Thursday, February 28, 2013

I Found a Sweatshop!!!!!


Those of you who know me well know that I like to go for my bi-weekly pedicures and I often frequent what I affectionately call “the sweatshops”.  These are typically the little hole-in-the-wall mani/pedi places that are owned and run by a Vietnamese family – or something similar - in Calgary I used to go to Hollywood Nails and then I changed to Bliss Nails (better chairs).  One of my bigger stressors about moving to The Netherlands was where was I going to get a pedicure and would there be sweatshops here?  I even had this discussion with the girl that used to do my feet at Bliss Nails and she was not overly optimistic.  Well last night as I wandered around Chinatown (will get to that) as I tried to find where I was supposed to be going for dinner (will get to that too), I found a couple of sweatshops!  Firstly, I was surprised to learn that The Hague had a Chinatown – someone at work told me that a few weeks back and secondly, I was happy to see that it smells like every other Chinatown that I have been to.  Does this mean that I am going to try one of these sweatshops – probably not because I have also learned that The Netherlands has a professional association called ProVoet which trains and certifies people to give the kind of pedicure that falls somewhere between the sweatshop and being treated by an orthopedic surgeon.  My understanding from what I have read is that it is quasi-clinical kind of pedicure, where instruments akin to dental tools are used and the focus is not only on the aesthetic, but above all the health, of the foot. They treat your feet the way a dental hygienist treats your teeth.   And like my sweatshop their tools and instruments are sterilized after being used with a single client (my mom is anal about this and so am I!)  A basic ProVoet pedicure involves treating the nails, removing any possible corns or calluses, and inspecting for any potentially more serious skin or structural problems.  Not sure if they paint your toe nails or not but I guess time will tell as I am going to try and book an appointment – wish me luck!

So why was I wandering around Chinatown last night lost. . . .well I had signed up for this event called Social Expat Dining whereby you meet up with a bunch of other random expats for dinner at a chosen location.  .  So until today, my blackberry has not had any data functionality, meaning that it has been a glorified cell phone and I haven’t been able to use BBM, search the web or use the map functions.  So before I left for the dinner, I went on to Google Maps to see where I was going and quickly realized that I knew the area, or so I thought.  Well after about 20 minutes of walking down every street in Chinatown, and it isn’t that big, including a more dodgier side of town, I decided to give up and head back home.  I was trying to remember specific stores from the Google Map and realized that there was one street that I didn’t go down and lo and behold, tucked in a corner was the restaurant that I was supposed to be at and I was only 15 minutes late.  So now I have seen Chinatown, I know where to go for dim sum and where to get some Chinese food, as well where to go for a weave (at the afro hair store).

So back to the actual social expat dining event.  Now that I am feeling a bit more settled and more comfortable here in terms of knowing my way around main areas,  and in an effort to get out more and not become a hermit, which I do have a tendency of doing, I have been looking for different opportunities to meet people and this seemed like a great idea.  It was held at a restaurant called Tenchi, which is an Asian noodle/tapas restaurant.  (http://www.tenchi-noodlebar.nl/) I wouldn’t say that the food was served as beautifully as their website shows, but it was good.  The general idea of the restaurant was small plates or tapas style and that you would order a bunch and share.  For this event they had a flat prices of 19 euros (still don’t know how to type that symbol on my computer) plus the prices of your drinks.  For our dining group there were 9 of us – all women except for 1 guy and I would guess that the age range was from early 30s to late 50s.  Because of the nature of how we were sitting, I really only got to know 4 of the women who were closest to me but they all seemed rather nice and I did have a good time.  I am not sure that I will do it again though as it is only ever at that restaurant and there are other places in The Hague that I would like to try.   Did I get any play dates out of this - no - but I also didn't suggest one to anyone or offer up my phone number (partly b/c I don't know it) but partly b/c I can be a little shy.  Maybe next time. . .

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

My stuff is here, my stuff is here!!

