Dag 104: Sinterklaas Shopping in Utrecht

Saturday, December 3, 2011: Utrecht, Netherlands

Saturday morning -- that means travel time! Today I ventured up to Utrecht, Netherlands to visit another former Scottie, Marjan. Marjan studied abroad at Agnes Scott the fall semester after I arrived back from Tilburg (2010). I was anxious to meet her then and practice my Dutch. Her parents came to visit the states while she was there and brought me some Dutch goodies including hagelslag and stroopwafels.

Marjan came to visit me in Maastricht in October and stayed a weekend. Unfortunately, I was not able to go to Utrecht for a whole weekend, as my time in Maastricht was quickly coming to a close and I needed to get serious about exams. Also, the Dutch trains were choosing to give me a hard time -- there was work on the lines between Boxtel and Den Bosch, so I needed to take a bus for that portion of the journey. Therefore, it took me nearly three hours to get to Utrecht -- quite a long journey for the Netherlands!

I left around 8.30 in the morning and cycled to the Centraal Station. Equipped with a muffin from Albert Heijn and een kopje koffie, I boarded the first train to Boxtel. I was productive along the way there and back, reading a total of 3 journal articles for my courses. At Boxtel, I transferred to a coach bus which drove the herd to Den Bosch Centraal. Here I waited for a few minutes before boarding a second train which went directly to Utrecht Centraal. I arrived in Utrecht shortly before noon. I met Marjan in front of one of the Starbucks in the train station. We first stopped for a latte before heading out of the train station.

We started the day with a bit of shopping, mission Xenos! I had promised Clara to look for a certain coffee mug that I wanted and she as well. Unfortunately, I did not find them, but I was able to shop for a few other Christmas gifts. After a couple of shops we headed to the VVV (tourist information center) where we got information for a tour of the Dom - the tall church in Utrecht which you can climb. We took a guided tour a few minutes later. Our guide was gracious enough to give me my own mini tour in English, since all of the other people on the tour spoke Dutch.

We climbed so so many stairs to the tippy top of the tower, from which you could see a lovely view of the whole city - even Amsterdam in the distance! The climb was chilly and a bit slippery from the rain the previous days and current drizzle. I enjoyed the climb and learning more about the city and the Tower. The tower and church were originally connected, but years ago, the nave connecting the two was destroyed by a tornado (originating in France) that blew through Utrecht. I was very careful walking down the spirally steps in the tower, since it was super slick!

After the climb, we began a search for a nice place to have some lunch.  Along the way, we came across one of my favorite stores in Netherlands -- Oil and Vinegar, where we stopped and sampled several of the dips and oils that they have.  After filling up on bread, spreads and crackers, we chose a small cafe on the sqaure (the Vrigthof of Utrecht) and enjoyed a nice lunch. I had an oude kaas (old cheese) sandwich, including boiled egg -- so Dutch! Marjan had a hamburger -- LEUK! After lunch, we headed back outdoors. The sun greeted us for the afternoon and we were happy to see  it!

Strolling through the now sunny Utrecht, we continued our Christmas shopping. Sinterklaas was right around the corner, so we did some Sinterklaas shopping as well. Marjan bought gifts for her gift exchange with her housemates and I shopped for some things to take back home to friends and family in the States. We visited some of my Dutch favorites -- V&D, HEMA, Xenos, Accessorize, and more!

After an afternoon of shopping, Marjan and I parted ways. She needed to go home and get dressed for work later in the evening and I needed to catch an early train home so that I could still have time to work on some things when I got back. We said our goodbyes, uncertain of when we would see each other again. I checked my train times and with a few minutes to wait, ordered a stroopwafel SWIRLS for the journey home.

Shortly thereafter, I was on the train home, with the same switches as on the way there. I made it home safely with ample time to work on some things for the coming week. It was so nice to actually visit Utrecht and see the city a bit more than I have in the past. And good to see Marjan one last time before I leave!

More pictures from the Dom:

Huge bells in the Dom

We got to ring the huge bell in the Dom

View of the Kerk from the top of the Dom

View from atop the Dom

Dag 101 - 100 Days Past, 30 More to Go!

