Canadian Girl in Maastricht: Take 2, Year Two!

Well, my one year anniversary of living in the Netherlands has come and gone and Nick and I are still holding it down Dutch style. I know it has been a while but life has been crazy. Maastricht is continuing to treat us well and the adventure continues! Nick is applying for jobs as they come up and I am working part time at Maastricht University. I was offered a contract for 20-hours a week with UM SPORT and I am doing special projects as they come up.  Which has proven to be more frequent then I originally thought :) I have my little business that I am doing on the side, a few patients each week and I am teaching Yoga and Bodyshape classes at Zenden as well. It is nice to have regular work and the flexibility to continue to study Osteopathy. I have two courses this year in May and June and my third year exam on my birthday :(

That should be good luck, right??!?!?!

I was really busy in the spring of this last year with a pilot programme I developed for employee health at the University as well as settling in after the move and just life in general and decided to take my last two courses and exam this year instead. I am still loving my osteo and I have developed a love of studying holistic nutrition as well. One of my most favourite things to do on the weekends is to try recipes and take instagram photos....my sister Leigh says this is weird but hey she above all people should know, I am weird!

My cats are thriving over here (still a crazy cat lady) and I feel like I am in a better place "psychologically" then I was when I first got here. I have come to realize that it is ok to miss home, it is ok to miss my old life but that this moment is pretty good too! With a clear mind I hope to get even more out of this European adventure.

Nick's birthday is coming up this Sunday and we have planned a trip to Tongeren, Belgium to the antique markets. Nick loves that show "American Pickers" so we will be North American Picking in Tongeren. Tongeren is the oldest city in Belgium so I am looking forward to a day filled with history and cool antiques. A Belgian beer with lunch sounds pretty good as well. There is a small antique market held here in Maastricht every Saturday, when the weather permits, by the train station. Nick loves to "wheel and deal" and has made some neat purchases. We will have to see what transport of these items back to North America entails. Hopefully, it isn't too crazy because we love collecting memories this way.

An antique coffee grinder. My grandpa always had one and my mom loves them. Notice the Al Cappuchino art work in the back ground. The artist was making them and selling them in the city centre. He lives in Maastricht.
Yes, I actually let Nick put this up!

This is red delft instead of the usual blue and Amstel is a very common beer here.

A WWII plate. Notice the horse stomping on the nazi symbol and the American flag on the right hand side. Nick had to have this and blew the days 20 euro budget on it :) He got home and checked it out online. It was valued at 30. We would be kicking butt on American Pickers!