You guessed it - "my stuff" is here.  I got an email from "my guy" today saying that my stuff is here and is sitting in their secure and bonded warehouse in Rotterdam.  In fact, I think it has probably been here for some time but since I was waiting for my BSN (see my previous post), I couldn't fill out the proper paperwork for the customs process for my stuff.  So now all of that is complete and he has sent it on to the proper authorities and hopefully 2-3 weeks my stuff will be cleared and will be able to come back into my possession, assuming I have a permanent place to live. (that will be another post for another day)  I am thinking/hoping that I will get it by the end of March.

With regards to "my stuff", the thought of it all being packed up, loaded into a sea can and then bobbing around in the ocean for 3 weeks, I have to admit, had me a little worried.  Now I know cargo ships traverse our oceans everyday loaded with many treasures, but this was "my stuff" - all of my worldly possessions save what I packed in 3 suit cases and my 75kg of air cargo.  Keep in mind, I probably only have 1/3 of my shoe collection with me, so that was a lot of shoes bobbing in the ocean!  Then I had these visions of my sea can falling off the ship and my stuff just floating there and then joining the big plastic trash gyros in the ocean.  I knew that it was highly, highly unlikely but a small part of you can't but think . . .

Oh, and another one of my Hague mysteries has been solved - I saw a cemetery the other day but I think bbq is the main choice here.  Have to remember, most of the country is below sea level so if you dig a hole, it fills up with water pretty quick (lots of floating bodies).  I also think I have found a funeral home, not that I was looking but I go past it on my way to Dutch lessons (another post for another day as well).

Thursday, February 21, 2013

I'm Not an Alien

As for this morning, I am no longer an alien in this country - I was finally able to register at the town hall and with IND (immigration) as was provided with my registration letter, that proves that I am here until my registration card comes in.  As part of my move, I have this lady who is there to help me with pretty much everything, including setting me up with a doctor, dentist, showing me around, helping me register but she left for holidays the day that I arrived and just got back, so that has been the delay in getting my BSN.  Now that she is here though. . . .well let's just say, some of those tasks that I have found challenging, are now going to be easier with Carine only an email or phone call away! :-)   So what does this all mean?  Well, I now have my BSN, which is essentially my social insurance number - without this I haven't been able to do the following:

  • All of my "stuff" may or may not be in the country, I don't know, but without this #, my moving/shipping company, cannot process my things through customs
  • I have been in health care limbo (not that I have needed any).  I had signed up for both Dutch insurance and I do have coverage provided by Shell but in order for either to processed, they needed my #
  • You cannot get a cell phone in this country without your BSN.  I am still up in the air if I am going to get a private one, as I currently have a phone through work - so I am not sure what I am going to do - have to research it all a bit more
  • Can't rent a place without your BSN as that is what proves that you are 1) allowed to live here 2) they know that you live here (more on the house hunt in a different post)
What is surprising though is that I have been able to open a bank account, get a bank card and a credit, all without my BSN.  Fortunately there is a wonderful bank here in The Netherlands - ABN-AMRO www.abnamro.nl that caters to expats and what is even better is they have a branch in the Shell offices!  On day 2, I had my appointment with Ursila, my wonderful personal banker and by the end of the week I had opened my bank accounts, got my bank card and by the following Tuesday, so within a week of my first appointment, I had a credit card!  Gotta love the Dutch in this regard!  Up until that point, I had been either paying with cash, which most people don't do here, or using my Canadian credit cards, which is not optimal due to the exchange rate.  But now, I am all good to go!

A few people have also asked what I have been up to so far.  Well, I can sum it up pretty easily - NOTHING.  Honestly, settling into a new country, a new culture and a new job, is a lot more exhausting than I anticipated.  As mentioned, simple things like doing laundry or grocery shopping has been challenging and those challenges are tiring.  So for the most part my days are:  get up, go to work, come home, eat supper, catch up on the internet, go to bed, repeat.  Here we start a little later than back home (8:30ish) but they work later (5:30-6:00pm), so I am usually not home until between 6 & 6:30pm and I go to bed early (10pm)  Do I feel like I am missing out yet - no, because I know that I need this time to adjust and that over time as I meet more people and become more comfortable, I will get out more.  But for now, my weekly outing will be to my Dutch lessons (more about those later).