Wednesday, November 30, 2011: Maastricht, Netherlands

Christmas Decorations in Maastricht

Today I am celebrating the conclusion of Fall. As tomorrow is the first of December and the weather forecast is starting to finally look like winter, I am appreciating what my be (brace yourself) the last blue skies I see for some time.

I began this sunny day by waking up early (okay, 9AM) and cycling into the city, with several items on the agenda. A gorgeous, cool day with no classes at all - LEUK! I first went to the UM Business Faculty. Maastricht is renown for their business faculty. Seriously, it is top-notch. Although I have passed by it before in the city, I had never stepped foot inside or really been there during normal class hours. I felt like a real student (shocker - I am a real student!) as I was directed by the bike parking director (yes, in the city, they have someone directing bicycle parking) and navigated my way through the courtyard into one of the business buildings.

Why was I there? Oh yeah, forgot to mention! I was participating in a business experiment at the BEE-Lab. There is a website where you can register for various experiments to receive course credit or payment. Unfortunately, this is a recent discovery for me, but fortunately, I have already registered for two experiments! I thought this would be a harmless, easy way to make some cash for final expenses here in the Netherlands (i.e. traveling and Christmas gifts). I kind of feel like I am selling my organs or something, but I guess not ;)

For this experiment, there were about 30 students who participated in a computer decision-making task in which we had to allot money to ourselves from a "private" and "group" fund. Although the experiment was a bit dull, I made 15 euros from it! Success!

Next, I navigated the backroads of the city until I reached Tafelstraat, where I met Petra and wrote a text (Psalm 4:8) on several of the window panes of the Tafelstraat building. This is part of her December project, in which different texts are written each day on these window panes and the whole thing is filmed. Eventually she will consolidate it into one time-capsulated video.

After talking briefly with Petra, I headed into the city for some shopping. I can't say too much about where I went and what I purchased, but it was a successful shopping trip! After my shopping, I rode the escalators up to the fourth floor of the V&D (Dutch department store) where there is a nice cafe in which you can have a sandwich, koffie, wine, or pizza. I chose a cranberry (and something else) smoothie and took it up to the top floor of the cafe. From there, you have a gorgeous view of the city - you can see the churches and the rooftops. So nice. I enjoyed my smoothie and read an article for class. When I was finished, I made my way downstairs and retrieved my bike.

Cycling back across the river, I began to think how nice life is here in Maastricht and how I could really make a nice life here for myself. While this is not my intention now or anytime in the near future, I just had a moment of reflection and contemplation on this beautiful city. How spoiled have I been to have such gorgeous weather for three whole months - in the Netherlands! How lucky have I been to have found such a gezellig (cozy) place to live with such nice housemates. How nice is it to be studying the very thing I am interested in and want to do in the future? How great is it to have made some awesome friends who I have been able to travel with? How amazing has this experience been?

I am thankful for the three months I have had so far in Maastricht. With one month left in Europe, there are still so many things to do and see. So much I could do. So much I want to do. Time has really flown. While there have been days that are tough, days that I have missed home, days that I have wondered, why did I come here, it has all been worth it. It was definitely not the easiest option to come to Europe for my Masters, but I am thankful that I chose this experience. I am thankful for those I have met, those who have been so hospitable to me, those who have worked with me on class projects, those who have patiently explained things to me about Dutch culture.

I plan to make the most of my last days here in Maastricht - only about two more weeks - and my travels at the end of my time here. I am looking forward to a visit this weekend with a friend, a visitor next weekend, and going to a German Christmas market. I am looking forward to Spain, Slovenia, Budapest and Prague. So much to squeeze into the last month here!

Dag 95 - Amerikan Thanksgiving in Netherlands!

Thursday, November 24, 2011: Maastricht, Netherlands

November 24 - the last Thursday of the month - Thanksgiving Day. Where do I normally find myself on Thanksgiving? Usually (for the first 20 year of my life) at home in Florida surrounded by family and food. I try to catch a glimpse of the parade, while the boys watch football. I help mom put the finishing touches on the dishes. I come home from a holiday shift at work, tired and hungry for Thanksgiving dinner.

This year was different - okay, last year was as well, but this year I am in the Netherlands. In Maastricht, we do not have days off of school. There is no official holiday. Shops are open, life is normaal. But for the Americans in town, it is Thanksgiving. And we decided to celebrate! How? By making a massive Thanksgiving dinner for 30+ people of course!

