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I can’t wait to discover which one we’re going to live in!!!