Monday, February 18, 2013

Comforts of Home

Starbucks - I found it!!!! Now I know what you are thinking - you are in Europe and they have way better coffee there - that is true, but to finally find one of of the comforts of home was great! Short of letting out a small scream or jumping for joy, a big smile came across my face as I rounded the corner at the train station on Saturday morning and saw the sign. I had seen the odd person at the train station carrying a Starbucks cup but I honestly thought that they were people coming off of trains from Amsterdam, as Starbucks does not have the proliferation here that there is in North American (which isn't a bad thing b/c there is way better coffee out there!) Now I haven't been yet but it is nice to know that it is there and it is so close. :-)  

It is a small comfort of home. . . particularly when I am living in a country where you can't even buy bleach!  Yes, it is true - you cannot buy bleach here, so I bought some at the Antwerp Train Station at the Spar.  I will buy it where I can find it! (see my travel blog - My Journeys www.calgaryheather.blogspot.ca)

Friday, February 15, 2013

Playing Frogger

On my way to work the other morning I realized that crossing the main roads here is kinda like the game Frogger.  You are trying to cross multiple lanes (there are car lanes and bike lanes) and in between these lanes are these little islands for you to stand on.   On each island is its own crossing signal, so if you look across the street, the farthest signal might be a green person (which means that you can walk) and the nearest might be red so you wait. Then when it turns green, you have to dodge the bikes (see previous post about Dutch pecking order) and move from island to island without getting hit – just like Frogger.At times the little green person starts to blink, so you know that you need to move across faster. I have also learned the hard way that when you get to the islands, you need to push the walk button or you could be standing there for some time :-)  

I also had a query the other day about some shopping and whether or not you could get Cheez Whiz or Kraft Dinner here and the answer is no.  A few brands that are the same as back home include Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Boursin Cheese (A LOT cheaper here), Pringles, Coke, Lays, Doritos. . .are you seeing a trend here - junk food!  A co-worker of mine also told me that if I go over to Calais, France, they have some larger grocery stores there like Sainsbury (UK chain), with much more selection. She also mentioned that you cannot buy chocolate chips here. . .hmm. . . not sure what I think about that!  I have a feeling that I may be doing quarterly trips to Calais to load up on all of those things that I can't buy here but also to feel as though I have some choice.

Tonight I decided to venture out to the movies, as a little Googling showed that there was a movie theatre about 10 minutes away and that they played movies in English.  I went to see the movie "The Impossible" which was about 1 families story about the tsunami in Thailand in December 2004.  Wow!  What a horrific experience to go through, I can't even imagine.  So going to the movies is a little different than back home.  One thing that is similar is the cost - you pretty much have to mortgage your house to go to the movie here as well.  A single adult is 9,50 Euros.  What is cheaper is their "buffet" as they call it - the concession.  I got a medium popcorn and bottle of pop for 6,90 Euro.  For popcorn you have a choice of salted or sweet however me being the Canadian rebel that I am (yah right!) I asked for mixed which he was more than happy to do.  You can also buy a 4 pack of bottled beer and outside of the theatre door, they have a nice little stand to put in your empty bottles.  When you buy your ticket for your movie, you pick your row and your seat - none of this searching in the dark for an empty seat or asking people to move over so 2 people can sit together.  In addition, the seats have way more space between them, so you really don't have to get up to let someone past.  And they are clean.  You can put your purse on the floor without worrying that it is going to stick.  For a Friday night, the movie theatre here does not have the frenetic feel that it does in Calgary.

