Welkom in Maastricht

So I realize that there's no sense starting a blog if I don't tell you a thing or two about the town we are in! So yeah, Michelle and I are living in Maastricht, as you should know. It's located in the south of the Netherlands, smooshed between Belgium and Germany.

Dit is het Sint Servaas Basilica ------------>

The city is split in two by the Maas river, which flows way up north, and down south into Belgium. It's a pretty old city (vying for the oldest in the Netherlands), and it's got its own saint buried in it (Saint Servatius).

<-------Church that tells us we're almost home!

If you really want to know all the history and lay out, I recommend visiting. Right now round trip from the west coast to the closest airport is under $500!!!

Anyhow, Michelle is studying here for a year at the AZM for Maastricht University. I am just taking the year easy, writing, and looking for some sort of part time job. So far the job hunt has been unsuccessfull, but I haven't quit yet :)

So we spend our days, just living a normal life here. Usually if the weather is nice, we take a bike ride, since that's what pretty much everyone does here. Plus there are bike trails everywere. In fact, there is an average of one bike per person here in the Netherlands....So biking is a must!

Well, winterland starts this weekend, so perhaps I'll have some interesting photos to put up from that! Take care and what not :)

Chris

Post Thanksgiving

So most people spend Thanksgiving day laying around after eating tons and tons of food...Ok, well, that's pretty much what we did, but the day after thanksgiving was a little bit different than usual.

Photos of our Thanksgiving :)

So on Friday we took a trip up north to Eindhoven for two reasons; First Michelle picked up her residency permit, and second, I applied for mine. It was all fine and good, except that I had to say goodbye to 830 Euros... :(

So in a way, I suppose it was like a usual day after thanksgiving... we went and spent a whole bunch of money. But in this case, it was on a gift that will keep giving all the way to september.

Photos from Eindhoven

So in the end we decided to make a day of it, and enjoy Eindhoven by spending some time window shopping, and in the Holland casino. (I lost 6 Euros, but michelle made it back, so she took me out to lunch :) We caught the late night train home just in time to watch the season 3 finale of lost...again...

Hi....

So Michelle and I have been living here in the Netherlands since September, and finally this Saturday we are getting our very own internet connection! So to celebrate that, and as a happy Thanksgiving treat, I decided that we should finally start our yearlong blog about living here in Maastricht!

Michelle is at work, and I'm at home cooking the big dinner. I hope she brings her appetite... Our menu starts with some cranberry marinated chicken (couldn't find turkey) with stuffing, as well as Mashed garlic potatoes and gravy, Peas and Carrots, Candied Yams, Sautéed brussle sprouts, Seeded bread rolls, spring salad, and some custard Vlaai for dessert.

I know, I know, you're probably wondering what Vlaai is... well, it's a lot like a pie, but with more bread. I'll include a photo of a vlaai I got when my mom visited.

Well, I hope all is well! Do check in from time to time and we'll try to keep this thing updated!

And Happy Thanksgiving!


Chris & Michelle