First impressions

 A typical view of Amsterdam.

A not-so-typical view of the Heineken factory.

Well, where do I start?  I think the standout thing so far has been how it feels to be here in the 'Old Country.'  In some ways The Netherlands feels a bit foreign, which I guess is to be expected.  There are things that are polar opposite to Australia.  We're staying with Oma Bultman in Nunspeet.  If Nunspeet were in Australia it would be the undisputed 'tidy town' champion.  Everything is carefully ordered and neatly executed.  You should see the gardens, oh the gardens.  It is foreign.

And yet in many ways it feels so much like home, at least in terms of the culture and our heritage.  At cafes coffee is served with a complimantary speculaas cookje, the default cake to eat with your coffee is appelbak, you get mayonaise with hot chips and you can buy hutspot from the supermarket!  It's how things should be.  (And it doesn't sound strange to hear everyone speak dutch...it just doesn't.)

Staying with Oma is great.  We've been for a couple of rides on her bikes already, seen the town centre and all the shops and cafes, and even met her neighbour.  But I do feel a bit disappointed that I don't speak dutch any better than I do (which is poorly).  It's difficult talking with Oma but we are slowly getting better at understanding each other.

Dad arrives here on Sunday afternoon and we're looking forward to that.  It'll be really nice to see some more of the country with someone to show us the good spots and answer our questions!

That's it for now.