This week has been a whirlwind of emotions. I am happy to report that I have them now mostly in check. Sometimes, a girl has just got to vent! Especially when she is an obsessive life planner who calls and checks on things at least twice before making her decisions, only to have been told the wrong information. But I digress. I also didn't take that many photos with my phone this week. That is because we got my phone bill and it was 35 Euros over what it was supposed to be. I thought maybe that had to do with my data usage. I have no sense of direction and last month there was a lot of traveling to new places for interviews and to meet up with new friends, so I thought maybe my incessant use of Google Maps and GPS was taking its toll. But no, apparently the problem is I talk too much! This should come as no surprise to people who know me in real life. Probably a few readers could have also guessed that I am very loquacious. My plan for the next phone bill ends in 3 days and I am already 13.50 over. So, the moral dear friends is expect a lot more texts from me to coordinate plans. But, the good news is my data usage is hardly anything. So more pictures! 

As I mentioned in the happier of my two posts this week, on Sunday the Verlo- and I stumbled upon Zumba at the Domplein. Here are some more shoots I took with my phone. As you can see, the weather was yucky, but dancing sure was fun!

Then I caught Mr. Atticus looking adorbs. Seriously, I might be partial, but you would be hard pressed to find a cuter cat. Just look at those furry toes!

I don't know if you know, but the European Championships for Football (Soccer) are happening right now. Voetbal is huge here in The Netherlands. Stores have been stock piling oranje gear for weeks! Holland is in what is know as the Group of Death, with Germany, Denmark, and Portugal. Our first game was last night against Denmark. I went all out with my adorable lion mane that we got for buying a lot of Holland Edition MM's. Too bad we lost! Even though we had possession of the ball I'm guessing 95% of the game. We just had a bit of trouble with too much heat on the ball, as our shoots kept flying over the goal post. Oh and Denmark's goal was absolute shite. Seriously, luck was not on our side. Next up we get to play Germany who beat Portugal last night.

Next week I promise to be in a better mood! I am excited for my inburgering classes to finally begin on Tuesday, but the shy kid I was in high school is starting to sneak back in. I am convinced that I will have to introduce myself in Nederlands before the class that already knows each other, so I have been rehearsing what to say about myself all week! Yep, I'm nerd. Also, this was my first full week of giving up soda, and I have been exponentially more tired. Next week, I'll be consuming more coffee.

• I had my first hardcore bout of culture shock after my Inburgering Orientation. It was not pretty, but like I said, I am mostly over it. 
• I did some Zumba in the Domplein.

What did your week look like?

I can't believe I have lived here for half a year! It feels like just yesterday and years ago, that I was waiting with Atticus at Hartsfield International to board our flight to take us to our new home. I'm still having the time of my life, but being an expat is not all dinner parties with diplomats and trips around the continent. It is real life, just on the other side of the world. With that in mind, here is my list of 11 things I still love about The Netherlands after living here 6 months. This list is going to be different than my things I love after 3 months, although all those things still apply. In no particular order: 

1. The lack of dubbing: The Netherlands, unlike most countries, does not dub films and shows into its native tongue (unless the show is designed for little children) This is amazing, it means that I can go to a movie here and hear Woody Harrelson's voice when he's playing Haymitch. (Hunger Games again, I know!) It also means that I can watch American and English shows and read the subtitles to try and pick up basic words and sentence structure of Nederlands.  

2. Inburgering, yes I know, I said no more posts about this for awhile! But, I think it is really cool that the government will pay for me to learn the language of the country I now live in. 

3. The Bibliotheek: With branches spread throughout the Gemeente, thousands of DVD's to borrow, hundreds of English books, and tens of thousands of Dutch titles, all for 40 euros a year. What's not to love? I am at one branch or another at least once a week. More about this in another post.

The Central Branch

4. Speculoos Spread: Cookie spread that I am obsessed with and it is all Lily's fault! Seriously though, this stuff is ground up cookies combined with oil and made into a spread roughly the consistency of peanut butter. It's magical! 

5. The Cheese Mongers: In a country known for its cheese, Gouda is actually a city here, you don't have to look far to find people who's whole shops or stands are devoted to cheese! These are also the places I can find cheddar the easiest. In Utrecht, we have a Farmer's Market every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, there are normally at least 5 different cheese stalls set up.

6. The fish stalls: Available at the pre-mentioned markets and spread through out the cities here, these are stands were you can buy both cooked and uncooked fresh fish. Where the Dutch can get their haring! I prefer kibbling. Tiny pieces of deep fried fish, it is sooo amazingly good!

The markets are even active in the snow

7. The cheap booze: Go on call me a lush, but the booze prices here are incredible. You can get beer for under a Euro in a grocery store, a six pack for under five. Perfectly good wine for 2.50. And it is cheaper to order a beer in a restaurant than a coke!

8. Ontbijtspek, dutch bacon: For those of you who know me well, know that I don't like most products that come from a pig. I accidentally tasted bacon a few years ago and became hooked! The dutch version is much saltier than it's american cousin. For a person who prefers boiled peanuts to cake, this is heavenly.

9. Free Education: Tuition here is on average around 1770 Euros per year. In the US, it is more than that each semester. Add that to student grants and travel cards that you can get here if you are under 30 and that you can pay most schools in installments and the Dutch can go for basically nothing. Of course, you do have to pay living expenses, so you might have to get a loan. But trust me, it is nothing compared to the amount of debt the typical american student acquires. 

10. It is totally acceptable to not have your shit together in your 20's: In the States, we put so much pressure on ourselves to finish University as soon as possible and start on our career. It seems more acceptable here to not rush yourself when you are young. People also aren't having babies or getting married nearly as young. I would say that about 1/2 of my friends are married and 1/3 have a kid. The Verlo is five years older than me and I would say less than 1% of his friends are married or have babies. There is no rush here. 

11. I have friends! After 6 months, I can finally say that I now have more than one friend that lives here, I have a few! Friends go a long way towards making a place feel like home! 

What do you love about where you live? 

Last month, I had so much fun checking fellow expat blog Lily Wanderlust's post for fatmumslim's February photo challenge that I felt the need to join for March! Today's challenge was the word up. So, here is one of my favorite photo's looking up. These are the unicorns that adorn the  Koninklijk Paleis, on the Dam Square in Amsterdam. This beautiful building was commissioned to be built in 1648 and was the palace of Louis Napoleon, and William of Orange. Koninklijk Paleis translates to Royal Palace.