Let me regale the tale....

It all began last Friday. My friend Clara (German, but has lived in America half her life), agreed to cook Thanksgiving dinner for the weekly Thursday night Tafelen dinner for the week of Thanksgiving. On the Friday before, we took a trip to the weekly market in Maastricht ("de Markt") where we purchased a few things, including sweet potatoes and an enormous (by Dutch standards) pumpkin for cooking. We also ordered our turkey (from the third butcher we talked to) to  pick up the following Wednesday - 5kg! So strange - I have never ordered anything from a butcher before.

We then enjoyed a coffee at McDonalds, where we discussed the strategy. When cooking for so many people and so many different dishes, it is important to have a plan in place to stay organized. We would begin the following Wednesday. First we would shop and pick up the Turkey before heading to Tafelstraat to begin the preparations. On Thursday, we would complete the cooking and present the feast to everyone.

So, on Wednesday, we met at Tafelstraat, prepared with our previously purchased ingredients, shopping list and several shopping bags. We began by picking up the Turkey - 26 euros for 4-5 kg. With the bird in hand, we headed to Jumbo, the nearby grocery store in the city to complete our shopping. We filled an entire cart with ingredients - cheese, butter, pasta, vegetables, everything! We then returned to the markt for eggs and celery (which we could not find at the grocery!). With our backpacks and saddle bags loaded, we carefully cycled back to Tafelstraat.

We arrived back in the kitchen around 2pm, with a few ingredients missing. Clara went to the Albert Heijn just across the river in search of cream cheese and some lunch for us, while I began carving the pumpkin. I was a bit nervous about the pumpkin part, but it was a success! It was not too tricky to cut. We baked it for a little over an hour to dehydrate it and turn it into a puree (the whole time I was missing canned pumpkin from the states!). When Clara returned, we cooked our pizzas and ate a lunch of frozen pizza and apple juice. Yum!

Back in the kitchen, Clara began making graham cracker and gingerbread pie crusts, since pre-made crusts are unheard of in Netherlands. Kudos to Clara for making 11 pie shells! Woo hoo! Meanwhile, I worked in my own little station preparing the various fillings for the pies - 9 different kinds! This was what we worked on for most of the afternoon. Seriously. Clara went for a spinning class at the gym around 7pm while I continued working in the kitchen. On her way back, she picked up some more butter and things we had forgotten as well as some things for pasta. We made a nice pasta dinner and continued cooking! After finishing up the pies (dessert first, of course!), we began on some of the casseroles. Clara made the mashed potato casserole, while I did the broccoli, sweet potato and green bean casserole. We also prepared the layered salad and boiled some eggs (for deviled eggs) to sit overnight. At 2 o'clock in the morning, we called it quits, and headed home for the evening. It was a pretty silent ride home so early in the morning!

I woke up around 10 the next morning to a text from Clara, who was already at the University to test a participant. Her participant did not show up, so I invited her over for a coffee before we would head back into the city for the rest of the cooking. She came and we had a nice coffee and did the final shopping for the meal before returning to Tafelstraat for more cooking!

Back in the kitchen, we continued our preparations. Clara crafted the cheese ball appetizer, while I worked on creamy peanut butter ginger dip and put the finishing touches on the green bean  casserole. Clara was in charge of the turkey, as she had conducted the research on preparing the bird. I must say, she did an excellent job! Neither one of us had any experience making a turkey. My family normally fries it, while Clara's normally eats goose. But it turned out fantastic! Clara stuffed it with all kind of yumminess - apples, onions, garlic, cilantro!

On the other side of the kitchen, I prepared the ingredients for our curried pumpkin apple soup, the vegetarian stuffing and cranberry dressing. In between making the turkey, Clara boiled eggs, assembled the harvest grilled apples and kneaded the dough for the homemade apple cider biscuits. In the early afternoon, I began having a really bad headache and muscle (neck and back) aches. I ate some rice and drank some coffee, but it continued to get worse. Clara ran home to get a change of clothes for the dinner and brought me back some tylenol. I gratefully took the pills and headed out quickly to pick up some butter for our remaining dishes and to get the train tickets at HEMA (unlimited travel in all of Netherlands for one day for 15,50 euro!). The fresh air and tylenol combo helped. Shortly after I returned to Tafelstraat, I began to feel better and ready for the dinner.

