sábado, 25 de diciembre de 2010




¡Feliz Navidad! Merry Christmas!

martes, 16 de noviembre de 2010

Questions, questions, questions... / Preguntas, preguntas, preguntas...



Coming back from my Dutch lesson today I realized that I understand more Dutch than I thought. I wonder if the unexpected but regular dialogue at the supermarket had something to do with this. I'll explain it...

You go to the supermarket and you expect no interaction at all. Mostly because you are tired, it has been a hard day at work, you just want to buy your things and get home soon to have some rest. And also, let's face it, because you cannot communicate in Dutch. But reality is way too different. Reality is they do want to talk to you, they want answers, they want them now and they won't let you go until they get them.

They want to know the most strange things such as whether you have parked in the "parkeergarage", you want "spaarzegels", a "tasje", you have a "bonuskaart", a "statiegeldbon" or you collect any "figuurtjes". And you are thinking "Come on, all I want to do is pay!" and they reply to your thoughts with a convincing "pinnen!"

Just when you are standing there with a puzzled face and struggling with all these questions, having bags you didn't ask for, figures of Toy Story you didn't want and a bunch of stamps you don't even know what they are for... then they kill you off with a final: "bonnetje?".

Versión en español

miércoles, 29 de septiembre de 2010

Intelligent traffic lights / Semáforos inteligentes



Since I first arrived to the Netherlands I was wondering what all these strange things on the road surface were... these road marks everywhere. After some months (yes, it took me that time!) I started to think that these road marks were connected somehow to the traffic lights, as they are very efficient and they manage to detect approaching vehicles. Then, I did my research and I discovered it! They are called "in-pavement detectors" and, in the technical jargon, "inductive loops"!

An inductive loop is one of the many methods for vehicle detection at traffic lights and it consists on a coil of wire buried in the road's pavement that acts like a magnet. When a vehicle drives over it or stops on these in-pavement detectors, the metal mass of the vehicle leads to a change in the magnetic field making the system "aware" of the vehicle presence. Despite the considerable smaller mass of bicycles and motorbikes the system is good enough to detect them as well.

It is also a good way to get rid of the bad habit of stopping cars beyond the white stop line; all these detectors are installed before getting there and if you are not detected the signal never turns green!

I have never seen this system in Spain but... we should consider it, huh?


Versión en español

lunes, 7 de junio de 2010

#1 - Things you cannot find in Holland/ Cosas que no encuentras en Holanda


Pantera Rosa. Photo by Pi.

I always wanted to start a series of posts about those things that a Spanish person might miss in Holland. Those things that one cannot find in any shop in The Netherlands. Probably, your first thought will be ham or olive oil, but now these things are everywhere... though I agree they don't have the same quality as in Spain, unless you go to a specialized Spanish import & deli shop.

Anyway, I am talking about those things you simply cannot find ANYWHERE. So here it goes my first item: "La Pantera Rosa" (The Pink Panther), a cream filled cake coated in pink chocolate. A classic!! Where can you buy this in The Netherlands... or even out of Spain? NOWHERE!

Versión en español

domingo, 9 de mayo de 2010

A harsh winter / Un crudo invierno

Not long time ago, ending the harsh winter weather and just in the canal in front of our house, this scene powerfully caught my attention: a group of swans slowly but steadily making their way through the ice...


Versión en español

lunes, 19 de abril de 2010

Trapped in Holland / Atrapados en Holanda


Departure flights cancelled at Schiphol airport. Photo by Dan.

It is amazing how your life changes when your are an expat. Suddenly you travel a lot and as most of your friends are expats... they also travel a lot. Then your agenda becomes a complex world of knowing where everybody is, when they are coming back, whether you will be in The Netherlands or Spain for this Birthday, this gathering, this farewell party.

This kind of nomadic lifestyle leads to the fact that around 95% of the people I met during the last few years have been affected, to a different extent, by the unpronounceable Icelandic volcano:

  • I had to travel to Berlin (business trip, international Symposium) but of course, it was not possible and my company arranged a bus for everybody. 10 hours to get to Berlin instead of 1 hour 15 minutes. However, at the end the whole event was cancelled. People from Canada, USA, Japan and Russia couldn't get there either... so there was no point. Some of my colleagues went to Berlin by train hoping to come back by plane... but they are either trapped there or condemned to another 7-hour trip back to Amsterdam.
  • Daniel had to go to Madrid... but he gave up after rescheduling for the fifth time!! and being on hold on the phone with KLM for ages.
  • Our friend Baran made a trip Amsterdam-Paris-Amsterdam in one day to rescue one friend.
  • Jackie is trapped in the UK with her parents stranded in Spain.
  • Our friend Eduardo was also due to fly from the UK to Spain... but again, it was impossible.
  • Other people we know had to take a bus from Amsterdam to Toulouse, others are a bit luckier and can go by car to the close Belgium.
And what about you? Have you been affected by the ash cloud??? Come on, have your say... prove me that someone is still reading this blog :-)

Versión en español

domingo, 31 de enero de 2010

Three years in Holland! / ¡Tres años en Holanda!



Today it's been 3 years since we arrived to The Netherlands and it seems like it is time to make an assessment of all this period.

If I look back I don't regret the decision of leaving Spain at all. I had a comfortable life, a good job with a good salary (in terms of salaries in Spain) and a favorable future ahead... but having such a conventional life and that certain future has always scared the hell out of me so I wanted a change, something different, even difficult, which required effort and made me feel proud of my achievements. In short, a challenge.

After settling down, which was not easy (living in a bed&breakfast while looking for a house... then living without furniture for some time) we started a very busy life. I had to attend to the University, study and work, at the same time, for a Spanish company, which is not the ideal for starting a "new" life abroad but I needed the money and that was the only option at that time. Fortunately, last year has been a bit more different and specially the last months, since which I work for an international organization and I am starting to build a new network of friends from everywhere in the world.

I find that life in The Netherlands is quite relaxed compared to life in Spain, not only due to the different timetables and habits but also because I have less social engagements given that my family is a bit far from here. Though I like that feeling, sometimes I feel like an alien, alone, like I don't belong here but I don't belong there either... it's a weird combination that, apparently, is not that uncommon among people living abroad. Dave Hampton pointed out this article written in the Economist where all these feelings are quite well reflected.

Anyway, I am looking to the future with a positive attitude. Suddenly this adventure does not seem as temporary as it might be and I have a life that I like here. Maybe the time has come to finally learn some Dutch :-)

Versión en español