Another experience conquered on my list :-)


Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Dutch Pecking Order

I have quickly learned the Dutch pecking order of the road - it is:  Trams, Bikes, Pedestrians, Cars.  Does not matter where you are or what you are doing that - that is the order.  A few people have asked if I have bought a bike yet and the answer is "no" for a few reasons.  1)  It is COLD and I am a fairweather biker.  Somehow I can't see me riding a bike in a toque, mitts, scarf and my winter boots  2)  I am not sure where I will store it for now.  I am sure I can haul it up in the elevator to my apartment, but for now I am fairly central and can pretty much walk everywhere.  3)  It scares me!  Riding your bike in the Netherlands is just not the same as back in Canada.  Big difference is that they rule the road (see above) and NO ONE wears a helmet!  I am just not sure I am confident and aggressive enough on a bike yet.  I am however asking around to see if anyone offers a biking 101 course.  Seriously though, my intention is to buy a bike once I have moved into my permanent home.

On my way home (I walk through the main train station) I was approached by a lovely girl with a rose who started to rattle on to me in Dutch to which I normally just smile and nod, but this time I said "I don't speak Dutch", at which point she launched into English (as most Dutch do when I say this) and she handed me a rose for Valentine's Day courtesy of some lingerie shop.

Stopped at the ol' Albert Heijn today on the way home to pick up some more groceries (as I have eaten through what I had previously bought) and experienced a new challenge today, on top of not knowing what it is that I am buying - directions/instruction.  Yep - they are in Dutch too!  I know that I said that I was going to take my iPad with me next time but I stopped on my way home and didn't have it with me.  I am not sure why I torture myself like this!  The oven still is giving me challenges but I haven't given up yet (and can't if I want to eat hot food!)

Here is some of what I bought today - I know what they are - kinda.  Or at least know that I could cook it!  LOL!
This I know how to make - even if the directions are in Dutch!
I have figured out the Kip is chicken - just not sure what kind of marinade this was - still not sure even after I have cooked it and ate it.  Kinda a cross b/w Mexican and Indian



How could I not buy this?!  The one thing they do have a lot of choice of his hazelnut spreads :-)  Not sure what the white flavour is yet though.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

A little bit from home

This is what 75 kg looks like.
My air freight was delivered Monday morning before I left for work and thank God because although I thought I had packed well in my suit case, I hadn't and was starting to question my clothing choices. (keep in mind that I had one entire suit case filled with beach wear from my holiday to Mexico that preceded my move!  Given my comments on the weather, none of it is helpful!)  Included in my air freight were a couple of warm jackets, a toque and another scarf - thankfully because as I have mentioned - it is COLD here!

Once I started to unpack my air freight on Monday, after work, reality set - although they managed to pack almost all of my clothes in my main closet (my fall/winter stuff), they ran out of weight space so didn't pack my pants and half of my skirts.  For those of you who have seen my closet and know me well, it is rather organized, what I now have to wear on my bottom half is a collection of skirts - all which are stripped in some fashion and one in a leopard print.  They weren't able to fit in the solid skirts or my pants.  So for the next 6 weeks I will either being one of 2 pair of black pants I brought in my suit case or a stripped skirt.  Yah, not to smart!  Oh, and I only have 2 pair of jeans with me yet I seem have 4 pair of yoga pants - go figure!!!!

I am not sure when the rest of my possessions will arrive.  I imagine that they are bobbing around in the Atlantic Ocean right now.  Even if there were to arrive here tomorrow,  I can't get them as 1)  I don't have a permanent place to live yet (starting the search on Friday) 2) I haven't been able to register at the town hall yet (that is next Thursday) and without doing that I don't have my BSN (kinda like our SIN I think) and residence permit which seems to be a prerequisite for EVERYTHING around here, including getting a cell phone and for having getting my stuff imported into the country.  So hopefully by the end of next week, I can start moving ahead on some of that stuff.

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Damn It's Cold!!!!

