Apartment Hunters International

This week has been one of ups and downs for us. The fact that this move is real and not just a "vacation" has finally hit us. Living in a hotel room has started to wear on us. The fact that the weather in Seattle has been sunny and warm and it's been rainy and dreary here, has been a bit of a bummer. We have had definite moments of homesickness this week. But we knew this was to be expected and will probably not be the last time we feel this way. All in all the week has ended on a very happy and positive note and we are excited for a fun weekend and for what next week will bring.

Nick began work this week at the Expeditors office in Schipol (near the airport). There are nearly 300 people in the office, many of whom have relocated from throughout Europe and the Middle East. He's excited to be working with people from various cultures and backgrounds and interested to see how the business and office culture differs in comparison to that of Seattle. One difference he's excited about is starting work at 8:30 instead of his customary 6:30 in Seattle. There is also a lunch bus which stops by the office for breakfast and lunch. It makes its presence known by honking the horn while pulling into the parking lot. Everyone seems to know it is coming as they are already pulling on their jackets and grabbing their wallets prior to its arrival. One can purchase all kinds of treats from the lunch bus...including cigarettes.

We began our search for housing on Tuesday and saw two places, one an apartment in Nieuw-Vennep, with a great view to the west, the city center at the front door, and a canal at the back. The town was a bit too quaint for us though. We also looked at a house that day in Hoofdorp. It was a tad too 80's for our taste and much too large for just the two of us and Rocky.

Our search continued on Friday as we spent the majority of the day meeting with brokers and viewing apartments. We spent the morning in Haarlem, which is nicknamed "Little Amsterdam". We had a wonderful  tour guide (broker) named Bas. He was so personable and informative. He truly sold us on the city of Haarlem. It is a beautiful and historic city directly west of Amsterdam proper. I think we both fell in love with this particular city. It has the feel and beauty of Amsterdam without the overwhelming number of cars and people. Bas showed us two great locations there. One of them was in an old hospital that had been converted into amazing apartments. The place had a great roof top terrace but the owner was still a little reluctant to move out. We really were wanting to move into an apartment asap, and were worried that since the owner was not fully mentally ready to part with the unit that we might be waiting for another month or two before we could move in. The other apartment was in the center of Haarlem and was a great "sexy" apartment (our wonderful broker loved to use the adjective "sexy" when describing places to us). Unfortunately, due to the apartment being in the center of the city there was no parking for our car. So we decided we'd have to pass. We had a wonderful experience with Bas from Interhouse Haarlem. If you ever need to find housing in the Amsterdam area, look him up! We will definitely be spending lots of time exploring Haarlem while we are here.

Next it was on to Amstelveen, which is a suburb of Amsterdam. Many Expats end up living here because of the easy transportation into the city, as well as the proximity to schools, shopping, outdoor activities, etc.  We saw a few very nice places and are happy to say we are in the process of closing on one and will be moving in on Wednesday. It is a super cute two bedroom apartment (2 bedrooms!!! That means anyone that wants to come visit has a free bedroom!). It is a wonderful feeling to know we are getting out of the hotel! Here are some pictures from the website.

The view from the street.

The living room and partial dining room.

The kitchen.

The view when you walk through the front door.

Spending the day driving around Northern Holland helped us (really just Nick) get our bearings.  The country is very beautiful and filled with plenty of green (flat) space, which is surprising, considering that nearly 17 million people live here and the square mileage is smaller than that of Costa Rica and only slight larger than its neighbor Switzerland.  We're told that the Netherlands is the second most densely populated country in the world behind Singapore (Kevin, always having to be a one-upper).

Tomorrow we will head south to Eindhoven to spend the rest of the weekend with Marja, Maarten, and the kids. We will go to Philine's first horse show in the Netherlands on Sunday. We are very excited to get some time with the kids and to pump Marja and Maarten for tips and information. Lots of pictures to come!