Hey all

Well the weather has been delightfully warm here, infact the the most sun Hollands had in the first weeks of may! The 70 hour average has been busted by the 130 hours we have had in the last week.  so as you can see theres been alot of outdoor doing as 20-4 drgrees has been a nice temperature to be getting out ad about. I joined pieter as he starts his fitness sceme back up. i was his refreshments assistant as he ran 16km in 1hour 10mins. Had some nice photo oppotunities on the way too as you can see… With all the sunshine, we’ve recently had a brief wizz around the yard on one of Franks 4 kids motorbikes got a deal on, picniced out in the sunshine and had a BBQ at Franks with Pieters other brother & Anna ( his sister). This weather has been is a real treat before I head back to New Zealand its been super cool to be out and about in the sunshine, as i seem to be following winter around the globe. As for work; I have been assured I remain first choice of the position I applied for and as it is not currently vacant I have a primary need and want to be with my mum and be there for her until the vacancy frees up for me. Taking life as it happens.

Nin’s

Queens Day!

Well after a late evening out on Queens night in Eindhoven showcasing some very famous DJs we took off the next day to Amsterdam for the heart of the celebrations to check out what all the fuss was about.

Heres a few more shots from my visit to Germany a month or so ago during which carnival was kicking off .

Heres some fast facts to get you up to speed with what “Carnaval” is in the Netherlands. A Huge massive party in the whole of the riegions south of the rivers, People dress up crazy, act even crazier and listen to super crazier spastic hyper carnival/circus like music. Drinking and mass craziness continues for four whole days including street parades in every town, the “Polonasia” (congo line). Some song titles, litterally translated for you include : - Pancake in my undies - Everything has an end and a sausage has two - Theres a horse in the hall - A little bus full of pola (polish people) - Beer and titties - Two people have to go to the toilet and theres only room for one. Some of the outfits i saw included, a brocoli, a toaster, a “Talking poll” (highway phone booth), playing cards, mimes., elephants, thuderbirds.. the list goes on….

EDIT-

Pieter and i are off to Spain tomorrow for a 7-10 day venture including Portugal too. After that the serious work hunt begins and assessing of my options

hope your all safe and well

Hello everyone!

How are we all? Well as you can see i made it to Germany to visit Annalena which was really special and im glad i took the window of oppotunity to do so, she’s such a long time friend it was a so nice to see where her home town would have been if it hadn’t been Russell. I traveled by train to Kolblenz a city an hour from Montabaur and Annalena met me there to start an day of exploration. We did the sighseeing on the old city the huge river Riens flows past the city and on one hill theres a fort/castle that took the french ten years to penitrate and that wasn’t untill everyone inside had perished… We also did our fair share of shopping and window shopping and then made our way to Montabaur. Annalena is over briefly for her  Oma’s 90th birthday, the houses and property have been in the family for generations and generations. It was facinating to stay with them as there relivites etc slowly began to gather together having traveled small and vast distances for the birthday celebrations. My Second day there we explored the township of Monabaur. The centre its self is very old and after listening to her Oma’s stories of the war and the bombs dropped in her lifetime i realised just how lucky it was that such a town like this was still standing 700 years later. The weather was fricken cold to say the least! the sort of cold that stings your cheeks and involentarily hunch and tense from its strength. I can imagine how stunny and beautiful this county (or any for that matter) would be in the spring and summer seasons… i’ll just have to stick round We found a cozy typical German cafe wedged between the other 16 of the town serving cakes, flans, slices freshly baked German delights and most importantly  COFFEE! The third day we went Annalena her Dad and i  went tiki-touring exploring the surounding villages and castles of the reigion. It was the first day of Carnivale in Germany there was alot to be seen on the streets of some towns. It was enjoyable to do a large portion of the sightseeing from the warmth of the car and cozy cafes! Germany is littered with Castles perched on hill tops of nestled in valleys. They were home to kings and queens of the township dukes or weathly families. Due to being royal dewelings this made them targets for bombing in the war so many are ruins but alot are perfectly intact also. That evening we ventured out into the night. Marcus a friend of Annalenas cousin joined us in going to Kolblenz, The first night of Carnivale in Germany is traditionally the night the women own the streets! We went to a bar/club called ‘Dream’ Which was ammusing because it was owned and run by a bikey gang. This made for interesting listening whilst we were there. Due tot he mass amounts of crazy carnivale people in costumes and the regulars i guess,  the music selection ranged from ‘Mika’ to death metal and everything in between  But i must say watching 5 long hair Germans mosh and head bang to Ramstien was an amusing sight i wont forget in a hurry. Our night didnt end there we returned to Montabaur and decided to have a laugh and go to the ’social outcast’ bar. I had my first typical german beverage there of wheat beer and banana liquor which was delicious. not long after we sat ourselves down a pair of tequila shots with cinnamon orange segments were sent to us compliments of a mysterious man across the room in a lush red flouncy blouse. He turned out to be a Greek- German who also spoke italian and english however he didnt seem to put it to use and spoke mainly in german to Annalena. We recieved a second tequila shot before he  got the message and abruptly disembarked to pursue his other ‘projects’…  we had some laughs on that one. we stayed and even made a few moves on the dance floor before migrating to a small after hours bar down a side street and got home at 6am.

 My last day in gemany started at 13.30pm and it was mainly the journey to the trainstation and the 6hours trip home to the Netherlands via a 45min delay and double train miss. Annalena has the photos of our nihgt out and a few additional humourous ones which i’ll post when i recieve them

 Carnivale is on ant the moment … so a report on that later a hint about my first days outfit….    . she has stripey long socks……

Well.. thou hast just retreated to my aunty`s humble abode at 1am in south west london. My first 24hours in london/England have been eventfully filled with Hampton Court Palace this morning and The Stone Henge this afternoon, whilst recently followed up by night out in Fulham with five Kiwi lassies! I think its fair to say i have had a `minnor pivital moment` several hours ago whilst momentusly listening to Bon Jovi and drinking “Snake Bite*” in an Australian bar by the name of “The Slug” (LOL!). My minnor pivital moment was triggered by the lyrics “It’s my life - It’s now or never - I ain’t gonna live forever - I just want to live while I’m alive!” Haha! woohoo! go Bon Jovi! yeehaa! What a blast my thursday night has been, with the company of two highschool mates and three other kiwis tonight has totally lifted my spirits in the sense of making the most of now. i was experiencing my first mild and initial homesickness during the last few days but ive had a rattle and now things are back on track. Also id like to put a quiet word out there for a close friend that past away on the 17th of january 9yrs ago… always thinking of you xo

hope everyones safe and well back home… xo

NB* “Snake Bite” = A beverage consisting of a blend between Beer, Cider and redcurrent juice. Illegal in most countries except England due to the ambiguity of its alcohol content. … D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S-!