Valentine Vogels (Birds)

As a Valentine’s Day surprise, Pieter and I went to Utropia, a bird sanctuary in Middelburg. It was a unique experience and a Valentine’s Day like no other.

While purchasing our tickets, we were greeted by a friendly white cockatoo that just wandered into the lobby and said “Hello”. It was creepy, but cute. I had a nice conversation with him. Upon entering the main room, there was a small gift shop and restaurant, nothing fancy. A large blue macaw greeted us and to my surprise, it was not fake. Looking on, there was a whole jungle of trees and plant life. Some birds flew freely in the artificial forest space, while most of them were in cages next to each other. The floor was covered in bird droppings and I am shocked that I left the building with a clean head.

The first attraction was a warm room with a large bathtub like fish tank. This tank held gara rufa, the type of fish used for a fish pedicure, also known as ‘doctor fish’. The instructions were to dip your hand in the water and the fish would nibble off the dead skin cells on your hand. I was frightened at the idea of dozens of tiny fish nibbling off my hand, but eventually gave it a try and loved the thrill. The next rooms were filled with gorgeous, colorful, and talkative birds. We tried to teach them new words, some Dutch and some English, but the birds were not versatile in their vocabulary.

In the center of the bird jungle was a large pool of humongous and brightly colored carp as well as small turtles that were probably terrified by the size of their pond-mates. The most random little creature that we stumbled upon was a tiny, furry prairie dog in the back corner. He was eating away at hay and running through the man made tunnels, making it difficult to get a good picture of him.

After our bird excursion, we went to a small café’ downtown and waited quite a while to be waited on and served, but the sandwiches we ordered ended up being worth the wait. From there we boarded the train to Vlissingen where we took the ferry to see the view across the Western Scaldis. By this time, the sun was setting and it was simply beautiful.

Our special day ended with dinner at none other than… McDonald’s where I got a hamburger happy meal and Hello Kitty glasses as my not so useful (or fun) toy.

Pieter's club sandwich

My chicken, mozzarella, and tomato sub

Decision Time

The name “Pieter” means ‘rock’. From the beginning of this journey when I was freaking out about only being able to pack four shirts for a month long trip, to the morning we were weighing our suitcases to check that they were not too heavy for the airplane, to the lunch at Arby’s in Strasburg on our way to D.C. where I kept making jokes because I was nervous, to putting off saying goodbye to my parents at the airport for the first time before we boarded the plane, my husband was there for me. If it was not for this man I would never have gotten to have this experience. He has been a patient teacher throughout our days in Arnemuiden. He biked slower for me, translated countless conversations for me not to feel so lost, and guided me around the town_ sharing memories of his childhood with me. He has held my hand through every take off and descent during all of our flights, he has made me feel safe and protected among a sea of strange people, he has listened to me when I needed to vent, and he has provided a warm shoulder to lean on when I miss the comfort of home. Pieter has been my rock during this trip. We will celebrate our five month wedding anniversary this Friday and our first Valentine’s day not only being married, but also being in the same country. Although I am not big on celebrating every little occasion in our marriage, this one seems important being that we will not be together for our six month anniversary.

Throughout this excursion I have learned that I am not as adventurous as I thought I was. During the awkward years of high school and the beginning of college, I always wondered whether I would be the girl who traveled the globe, who moved down south, or who stayed as her parent’s next door neighbor. My parents would joke about their children each building homes on the property around the house we grew up in. During my stay in Europe, I have discovered that my comfort zone is about the size of a child’s playpen. I crave familiarity, convenience, and I am not as brave and tough as I try to convince people I am. After being in seven different airplanes in a course of two months, one would think I would be comfortable and familiar with flying, but truth is_ I am terrified of flying. The reason for my return comes with one of the many lists I have made in an attempt to organize and make sense of my life. While my time here in the Netherlands has been educational, enjoyable, and extended, Pieter and I have decided that I can be more useful from the other side of the pond.

Being in America will provide me the opportunity to work again. This will allow me to make money to begin building a foundation for our continued life together in America, whenever that may take place. The main aspect I have missed about my life at home has been my independence. I have lost close to all of it in my time here. I rely on Pieter to get me food, communicate with those around me, and plan activities. I really never have any idea what is going on here. Independence, confidence, and purpose will come with having a job again and being able to drive around on my own again. I will also be present for the meetings with the lawyer and will be able to take care of paperwork firsthand. My parents and I have been told that this may speed up the process of Pieter’s return. We’ll see.

With this plan comes a great wave of emotions. While we will be back together for Pieter's 28th birthday and our one year wedding anniversary, we will be apart for the second half of our first year being husband and wife. The situation seems unfair, to say the least. My frustration and anger with the U.S. government and airline system continues to smolder, but as a couple who is just beginning their journey of growing and learning about one another, we know we will make it through this time and come out stronger in the end.

