Greetings from The Netherlands!
On April 5th, we finally left for our home country. It was a great feeling to take another a big step toward our big dream.
We flew with WestJet from Halifax to Toronto. During our landing we already spotted our next flight. KLM brought us to Amsterdam.
We started off at our dear friends O & Mo, who offered us a car to use while we are in the Netherlands. Gas prices are super high here (roughly $2.72 CAD per liter), but we are happy to be able to drive around the country to see friends and family while we wait for our campervan.
Myron loves spending time at O & Mo's... you've got to wonder why ;)
We went to see my mom in Almelo, in the east of the country.
The children needed a new Dutch passport and the border city of Enschede offers the passport service for Dutch citizens living abroad. It was a lot easier for us than visiting one of the three locations in Canada (Vancouver, Ottawa or Toronto).
Visiting family and friends is great, most of them we have not seen for 4 years, but after a while, you need a break. And what better than a day in the Efteling! We picked the warmest day of the week, it was 22°C; it felt like summer!
The Efteling is a fantasy-themed amusement park in Kaatsheuvel, the Netherlands. The attractions reflect elements from ancient myths and legends, fairy tales, fables, and folklore. The park was opened on May 31, 1952. It evolved from a nature park with a playground and a Fairytale Forest into a full-sized theme park. It now caters to both children and adults with its cultural, romantic, and nostalgic themes, in addition to its wide array of amusement rides including six roller coasters and four dark rides. It is the largest theme park in the Netherlands and one of the oldest theme parks in the world.
We have been in The Netherlands for almost two weeks now and life has been good. We are spending a lot of quality time with my mom and John's parents, and we try to visit aunts and uncles, cousins, and friends. The best visits for our children are the ones where there are kids or (unusual) pets ;)
We bought one folding bike, which we will take along on our trip, as another means of transportation. Myron is super happy to be able to bike in THE bike country, and has made a few trips on his own already. We stayed with friends in Zaltbommel for a week, where John's parents live as well, and Myron was able to bike to them on his own. He also likes to bike to the river. A more Dutch scenery is hard to find ;)
Initially, our campervan was supposed to be shipped on April 7, but that got delayed with four days before we dropped it off already.
April 11 came and went and we did not hear anything from the shipping company. It got delayed again!
The vessel, which is supposed to take our campervan, docked in Halifax on April 15 and hopefully our home-for-the-year was picked up. We have not heard from anyone yet as the Easter weekend halted all businesses. We hope to get a confirmation tomorrow.
According to VesselFinder it is expected in Hamburg on April 22. We then have to wait a few days for off-loading and clearing through customs...
Hopefully by next week we can let you know the good news that our Kleintje is in Europe.
The only benefit of having to wait longer for our campervan is the fact that we can spend more time with loved ones.
We are enjoying the beautiful weather The Netherlands is having. Most days are around 15°C and 18°C. The tulips and daffodils are blooming and trees are blossoming.
We are lucky to be here!
Glad you arrived safe and sound! Can't wait to hear about more adventures!