Life in the Netherlands

September - December 2023

This is what our new lives abroad look like…🌤️💐 Read more

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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Sep 4, 2023, 10:19pm
- 🌙 19 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands Provincie Utrecht Gemeente De Ronde Venen Amstelhoek Kromme Mijdrecht 52.23473, 4.83918852°14’5” N 4°50’21” E
Day 1
Life the Netherlands
September 4, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ 🌙 19 °C
Hello! We’ve made it back to Amsterdam now and today Josh has his first orientation day at CVA (university). We still have lots of things to work out before life feels completely settled in here, but now is the time where we learn what works for us 🥰

We won’t be doing daily updates here anymore but we will still be updating this space weekly (hopefully)!!

Here’s to new beginnings…stay tuned 😁Read more
Traveler Good luck with the months ahead, I have loved all your updates. Xxx
9/4/23Reply
Traveler Thanks Barbara! We’re glad you enjoyed them ❤️
9/6/23Reply
Traveler We look forward to new impressions from your life in Europe.
9/7/23Reply
Traveler 😁😁
9/11/23Reply
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Sep 7, 2023, 1:43pm
- ☀️ 29 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands North Holland Gemeente Amsterdam Binnenstad Waterlooplein 52.368336, 4.8996252°22’6” N 4°53’59” E
Day 4
Very hot
September 7, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
This week it’s been boiling weather. Almost every day hitting the 30s. Josh has been at the conservatory getting to know new people and learning about what his study will entail. I’ve been exploring more of Amsterdam - finding the best thrift stores, bakeries and parks for reading (finished my book!) On the weekend we went for swims twice!! Saturday was at Aalsmeer (neighbouring village) and today (Sunday) was at the huuuuuge beach at Zandvoort 🍀☀️ We’re starting to settle in and have begun practicing and learning the dutch language. Tot Ziens!!Read more
Traveler looks lovely 😍🌞
9/11/23Reply
Traveler Don't loose the new hat 👒.
9/12/23Reply
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Sep 12, 2023, 1:02pm
- ☁️ 23 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands North Holland Gemeente Amsterdam Binnenstad Oosterdok 52.375225, 4.90862852°22’31” N 4°54’31” E
Day 9
Routine
September 12, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C
This week has been all about getting into routine! I’ve been exploring more areas outside of Amsterdam and starting to get admin sorted, I’ve also really been enjoying cooking and making meals 😋

We got our BSN numbers confirmed so now we can officially start looking for work, it also means we can open Dutch bank accounts and a lot of other important things 🥳

In the weekend we had our first night out in Amsterdam!! We joined a uni friend of mine called Sophie from New Zealand, and a bunch of her friends that she’s made from living and working here for the past year. She returns back to NZ next week, so it was nice to catch up and hear all about her experience abroad ☺️ that’s all for this week…Read more
Traveler Sounds like a week full of more and more impressions... Nice to hear news of you both... Thanx
9/18/23Reply
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Sep 24, 2023, 4:34pm
- ☀️ 20 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands Provincie Utrecht Gemeente De Ronde Venen Stokkelaarsbrug Polder Nellestein 52.258597, 4.94658352°15’31” N 4°56’48” E
Day 21
Dutchies
September 24, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
This week has been a big one! We started the week off with some rainy/windy weather - finally getting our first taste of typical Dutch weather. I’ve been exploring areas nearby including Amstelveen and Mijdrecht. This weekend I took Josh to try the bao buns I found last week as they are just so delicious! We checked out the kilo store (thrift store) and josh found 2 pairs of pants which will be great for winter. On Sunday our landlords Ben and Christine invited us on their boat tour along the Amstel. We got to see more of De Ronde Venen (province) and were spoilt with the lovely sunny weather. It was so nice to see everything from the water 🦋 we also got some experience with the different type of bridges along the river and how to get through them! This week has been all about learning the Dutch way of life, we like it here 😊Read more
Traveler Sehr schön. Your pictures are inviting all to see more of the Netherlands...
9/25/23Reply
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Sep 28, 2023, 7:21pm
- ☁️ 18 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands Provincie Utrecht Gemeente De Ronde Venen Amstelhoek Kromme Mijdrecht 52.23288, 4.83590852°13’58” N 4°50’9” E
2
Day 25
Change of seasons 🍂🌼
September 28, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
Autumn is finally here 🍁 even though we’re still being spoilt with the weather - today was 23 degrees for example!! This week was just like all the others; filled with lots of activities, lots of fun and busy times. We have enjoyed checking out more local and surrounding areas of Amsterdam, some notable places were Nieuwveen, Nes a.d. Amstel, Ouderkerk a.d. Amstel and Southeast Amsterdam! All very special in their own ways. We spent an evening at Hans (Joshes Uncle) best friend Gabies house for dinner. It was so nice to finally meet her. We really enjoyed our time chatting and getting to know her beautiful family. Feeling so grateful for all the connections!! 🥰🥰Read more
Traveler This year sunny autumn is realy unusual for europe, but enjoyable.. 🤪🌅
10/2/23Reply
Traveler The suns sticking around for us ☀️😋 enjoying it while it lasts
10/2/23Reply
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Oct 5, 2023, 3:46pm
- ☁️ 19 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands North Holland Gemeente Uithoorn De Kwakel 52.250437, 4.79489252°15’2” N 4°47’42” E
Day 32
Happy living
October 5, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C
Another week in the (mostly) sunny Netherlands! Enjoying quieter days but still exploring lots. This week I took myself to Hoofddorp - the largest town in another municipality near us. It seems to have lots of new construction around so a different feeling to other places I’ve visited.

