So my first two weeks in Amsterdam are in the books. I have a few pictures to share, however, I don't have internet at home yet, so we'll have a delay in posting until that gets sorted out this week.
The highlights:
- Did a culinary tour of the world with my mom - We ate at a different ethnic restaurant every night...except for the night we ordered pizza to the hotel. The prices are a bit steep but not terrible when you consider that we were eating in the touristy area closer to the city center and that you don't have to tip.
- Visited the Expat Center (Expat Center website ) to register with the town and get my residence permit. Unfortunately, my residence permit card wasn't actually there yet, so I'll be visiting the Expat Center again soon. It was the best experience we've (my mom or I, mostly my mom, I've only been once) ever had in an immigration office. Really I think it was the decor - I've never a government related office wall decorated in green and orange patterns, with giant curved sofas.
- Found an apartment in a great location - The address (if you want to send me anything) is Eerste Helmersstraat 210-III; 1054EN Amsterdam (Location of my apartment on Google Maps ). The dissection of that is as follows street, house number, floor; zip code, city. Remember, in Europe, the ground floor is not the first floor, so yes, I am on the 4th floor of the building and yes, there are stairs up to the bedroom inside the apartment, and no, I am probably not going to find a gym.
- Figured out how to pay for said apartment - To move in I had to pay (up front) 1 month's rent, 1 month's rent as deposit and 1 month's rent + 19% VAT as commission to the leasing agent. The day after I found the apartment, we found out that even banks don't take checks in the Netherlands. Given this unfortunately check usage in the Netherlands and the fact that I had brought my money in the form of a cashier's check, I was a little at odds as to how to pay for said apartment. Huge thanks go to Elly, my buddy at PwC, for fronting me Euros until my check gets cashed...which according to the bank can take from 2 to 6 weeks...ouch. More ouch when you consider that at the beginning of June I have to pay 1 month's rent and another month's rent to finish up my deposit. I also got squared away with the cable provider, UPC. To quote a new colleague of mine, when I told him I had to be at home on Friday for the set up, "UPC is a mess, they might arrange in 10 minutes or need 3 more visits, so good luck next week!"...nice to see somethings aren't different here.
- Visited Keukenhof (Keukenhof website) - Tulips are awesome. If you've ever been on vacation with me, you know that I am out of control when it comes to taking pictures of flowers, so I had an awesome time here. Plus, there was an orchid show, even better.
- Enjoyed Vondelpark - as you can see on the map, right next to my apartment is a huge park. So since the weather was amazing on Saturday and Sunday, I took some time to stroll on Saturday and did what passes for jogging for me on Sunday. Everywhere there were people (with their bikes next to them) enjoying the sunshine. I think I'm really going to enjoy living that close to the park. Funny thing about my Sunday jaunt, I realized when I got back and tried to take a shower that the water heater is not working...or is just off...but there's no manual for it in the apartment, so I'm stuck either taking freezing showers (not going to happen) or being creative (ie electric kettle and a bucket) until the property management guy gets back to me. Which is seriously awesome. Note to self: look for manuals for everything going forward.
- Bought a bike - This is a big one, there's a huge cycling culture in the Netherlands. Everyone has a bike, there's bike lanes everywhere. Only people who are dressed in spandex wear helmets and you can see ladies cycling in high heels and mini skirts, while listening to music, holding groceries and texting. I actually even cycled to work today. I looked at the map and wrote out a queue sheet last night. This morning I strapped my computer bag to the back of my bike and promptly missed the first turn. So my actual route to work was significantly longer than my intended route to work. Note to self: carry a map.
I think that's all for now. Work is pretty slow, because I don't start on client work until tomorrow. Stay tuned for thoughts on - working in Amsterdam, the cable installation process, exchanging my US drivers license for a Dutch license, and a trip to London in 2 weeks, and more!