Last minute preparations were soon underway. Friend filed in to help us in the kitchen. Our friends Alessandra and Antonia were especially helpful in assembling the deviled eggs and the macaroni and cheese. I must say, the last hour before dinner was served was super hectic! It is all a blur now. We broke out the extra electric oven to help reheat all the dishes to be warm for serving. Soon, everything was out on the table. Clara read a short synopsis of Thanksgiving, since we were serving quite an international crowd who might be unfamiliar with the tradition. Then I introduced the meal and explained the dishes.

Everyone was delighted by the meal! The dishes were quickly consumed. Clara and I spent the evening running back and forth, bringing out dishes as they heated and replenishing the supply of biscuits. Our only major blunder was the turkey, which was actually fine. Originally, it did not cook quite long enough, so we could only serve a bit, before we had to pop it back in the oven for awhile to cook some more. Eventually, it cooked all the way, but by that time everyone had eaten dessert. Also, if we had another oven or source for heating things, we could have presented all of the dishes simultaneously, which would have been nice. But, overall, everything turned out perfectly!

We presented the desserts - 11 delicious pies including pumpkin cheesecake, chocolate chess pie and mystery pecan pie. Although everyone was already stuffed, the desserts were mostly eaten, with a few leftovers.

Everyone was so gracious for the meal - we could not have asked for a nicer crowd - a nice reminder of why we embarked on this formidable feat! At the end of the dinner, everyone chipped in with the dishes, and we scrubbed the kitchen - fun, fun! As the evening came to a close, Clara and I began discussing post-Thanksgiving plans of a Christmas movie. We ran to the nearby Albert Heijn and grabbed a couple of bottles of wine to accompany the movie - well deserved after two days of cooking! We invited a couple of friends to join us and headed to my place to watch Elf, a funny Christmas movie. It was another late night, but so nice to relax and be done with the Thanksgiving escapade!

I'm still wondering how I will top this Thanksgiving next year...!

Dag 83: Off to Germany (Again!)

Saturday, November 12, 2011: Cologne & Dusseldorf, Germany

 With another three day weekend on my hands, I decided on another day trip. A friend from Tafelstraat, the international dinners I have been attending on Thursdays, and I had decided that we would venture somewhere together one of these weekends, so I invited her to go with me somewhere. Now the question - where?

We decided (after reasoning out Lille,Munich and Hamburg) that we would go to....Cologne! How did you guess? (Oh yeah, the title :). So we researched a bit and found a nice ticket deal - two persons, unlimited travel in one region in Germany for a whole day! Leuk! We planned a few things to see and talked with a few people from the area before departing.

I met Clara on the bus around 8:30AM on Saturday morning - too early for a Saturday, I know, but we had a long journey ahead and lots to see! I have actually wanted to go to Cologne since I was in Tilburg, but never had the opportunity. Now that I am in Maastricht, it is a bit closer. And it was nice to go with a friend (especially one who speaks German!).

We took bus nummer 50 to Aachen, Germany, sprinted into the train station and barely caught our train leaving a few minutes later for Cologne. We were on the train for an hour or so before arriving in Cologne. We disembarked and maneuvered our way out of the station, stopping first to check the trains to Dusseldorf (where we planned to go later in the day).

Stepping out of the train station, we were met by the monstrous Koln Dom - the huge, magnificent cathedral in Cologne. Although we both agreed that we have seen a few too many cathedrals during our time in Europe, Clara and I agreed to step inside and check out the interior. It was really quite magnificent and quite reminded me of the Notre Dam Cathedral in Paris. With a "that was nice", we stepped out of the Dom into the sunny, chilly day! We took a few pictures of the cathedral and found our way to the shopping street.

Clara had done some nice research on things to do in see in Cologne. Among those on our list were 1.) Shopping, 2.) Starbucks, 3.) Beer. Our mission - enjoy the city! We started the day with a nice kopje koffie at Starbucks. Clara enjoyed a toffee nut latte while I had a yummy gingerbread latte - unfortunately, Starbucks in Europe does not sell pumpkin spice or peppermint white mocha. Say day. We enjoyed warming up with our Starbucks - so American - and finally decided to venture back outdoors into the chilly day. We made our way through the crowded shopping streets, peering in shop windows and checking out Christmas decor.