We’re facing some new challenges as we navigate the balance of work/life/study.
Josh will start a part time job soon which is something we didn’t originally anticipate,
but we are embracing these challenges with positives mindsets 😁 If all goes well we should both be working part time/full time hospo jobs by November (as I continue my search for a graphic design job).

This weekend we took our bikes to Breukelen and caught the train to Utrecht. We didn’t know what to expect, but Utrecht was amazing!! We fell in love with the atmosphere, the canals (which are different to Amsterdam) and all of the lovely people and shops we visited really made our day special. Not to mention the burrata was so delicious (expensive of course). 🫠Read more
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Oct 10, 2023, 1:20pm
- ☁️ 21 °C
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands North Holland Uithoorn Zijdelmeer 52.243202, 4.8127752°14’36” N 4°48’46” E
2 1
Day 37
Highs and lows 🥶
October 10, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
It’s gotten a lot colder here! 🥶 makes sense with Christmas being only 70 days away!!!
This week has been filled with the same as always; Josh going to University and me cooking, reading and exploring 😁 We went back to Utrecht this weekend because we knew Amsterdam would be crowded with the city marathon on, plus we just really enjoy the city of Utrecht so much!

We had a pretty surreal experience on the bus home on Saturday night. Around 9pm our bus was hit by another bus, which happened to crash right into our window where we were sitting. The window shattered and glass went flying all over us. Thankfully we weren’t hurt at all. Just crazy to think the only window that broke was ours - we had it pretty unlucky. Very thankful that we are okay but it was definitely a shock 😅

We look forward to arriving in Germany next weekend!! We will keep you more updated thenRead more
Traveler Mouthwatering 🤤
10/16/23Reply
Traveler so glad you guys were safe and walked away unharmed 🙏
10/16/23Reply
Traveler Me too 🤍
10/16/23Reply
Traveler "Glück im Unglück!"
10/17/23ReplyTranslate
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Nov 5, 2023, 2:01pm
- 🌧 12 °C
- Altitude: 5 m
- Netherlands North Holland Gemeente Amsterdam Binnenstad Nederlands Scheepvaartmuseum 52.371637, 4.91479252°22’18” N 4°54’53” E
Day 63
November
November 5, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ 🌧 12 °C
This week we’ve adjusted back to routine after being on holiday last week. I’ve organised some really exciting events for next week which *fingers crossed* will be a good step in the right direction for starting my design career here. Josh has been busy practicing and learning at uni - all day everyday. It’s nice having some time in the evening for painting and when Josh has time to cook, it’s always a treat 😋

This weekend we biked into Amsterdam to visit the maritime museum. We got to go onto a replica of a Dutch East India Company (VOC) ship which was very cool. We both really enjoyed the photography exhibition called Food for Thought by Kadir van Lohuizen which explored food export and production in the Netherlands (which happens to be the second biggest agriculture producer in the world!) 🧅🚢Read more
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Nov 19, 2023, 3:33pm
- ☁️ 13 °C
- Altitude: 3 m
- Netherlands North Holland Gemeente Amsterdam Grachtengordel West 52.377441, 4.88848752°22’39” N 4°53’19” E
Day 77
Our first visitors!
November 19, 2023 in the Netherlands ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C
This week we got to warmly welcome our first visitors to see us in the Netherlands! Hans and Franz came to visit us on Thursday evening where we got to enjoy a lovely dinner at the hotel they were staying at in Uithoorn! It was so nice to catch up with them and we are very happy they came to see us 💛 We focused this weekend on sorting a lot of things out around the house. I put up fairy lights so we can get into the festive spirit and Josh made us some bread! We went into Amsterdam to do some CV drops. We ended the successful day with a Nordic pastry treat 😋😋Read more
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Traveler Life in the Netherlands
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- Nov 22, 2023, 7:57am
- Altitude: Sea level
- Netherlands Provincie Utrecht Gemeente De Ronde Venen Amstelhoek Kromme Mijdrecht 52.234676, 4.83919552°14’5” N 4°50’21” E
Day 80
lucky week
November 22, 2023 in the Netherlands
This week started off with a bright orange sunrise which was very pretty to wake up to!
Definitely feeling the autumn vibes and seeing all the orange hues 🍂 I’ve been enjoying daily runs and lots of wholesome cooking.

We’ve had some good success from joshes CV drops. Next week he will make a decision between two places, a bakery or a patisserie 😋 I’ve also had some very positive outcomes from job searching, resulting in an interview which may lead to a very exciting internship opportunity if it works with my VISA…fingers crossed as we wait to hear back 🤞Read more
Traveler Well done you both... patisserie sounds very good and 😋
11/26/23Reply
Traveler and very lecker hehe 😋
11/26/23ReplyTranslate
Traveler Good luck for you two starting a job hopefully!
11/26/23Reply
Traveler Thanks Matze! Hopefully we can share some good updates next week…🤗
11/26/23Reply
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