Damn it's cold and this is coming from a born and bred Canadian who spent half of her life either living or working about North of 60 - so this qualifies me to be a good judge of cold!  Honestly, when you look at the temperature it is usually above 0 but when you throw in the 65% humidity and the wind, it bites right in to you.  Fortunately before I left, my friend Kathy gave me a lovely hand knit toque and scarf, and my Aunty Margaret knit me a lovely scarf/cowl - both of which have been getting a lot of use!  I am hoping that I have a warmer jacket packed in my air shipment.

Coffee maker mess!
Today I have been appliance challenged.  I wrongly assumed that this coffee maker came with a reusable filter in it so I just added my coffee grounds to it and turned it on - BIG MISTAKE.  After about 2 minutes I noticed that I had grounds in the coffee and then after about 3 minutes I had coffee all over the counter.  This is when I realized that I need to put a coffee filter into the coffee maker and because I didn't, everything was coming full force through the coffee maker.  So needless to say, there was no coffee this morning b/c I don't have any filters.

Another appliance (for the lack of a better word) is the towel warmer thing in the bathroom - can't figure out how to use that, so I just hang things off of it.  For 38 years I have lived without heated towels, so I am pretty sure that I will be able to live another 4 years without them as well.

The last appliance that challenged me today is the microwave/oven combo.  Yes - this is it.  There is no way that you could ever cook a turkey in this as it is TINY.  Firstly, who makes a microwave/convection oven combo?  The Dutch do.  I attempted to roast some vegetables and a chicken breast with limited success. Firstly, I couldn't figure out how to keep it cooking.   Sounds simple you say but it wasn't.  I had to restart it 3 times.  Secondly, it is in Celsius and I am a Fahrenheit girl when it comes to cooking.  Yes, I know it is as simple as going onto Google to convert, but still.  In the end, everything ended up cooked - maybe a little over cooked but it was still very good.

For fun today, I decided to ride one of the trams from one end of the line to the other and back.  I figured that this would give me a nice, warm opportunity to see more of the city, including passing through a couple of neighbourhoods that I am going to be looking in for a more permanent home.  In all, the tram ride took me about 2 hours and passed me through some beautiful neighbourhoods and some not so beautiful neighbourhoods - I think I found the 'hood!  Needless to say, I will not be looking at places there!  So what did this little escapade cost me - a grand total of .86 euros (I still have to figure out how to type euros properly).  I think because I got on and off at the same stop, my OV-chipkaart (my tram/train pass) read my chip as just getting on and off and it charged me the basic rate and no km charges.  Score one for me!  I found this to be a good way to see different parts of the city but also to work on some of my Dutch pronunciations, as every stop would be announced.  Lord only knows that I am bastardizing this poor language!

Yesterday I found the Dutch equivalent of Whole Paycheck, I mean Whole Foods and it is called Marqt (www.marqt.nl) and just like Whole Foods, you can spend A LOT of money there!  Once again, shopping in Dutch, however this time I decided to try and tackle the dairy department.  I would say that I was somewhat successful in that I was able to pick out 1L of milk but I can't tell you if it is 2%, 1% or Skim or if they even have those types - I just went for the ones with the lowest calorie count (that I can read).  Much of what they sell is either organic or local and very little is processed, so shopping was a little easier b/c a leek is a leek - it doesn't matter if I am in Calgary or The Hague.  Bread on the other hand, not sure what kind I bought - I was hoping it was a sourdough type but I was wrong.  Not sure what it is, kinda tastes like it has corn in it, but it definitely isn't sourdough!

One observation that I have had since I was here, I have yet to see a cemetery - I wonder what they do with their dead?  Not necessarily something that is keeping me awake at night but just something that I noticed.

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Grocery Shopping & Laundry . . .my first foray into Dutch living.