Germany is magnificent, because they have a lot of American food places - yes, Starbucks, but also Dunkin Donuts! We came across a couple in Cologne and stopped inside to check out the flavors - and they had maple! Yummy :) I enjoyed a maple donut while we continued through the streets. We saw some more great architecture, including a smaller church that we both captured on film. We also went into a German drug store, where I bought tissues and Clara was sales-talked into pricey mascara.

With our Starbucks and shopping goals fulfilled, we headed back toward the train station to find the older part of the city and the river. We made a big loop, and saw more of the city. We reached the station and managed to orient ourselves in the right direction. Then we stopped to purchase postcards at one of the tourist shoppes. Next door, we admired the Christmas market being installed for the coming months. Christmas markets are really a big deal in Germany - every major city has one. I am hoping to experience one firsthand, come December.

Next, we walked to the river to enjoy the magnificent view. After a few pictures, we noticed that we were both getting hungry, and decided to find something to eat. Of course, when you arrive at this decision, there is bound to be nothing yummy and delicious in sight to eat. We walked for twenty minutes or so, before deciding on a nice Kebab place to eat. I took a durum kebab and Clara had falafel. We enjoyed our Turkish lunch, although the table dynamics were a bit strange. This German family (?) had no place to sit, so they asked to sit at our large table with us. Of course, we said yes. But it was kind of weird - beside not understanding what they were saying, the little boy with them drank the woman's salad dressing that she did not use. Okay, random, strange, weird. Enough said. Moving on....

We left the Turkish place and walked around a bit more, looking for a place to complete our final "to-do" in Cologne - the Kolsch beer. We headed back in the direction of the river and found a small pub that offered this particular beer, brewed in Cologne. We each order a tall, test-tube like glass of the light beer. I must say, it was a bit watered down and reminded me somewhat of PBR....not such a nice beer in the States. We enjoyed it, nonetheless, and made our way out of the bar, back toward the train station. We had planned to catch a late afternoon train to Dusseldorf so that we would have a couple of hours to roam there before needing to head back to Maastricht.

With a bit of scampering around the train station, searching for the correct platform, we managed to get on the correct train, which slowly but surely brought us to Dusseldorf. An hour later, we arrived in the huge train station, where honestly, we should have just stayed. Not because Dusseldorf isn't nice, I'm sure it is. But for someone unfamiliar with the city to arrive a night like that is a bit tricky. We opted to take the tram into the city, which turned out to be a fail initially, since we could not figure out which stop we should get off at. We took it way too far, and had to get back on to get back into the city. Finally, we made our way back to the stop where we needed to switch, but the guy at the tram stop told us that the trams were not running in the direction that we needed (according to the map, the direction of the ferris wheel). He said it was a ten minute walk to the city, so we wrapped our scarves a bit tighter and headed in the direction he pointed.

After a few minutes, we came across some McDonalds, H&Ms, NewYorker and a variety of other shops. But as it was nearing 7 o'clock, things were closing for the day. And we were kind of shopped out from earlier. So we looked for a place where we could have a small bite to eat or one of the Dusseldorf beers Clara had read about online. No such luck! After quite some more time of roaming, a nice guy offered help he said we had to walk just a bit further to reach a whole block of restaurants and pubs. But we were already worn out from walking and checking the time, we needed to head back to the train station soon so that we could get home before midnight (don't want to turn into a pumpkin!). We thanked him and headed back to where we thought the train station was. We took a final tram back to the station. Since we were a few minutes early, we decided to enjoy a mug of warm red wine, a German tradition, at a small stand outside the train station. The mug was bigger than it looked, and we slowly sipped the (hot!) wine, which turned into more of a chug at the end, as it was nearing time to board the train and we first wanted a bite to eat.

We returned our mugs and wobbled into the train station in a bit of a stupor due to the quick inhalation of the wine. We searched the train station for something to eat and decided on fried noodles from the Asian Wok place. Best decision all day - the noodles were amazing! Yum! We chowed down, giggling all the way from the wine, and packed our things for the ride home. I was super full from the noodles the whole train ride home. We got off the train an hour or so later in Aachen, and looked up the time for the bus back to Maas - enough time for a McFlurry! We headed back inside to the Macs and each had a McFlurry - snickers and mars. Yum! Then we boarded the bus for the remainder of the journey home.