America the Beautiful

Before coming over to the Netherlands, I held very little knowledge of what the culture would be like and how I would relate to the individuals I met there. One really cannot know what a country is like until he or she has visited it and has had encounters with different groups of people in that country. After having been in the Netherlands for almost two months, I think it is time for me to write a post about how the American lifestyle compares to the Dutch lifestyle.

There seems to be a lot of curiosity and misinterpretation about America and the people that live there. I would like to try to affirm the true stereotypes and break the false ones. A lot of the knowledge that individuals hold about foreign countries comes from the only thing they have to influence them, oftentimes television shows and movies. This explains why a lot of outsiders have such an extreme outlook on how Americans live and behave.

In no specific order, I will begin with this subject of football. In America this is a topic that people either bond over or fight over. During football season many individuals spend their Sunday afternoons watching this famous game that I have never grown to appreciate. I have no idea why football is popular and why it seems to outrank all other sports, but it does. Many times football is the center of family get togethers, the game is on and everyone gathers around.

Holidays are bigger, brighter, and I would say ‘better’ in America. We set aside whole aisles in stores filled with decorations, cards, candies, and gifts for every important holiday. Special occasions include New Years, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Independence Day (4th of July), Back to School, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. It is hard to forget or ignore holidays that are approaching when you are in America. This may be the cause of us being known as highly “materialistic”.

After being in the Netherlands for quite a while, I now agree that Americans can be very materialistic. My first reaction about homes and the lifestyle of Dutch people was that it was very basic. They are not constantly searching for a shortcut to do tasks or for the next best convenience to arrive in the store, but they seem to be satisfied with modest living. Bigger is certainly not better here.

Guns_ whenever the topic of guns is brought up in a conversation here it is always in a comical way. America’s obsession with guns is funny to Dutch people. Having a hand gun in your purse or a rifle under your bed is not necessary here. For the most part, people seem to feel more safe here.

On the topic of fast food, I have reminded my husband of how much more convenient American living is than over here. This is likely the cause of Americans being referred to as ‘lazy’ so often. We are lazy, but for good reason. In most towns there are convenient fast food restaurants on your way home for one to pick up a quick and easy meal. This method of dining is just easier and sometimes cheaper than buying groceries.

We drive everywhere! Where I come from, the Shenandoah Valley, there are hills, mountains, and valleys around every turn. It’s a beautiful country, but walking to the store or biking to the doctor just is not an option. Other than the rough topography, the busy streets are dangerous to be out on even in a car. Having a vehicle is not optional if you want to get anywhere in America.

New York City, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Chicago_ these are the cities you see in movies and tv shows. My town and thousands of other American towns are nothing like these eventful cities. Many foreign outsiders dream of visiting America to go see these busy cities. They are missing out on the real beauty of America if they think that this is all there is to the beautiful country.

Breakfast and meals are much larger most of the time. This very much depends on the person and their lifestyle, but for the most part, any American would appreciate eggs, bacon, pancakes, and hash browns in the morning, especially on a holiday. I like to vary what I eat most mornings. I chose between waffles, fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, or a muffin. Lunch and dinner oftentimes need to be quick and easy for most American families. Parents work, kids are at school or doing activities and we are just busy. Judging from the individuals I know, lunch is rarely ever spent with family. It’s a time where you either pack a salad, sandwich or leftovers from last night's dinner and you eat at work or school, or you go out to eat with friends, or you drive by Chickfila or Wendy’s real quick on your lunch break. Dinner consists of a meat, vegetable, starch, and sometimes a fruit. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans is a perfect example of an ideal American dinner.

Americans do love to eat, and we do not simply eat to live. Food is fun, tasty, and convenient, which is probably why the obesity rate is so high in America. We pride ourselves in our ability to make a delicious variety of dishes with zest and flavor. Anything from burgers, hot dogs, lasagna, spaghetti, chili, tacos, pizza, pork bbq, corn on the cob, peach cobbler, roast beef sandwiches, chef salads, fried chicken, ravioli, loaded baked potatoes, macaroni and cheese, baked beans, bacon cheeseburgers, burritos, shrimp… the spectrum of food available in America actually blows my mind now after being in the Netherlands.

We do have busy lives. While my stay here in the Netherlands has become quite mundane, I have observed how people are not half as busy as people in America. I know that America has parts of the country where people live slower and less stressful lives, but the majority of the population complains of always being too tired or too occupied with other obligations to take time to enjoy life. If I were able to have a job here and a home with my husband like we had in America, my life would still be very different due to the emphasis of living ‘simple’ here. As much as I may long to bring parts of America to this tiny village and have the conveniences I did back home, I understand that with those conveniences comes unnecessary stress. With that understanding, I am trying to embrace the differences and enjoy this time away from everything I took for granted in my hometown.