Wintertijd

Impressions

After one week back home in Sweden I finally feel I've unwound enough to write some words about my impressions of Chris' and my trip to Nederlands. Going by car non-stop we arrived very late, Chris' mother's warm welcome, putting her hands around my face, immediately making me feel like a non stranger, Chris' dad still waiting up even if he's not well.

Walking around in Emmeloord that first day I noticed that they don't have hedges between the houses, which to me is very nice and unusual. The days followed by meeting his open hearted sister with family, her children just popping up at grandmothers house, no appointments made, no calls before, just showing up... very un-Swedish. Sitting there one evening at the round table with Chris' brother & Co, chit-chatting as if we were always around the corner.

Amsterdam - meeting Chris' close friends - learning which word I can say before any dutch word at all, finding out that Bebel Gilberto is really good, an extremely nice dinner one evening that made Almere actually seem like a nice town. In Amsterdam I met female waitresses for the first time ever that were nice to me as a woman with male company. A city that has people riding bicycles and carrying large objects like for example a huge painting or wooden boards at the same time must be a very pleasant place.

Then of course we saw the beautiful countryside of Zeeland and Flevoland, the mills and the cosy caf?s and the red light district of Amsterdam. Oh, I must not forget the bitterballen (in Swedish this word is very funny). Yes, I had a very good time, it would be strange if I hadn't when a beautiful family stood there on the lawn, smiling through their melancholy, waving us goodbye.