Thankfully, the bus drops me off practically at my doorstep, so I walked briskly home in the chilly night. Since it was late and I was exhausted from all the walking, I showered, called Nishant, and went to sleep. And I slept so well!

All in all, it was a very nice day. While Cologne is not at the top of my list of favorite European cities, I am glad that I took the time to visit. We had a really nice day, and I always love the experience of just being in and seeing a place. And I wouldn't mind going back for the shopping or Starbucks. Plus, the Christmas market looked promising as well!

Dag 78: Bike Repair + Cookies

Monday, November 7, 2011: Maastricht, Netherlands

Today was a nice, relaxing day. No class. No schedule. A light drizzle out the window and clouds filling the sky. A good day to be home with nothing and everything to do. I woke up and got dressed. Then had a nice breakfast, put in some laundry and resumed my reading for class. Later in the morning I walked my bike to the nearby bike shop and repair store. On Friday morning before we left for Germany, I realized my tire was flat. I tried filling it with air, but by the time I reached the gym, it was flat again!

So I took it to the bike store today and had a new tube replaced for only 15 euro! Quite cheap. Now my bike runs smoother than before. It is quite easy for me to cycle up the hill to the University, which was much more difficult before!

I went to the gym and worked out in the afternoon and had a friend from class over in the evening to work on our presentation for tomorrow's class. We decided to combine our work with cooking and made a nice Indian supper for ourselves. We also baked some delicious Funfetti cookies, compliments of Momma Bowen, who sent the mix from the USA for me last week. The cookies were a success (even in our persnickety Dutch oven) and were super tasty, as always! A nice treat from back home :)

Dag 75-77: Road Trip!

Friday, November 4 - Sunday, November 6, 2011: Braunschweig, Germany

Post-exams, post-exam recovery and at the start of the new course, my housemates and I decided it was time to take a road trip to visit our dear friend, Johanna, whom I happen to my renting my room from in Maastricht. Fiep returned from Den Hague early afternoon on Friday with her mother's car. We finished packing and loaded the car with our things and were quickly on our way to Germany. Only having been to two German cities before - Aachen and Berlin - I was excited to check out a third city in Duitsland (Dutch for Germany).

Five hours later, we arrived in Braunschweig. First order of business: Party! We walked into a small house party to celebrate the birthday of one of Johanna's new roommates. She was turning 23. We were introduced to the crowd and had some party food before nestling down in a cozy corner and chatting it up for the evening with one another. We met several of Johanna's close friends in Braunschweig and many other party guests who continued to pour in until all hours of the night. At midnight, we sang (in English!) Happy Birthday to the birthday girl, and the party slowly dissipated after that. Around 2 o'clock, we gave up partying for the evening and got ready for bed. Luckily, I was super tired and fell asleep right away, even though there were still many guests walking through the house and finishing up the party.

We awoke very late the next morning, refreshed from a good night's sleep. Everyone got out of bed and dressed, and the four of us headed down the street to the small grocery store and German bakery to get eggs and bread for breakfast. With a dozen eggs and a nice selection of rolls, we walked back to Johanna's flat and enjoyed a cozy breakfast with the nine of us that had stayed the night at the flat after the party!

After breakfast, we made our way into the city of Braunschweig to see the sights and explore. First, we stopped for a coffee. I was so excited to try out Starbucks in Germany! It had been such a long time since I had a Starbucks coffee. Mmm. I had a creme brulee machiatto. Yum! It was nice and warm and sweet. Delicious.

We continued our journey into the city and came to the shopping area. Four girls + shopping...Hooray! We went first into the huge shopping castle - an ancient castle commissioned by the Duke of Saxony. No longer a castle, the magnificent building hosts a large array of shops and restaurants and is basically like any regular mall in America....Heaven! We poked our heads in a few shops and bought a few things. My favorite shops were those featuring Christmas decorations - all kinds of ornaments and decor. So pretty!

After spending some time in the shopping castle, we met up with two of Johanna's friends and went to have a crepe with them at this adorable little creperie nearby. I love crepes, and thought you could only find quality ones in France, but this little hole in the wall changed my mind. This quaint, antique creperie had both the atmosphere and crepe-quality of France itself. I was very impressed with my breton crepe, filled with cheese, mushrooms and green onion. Yum!