The highlights:
- Did a culinary tour of the world with my mom - We ate at a different ethnic restaurant every night...except for the night we ordered pizza to the hotel. The prices are a bit steep but not terrible when you consider that we were eating in the touristy area closer to the city center and that you don't have to tip.
- Visited the Expat Center (Expat Center website ) to register with the town and get my residence permit. Unfortunately, my residence permit card wasn't actually there yet, so I'll be visiting the Expat Center again soon. It was the best experience we've (my mom or I, mostly my mom, I've only been once) ever had in an immigration office. Really I think it was the decor - I've never a government related office wall decorated in green and orange patterns, with giant curved sofas.
- Found an apartment in a great location - The address (if you want to send me anything) is Eerste Helmersstraat 210-III; 1054EN Amsterdam (Location of my apartment on Google Maps ). The dissection of that is as follows street, house number, floor; zip code, city. Remember, in Europe, the ground floor is not the first floor, so yes, I am on the 4th floor of the building and yes, there are stairs up to the bedroom inside the apartment, and no, I am probably not going to find a gym.
- Figured out how to pay for said apartment - To move in I had to pay (up front) 1 month's rent, 1 month's rent as deposit and 1 month's rent + 19% VAT as commission to the leasing agent. The day after I found the apartment, we found out that even banks don't take checks in the Netherlands. Given this unfortunately check usage in the Netherlands and the fact that I had brought my money in the form of a cashier's check, I was a little at odds as to how to pay for said apartment. Huge thanks go to Elly, my buddy at PwC, for fronting me Euros until my check gets cashed...which according to the bank can take from 2 to 6 weeks...ouch. More ouch when you consider that at the beginning of June I have to pay 1 month's rent and another month's rent to finish up my deposit. I also got squared away with the cable provider, UPC. To quote a new colleague of mine, when I told him I had to be at home on Friday for the set up, "UPC is a mess, they might arrange in 10 minutes or need 3 more visits, so good luck next week!"...nice to see somethings aren't different here.
- Visited Keukenhof (Keukenhof website) - Tulips are awesome. If you've ever been on vacation with me, you know that I am out of control when it comes to taking pictures of flowers, so I had an awesome time here. Plus, there was an orchid show, even better.
- Enjoyed Vondelpark - as you can see on the map, right next to my apartment is a huge park. So since the weather was amazing on Saturday and Sunday, I took some time to stroll on Saturday and did what passes for jogging for me on Sunday. Everywhere there were people (with their bikes next to them) enjoying the sunshine. I think I'm really going to enjoy living that close to the park. Funny thing about my Sunday jaunt, I realized when I got back and tried to take a shower that the water heater is not working...or is just off...but there's no manual for it in the apartment, so I'm stuck either taking freezing showers (not going to happen) or being creative (ie electric kettle and a bucket) until the property management guy gets back to me. Which is seriously awesome. Note to self: look for manuals for everything going forward.
- Bought a bike - This is a big one, there's a huge cycling culture in the Netherlands. Everyone has a bike, there's bike lanes everywhere. Only people who are dressed in spandex wear helmets and you can see ladies cycling in high heels and mini skirts, while listening to music, holding groceries and texting. I actually even cycled to work today. I looked at the map and wrote out a queue sheet last night. This morning I strapped my computer bag to the back of my bike and promptly missed the first turn. So my actual route to work was significantly longer than my intended route to work. Note to self: carry a map.
I think that's all for now. Work is pretty slow, because I don't start on client work until tomorrow. Stay tuned for thoughts on - working in Amsterdam, the cable installation process, exchanging my US drivers license for a Dutch license, and a trip to London in 2 weeks, and more!
Love the post, looking forward to reading more!!! That's insane that it'll take you that long to get your money! Bathing with warm water in a bucket, reminds me of India! And biking in heels...wow!
ReplyDeletethis is great abi! looking forward to reading about your adventures :)
ReplyDeleteDoes everyone wear wooden shoes in Holland? And have you learned to speak any Hollish?
ReplyDelete