I went grocery shopping last night mainly b/c I was in need of some laundry detergent as I hadn't done laundry in 2 weeks, and had a suitcase full of clothes that I had in Mexico that need to be done and until my air shipment arrives on Monday morning, I am limited to the clothes that I had packed in my other suitcase and upon review, not sure what I was thinking!  So off to the Albert Heijn I went.  The one thing that I have observed about living here is that everything is measured in the number of minutes of the walk away something is - and they don't round up or down to nearest 5!  So I was told that the Albert Heijn was 6 minutes away - not 5, but 6 and it was.  I was a little timid about trusting Google maps to get me there, as Monday ended up as a complete sh*t show trying to get to work, but this time it was very straightforward.  Exit building.  Turn right.  Walk about 4 minutes.  Turn right.  Walk about 2 minutes and there it would be - and it was!

Albert Heijn is the major chain here in the Netherlands - kinda like Safeways but a fraction of the size.  Challenge #1 when I got the store, I saw these baskets that seemed to have an extra handle and as I stood there trying to figure it out, up walks a 4 year old, who picks one up and quickly proceeds to use it properly.  It was an extra handle so you could tow the basket behind you - duh.  I swapped it out for a regular basket.  Challenge #2 - NOTHING is in English.  I don't know why, but for some reason I thought that some things would be in English but they weren't.  Thank God for fresh vegetables and fruit because I can realize that.  The one food group that continues to stump me is dairy.  I can't seem to figure out what is what and I think they drink yogurt here, so for now, I am avoiding it.  There were a few things that were familiar so I bought them.
Sabra Hummus & Laughing Cow - those I know!

Challenge #3 - there are no brands that I recognize with the exception of say Oreos but that wasn't what I was looking for.  And unlike in North America where you have 50 different types of something, here you are lucky if you have 2!  Since I had forgotten my Dutch phrase book at home, I just stuck to the basics like some veggies, cheese, bread and chocolate!  I have noticed that compared to Canada - groceries are cheap here.  Today I have to head back to the market to buy things like dish soap, garbage bags, etc. You would think that they would have them here but they don't!



When you check out, they ask if you want these mini-groceries - so I said "sure" not knowing what the hell she was telling me - and here is what I got.  Not too sure if I am collecting something or what!  I guess time will tell.


Activity #2 last night and what precipitated the trip to the grocery store was laundry!  Fortunately my apartment has an in-suite washer & dryer and THANKFULLY it isn't one of those combo units that seems to be common in Europe, but the washing machine is slower than molasses in January!  I do think though, it could have something to do with the operator and her not understanding Dutch, so may not be using it the right way.  In the end though, my clothes came out clean!





Washing machine controls - yep, that is Dutch!










In the end, I survived both my first trip to the grocery store and my first loads of laundry!

Friday, February 8, 2013

I Saw a Windmill

Yes - on my way from the airport to The Hague on Sunday, I saw a real, honest to goodness, Dutch windmill and I almost peed with excitement!  Who would have guessed that I would have saw one so soon!  Oh I think I might just enjoy this whole living in another country thing! (this wasn't the actual one but it looked like this!)

So windmills aside, I have decided to start a new blog chronicling my life here in The Hague.  I can't promise that it will always be exciting, but I am pretty confident that I will make you laugh from time-to-time as I learn to navigate living my life outside of Canada for the very first time.  Yes, I have travelled a lot (see my other blog - www.calgaryheather.blogspot.ca) but I have always said, that living somewhere is different than travelling somewhere - so this will be about my living and my other blog will be about my travelling, if I ever get around to updating it.  Yes - I know I am a trip or two behind!

So with that, I am about to try and find Albert Heijn aka the grocery store (www.ah.nl).  If you clink on this link you will see that most websites here are in Dutch and yours truly knows no Dutch.  I have however figured out which link on the website I need to hit to figure out where the closest Albert Heijn is - so here is to not getting lost and to trying to figure out what I am buying!   If I don't blog in a day or so, that means that I am lost and am wandering aimlessly about The Hague trying to find my way home! :-)