Tuesday morning we went over to the institute. Marjan showed us the office we'll be sharing. Without our work permits, we can't really do work or get paid, but as visitors we can probably talk with people and read some materials.
We met with Mike, the program director and our new boss, at 11am. We don't know for sure, but we think our work permit applications were mailed two weeks ago Tuesday, but he and Marjan both said we should have them mid-August at the latest.
The Netherlands is having the hottest summer in at least 300 years (when they started recording temps). It's been sunny and about 90-degrees each day. Since the buildings don't have air conditioning, it's getting quite warm inside. So most of Tuesday afternoon was spent reading in our office with the window wide open and the lights off.
Mid-afternoon we met with Jeanette from Personnel. She explained that we would need to go to Gemeentehuis (town hall) to establish residency. Ger, whose house we're renting, has already had to notify them that he and his family will be leaving next week. So it seemed up for debate whether our dates of residence could overlap. But once we've established residency we can open a bank account. Technically we're not supposed to be able to do that, but apparently the institute has an agreement with the only bank in town that with residency and an offer letter we can open an account.
Jeanette also said that once we got work on the permits, we could go to Groningen to get our Sofinummers (social security numbers), which we would need to obtain car insurance. She also gave us a package with some great books:
- At Home in Holland: An English Speaking Guide to Living in the Netherlands
- Expat Toolkit 2005: A Guide to the Dutch Workplace
- The Holiday Diary
- Nederland Autokaart (roadmaps)
- a Dutch/English dictionary
- a couple booklets from Connect International on finding your way around the health care system
Then we met up with Ger. He drove us up to Diever, about 7km, where we met his wife Marjon. The house is great! They don't know how old it is (we should have asked for a guess), but it's had a few additions over the years. There's a sunroom on the northern end, a living room, small eating area, tiny little kitchen, small desk, small bedroom/office area, master bedroom, bathroom and W.C. on the first floor. Upstairs is another small bedroom.
The yard is quite large out back with a sizable vegetable and herb garden and two chickens that stay in their coop. And then there's also a large shed with an attached bedroom and bathroom (and possibly a kitchenette?), but that's where they'll store their things, so we won't have use of it.
Hosting visitors will require a little juggling, especially since Erik and Julie are likely to arrive before our things do. But I think we'll really enjoy renting the house anyway.
Ger and Marjon walked us around Diever. So cute! What a great little town! We were able to see where the grocery store is, and fruit store, library, bike shop, barber shop, restaurants and clothing shops.
Putting down a deposit is a bit complicated since we don't have a bank account here, we don't have work permits to get any sort of paychecks or advances, and we can only pull so much money out of the ATM. But Ger seems really understanding and flexible.
Ger drove us back to the institute where we grabbed our rental bikes and rode into Dwingeloo. We picked up some groceries as the store closed at 8:00 and made a late dinner back at the guest house.
So glad you guys made it okay. Let us know if you need anything and look out for the north koreans ;)
Posted by: halim | July 27, 2006 at 11:22 PM
i am jealous of your chickens, sheep, goat, ponies and cow poo! i demand photos of them! since you don't have work permits yet i'm *sure* you have a ton of free time!
Posted by: michelle | July 28, 2006 at 12:41 AM
Great to hear that you are settling in! -- Gretchen
Posted by: Gretchen | July 28, 2006 at 04:34 AM
What a cool thing you guys are doing. I can't wait to read more!
Posted by: Amanda | July 28, 2006 at 06:23 AM
I am so excited for you guys! And jealous, just so you know... good luck!!!
Posted by: Lisa | July 28, 2006 at 04:09 PM
So exciting! Glad you guys made it safely and I can't wait to read more about your adventures. :)
Posted by: Kate | July 28, 2006 at 04:33 PM
Wilkommen auf (wait, wrong language)... Welcome to the Netherlands! Do you find the Low Countries to be low enough to deserve the name? From my linguistically illiterate travels in Spain, I would recommend you learn four words/phrases quickly: "thank you", "where is...?", "how much...?" and "bathroom/toilet/washroom".
Posted by: Chad | July 28, 2006 at 06:15 PM
How exciting and what an adventure. I am glad you had safe travels and already got to see the house and the town you will be staying in.
If you don't have rubber boots/shoes yet, you may need them as I heard they have a damp fall and spring.
Thinking of you both! kva
Posted by: Karen VA | July 28, 2006 at 07:49 PM
Enjoy setting up your home and creating your life together there. Glad to hear that things are going well.
Posted by: mandy and josh | July 29, 2006 at 05:28 AM
dejavu - Kris I love your site as well as the word of the day. Verboten - that is one of my favorite German words. And yes we have those freeky sheets that only fit Euro beds. I laughed out loud at your comments about the late night bike ride and sleeping on the trains. Yes, never be late... Cheers to you both.
Posted by: Karen VA | August 04, 2006 at 04:55 AM