After the creperie, we made our way back to the shopping center to buy a few more items. Jeanette stocked up on shampoo, makeup, etc., which is all much cheaper in Germany than in the Netherlands. We went to the grocery and bought some things to  make dinner later, and headed back towards Johanna's place.


Along the way back, we stopped at a small Dutch stand selling poffertjes. These are tiny Dutch pancakes that are a super fun treat for breakfast or traveling. We bought two orders coated in butter and powdered sugar and enjoyed them there together on the spot!


Back at the warm, cozy flat, we began cooking dinner: apple, chicken, and brie quesadillas! We ate dinner along with Johanna's roommate and then all showered and put on our PJ's. To complete our girly day, we watched a movie before bed - Fried Green Tomatoes! How fun to watch this movie with my international group of friends. After the movie finished, we went to our respective beds and turned the lights out. After a few more giggles, we were all sound asleep!

Sunday morning, we woke up early (after three alarms sounding) and dressed and ate breakfast before venturing back into the city for our bilingual tour. We ended up running, as we were late, and caught the group just as the tour started. The short and stout German tour guide welcomed us and began rattling away in German about the nearby buildings. As the only non-German speaker in the group, I requested that the tour be spoken in English as well. The woman graciously said yes and after telling the whole group the stories in German, she came to me and filled me in about the city in English. I was so thankful for that, as it is always nice to understand! But it made me desire even more to learn another language.

The tour was great. It lasted about an hour and a half and we walked all over the city. It was quite cold while we walked, but it was really interesting to hear all of the stories behind the city. I will share a few here. Braunschweig and Hanover are the two largest cities in the province of Saxony - and the two best shopping cities! The two largest industries in Braunschweig were formally textiles and beer. Mumme beer was a special beer brewed in the region. There were two versions, one with 2,5% alcohol and one with 15%! They do not make the one with 15 % anymore. Henry, the Duke of Lions, commissioned many of the castles and cathedrals that were built in the city to display his wealth and status in the region. Legend has it that the scratches on the door on the side of his cathedral were made by a lion that followed him back to Braunschweig after he slayed a dragon (although truth has it that it was people who were terribly ill and wanted to drink the dust of his cathedral door for healing). The city was originally five distinct districts, each with its own large cathedral. The city was also surrounded by a double mote and city walls, which have since been knocked down and the city has grown into one large place with nearly 250,000 inhabitants.

After the tour, we had a hot chocolate at a small coffee bar nearby. Then we walked through a few stores and bought individual pizzas to-go for lunch. We stopped by the Mumme beer festival that was going on in a small square near Johanna's place and bought a six-pack for our roommate Sofie, who could not join us on our trip, since she had to study for exams. We headed back to Johanna's place and packed our things. A few minutes later, we were heading across the street back to Fiep's car for the long drive home. With lots of long hugs from Johanna, we left Braunschweig and made our way back to Maastricht.

It was a really nice trip. Always great to see a place through the eyes of an inhabitant. I really liked the architecture in Braunschweig. The mix of the 15th Century framework buildings and the juxtaposing post-war facades across the street is so awesome. To see the history of a place like this is so cool. America is so young in comparison. I loved Braunschweig and taking a trip with my housemates. I think more trips to Germany are in store during the remainder of my time here. :)

Dag 72: Sinterklaas?

Tuesday, November 1, 2011: Maastricht

It was a normal Tuesday morning. I woke up to my alarm, hit the snooze button for another ten minutes, decided then to get out of bed, and descended the ladder from my bed to the main area of my room. I grabbed my toiletries to head to the bathroom and opened the door to my room. I looked down and noticed my house mate's shoe sitting in front of my door, with a chocolate 'S' propped inside, patiently waiting for me to awake and find it sitting at my door. I immediately looked to my watch and checked the date. November first. Okay, I thought so, whew! Its not December yet! Confused, I continued to the bathroom to brush my teeth and thought to myself, why is there a chocolate "S" at my door on November 1? This should happen on December 5th for the Dutch holiday tradition of Sinterklaas....???

Later, I came to find out that the letters were a treat from Sofie, one of my housemates. She had seen them at the store and decided to give them to us early, since they were for sale so early. What a nice thought! And yumminess :)