My Dutch Dream

Gisteren, inschrijf Ik op gemeente. Yesterday I got registered at the council, at the Dienst Persoons en Geo-informatie office (same road as the Heineken Museum).

It was pretty much a paperwork exercise i.e. I handed over my passport, huurcontract and legalised birth certificate (though you can bring that later, I understand) and they enter all the information into their computer. That’s it. Literally no questions asked.

My BSN should arrive in a few days in the post or I can wait for 3 working days and go to the local town hall to ask for it. I think I will do this as I am keen to get the ball rolling on bank account, health insurance and Chamber of Commerce registration.

They also automatically let the Belastingdienst (tax office) know of your arrival.

Yesterday I also got lost on my bike. I decided to ride from Oost (where I live) to Zuid-Oost. I thought I would check out the notorious Bijlmer area and see if it really was as bad as people make out. I’m not sure I ever really saw the apartments with raised walkways etc. but I did find the Amsterdam Arena which I was really impressed with. I’m a United fan and I would say that the Arena is more impressive than Old Trafford. I’m not sure how old it is but it also has a ton of regular shops and bars in a “boulevard” alongside it.

Getting there took me through a sort of “no mans land” of woods but with excellent bike paths. The only problem is that it leaves you with no points of reference and I got lost on the way back, even at one point going around in a circle with the feeling of being stuck in a maze! Luckily I found a way out eventually, with plenty of bugs trying to enter my eyes, mouth and nose! I forgot that a “wetlands” country like The Netherlands crawls with bugs in the summer, even in centrum as I found out the other day.

And finally today I have finished the Michel Thomas Foundation Course. If you want to learn Dutch then go out and get it, I can’t recommend it enough. No books or pens and paper needed whatsoever. Just listen and repeat. I’m moving onto the Advanced course next.