Dutch in Translation

Next week it will be three months since I started working at PostNL. I have gone from this will never happen and this is killing me to feeling proud and having fun while at it.  What is there to be proud of? Having a job in a new country (You know what it was like !) Working in a respectable organization Improving my performance Speaking Dutch with my colleagues Saving money for the first time ever Being a candidate for pension What is fun about it? Exercising and losing weight (Just ask my darling about it!) Being part of "the gang" (This totally deserves its own post!) Riding the bike 500 m to get to work (I know, nothing to miss from Mexico there...) Chatting with colleagues (especially when we need to wait for the mail) Seeing people thankful for delivering their mail or package (Yes, I speak with people, but sometimes I just smile and nod because I don't get what they say! No time to stop to chat either!) How does it all look like? ...

     Let's start with a question. Is it easy to find a job in The Netherlands? If you ask some people, they will say no. If you ask me, I will say yes. Of course, we are not talking about a specific job, but just a job. Any job. Maybe you are thinking about a job like the one you used to have. As for me, that isn't possible. I went to law school but had spent years being an elementary school teacher without a teaching degree. In The Netherlands, I can't teach in a school if I don't have a diploma on education. End of tale. So let us go back the "any job" story. What did I do first in order to find a job?      I uploaded my CV to  indeed.nl . Why did I do this if I was not looking for a job? Well, I wanted to have the sensation that sooner or later I would receive in my mail an opening for a great and wonderful job that I would adore to apply to.  How was the process of applying for PostNL?        One s...

"Youth is not enough. And love is not enough. And success is not enough. And, if we could achieve it, enough would not be enough."  Mignon McLaughlin Since I moved to The Netherlands, I have been constantly trying to find my place, and my bike . . .    Once upon a time, I had baked a nice and yummy cake. Despite this, I had the feeling that there was something missing to make it sumptuous and exotic, comforting and filling. Right then, I decided to explore and  search. I wanted to find that mysterious and desired ingredient. It turned out to be love. And lucky me! I found my sweetheart! He was far, 9000 km away. Nevertheless, that didn't matter since we were optimistic and in love. We drafted a plan and changes started to unfold, decisions were taken, adversity was overcome, and the new chapter of our lives was ready to take off. In order to have my new cake, I only needed to update the recipe and start baking!  Obviously, I thought I was prepared f...