This Week

There's been a lack of updates this week: still wireless-less, and internet cafes are never much fun, nor can you can think of what to write when the time and euros are ticking away.

We are finally meeting with our landlord-of-sorts this weekend to get a photocopy of her ID, and pre-empting this getting our residency permit and sofinumber on Monday, we have a training day for a marketing job on Tuesday. Thank goodness!

We started a new routine this week which we're loving. Hot lemon water first thing in the morning, a jog in the park up the road every second day, and pilates every afternoon. Dani is hanging to join a gym, and I really want to get back into yoga, but until we know where we'll next be living, this is a good alternative.

Our local park is quite lovely, with beautiful big houses on the perimeter and an oval track for walking or jogging. We're the only ones that jog though, and this attracts quite a bit of attention, for this reason or not. People stand at their windows and blatantly watch for long stretches. It's also a dog park, so I get my fill of pups. Whereas in Ibiza it was silky terriers, here beagles are all the rage. The other day a hond took off with my beanie and I ran around the park after it, Benny Hill-style, trying to get it back. The owner didn't seem too worried by it.

Speaking of not-too worried, here it is, two and four wheels good, two legs bad. In that, bikes and cars are the priority, and you better watch out*. The number of times we've been almost-clipped, and it's not just us the new arrivals; young or old, cars and bikes don't stop for anybody, if you're in the right or not. Look both ways kids!

How are we going with the language? Well, we want to enrol in a language course, but again, when we know where we'll be living, Haarlem or Amsterdam. English is so easily offered up here, although we're starting with a few basics. For example, I said 'broodje' for the first time this week. This is a word that had us both a little freaked out. Broodje is sandwich and with so many delicious sandwiches out there (such as warm rookworst, or haring for me) we needed to get the pronounciation right. Dutchies, correct me if I'm wrong, but I've got it down to 'brod-yeh'? Meanwhile, I sit at home with the dictionary translating recipes, and English shows are subtitled so we're learning by matching up the words. And we're sprinkling some Dutch into our English, such as "let's go to the Islamic winkel (shop) and pick up some kip (chicken) and noten (nuts)".

It's been a pleasant one-jumper-one-jacket 6C this week, and it's rained every day, which isn't bad at all.

Most of our favourite TV channels disappeared when we got back from Spain, although we are obsessed with Project Runway, Dexter and Katie and Peter Andre's show The Next Chapter.

PS are you all obsessed with the Tom Cruise videos like we are? My favourite bit is from the last 58 seconds, and at the 1.09 timestamp on this next installment. It just doesn't get any better than that.

* Thanks Lola!