Tot Ziens, Florida!
Current writing vibes/setting: Four-hour Eurostar train ride to Paris while listening to Simon & Garfunkel.
8/22/20262 min read
We are officially immigrants and residents of the beautiful city of Utrecht (pronounced “You-Trekked”).
Since our visit last month, thankfully, Lil O has become increasingly excited to call the Netherlands home. Spending time with her here before officially moving proved to be the right choice. Imagining life in her new home became less scary and more something to celebrate, especially when she realized she didn’t have to go back to school in the U.S. when all of her friends did. It was fun watching her brag about this to anyone who would listen.
Heather was unwaveringly focused on preparations in the weeks leading up to our move. It’s almost like she’s done this before and knew what to expect. I wish I hadn’t been quite so lackadaisical with my own packing and planning, but I’m hopeful I’ve slightly made up for it in brawn. We made the trip with nine suitcases and six carry-on items, all of which needed to be heaved up to our third-floor flat.
I can’t help but reflect on all of the love, support, and enthusiasm we’ve received from family, friends, colleagues, and unexpected places in the lead-up to our move. Heather and I are incredibly grateful that our organizations gave us such supportive send-offs, and that we were able to enjoy farewell meals with family at some of our favorite local restaurants. Yes, even Golden Corral for Lil O.
Feeling mostly excitement leading up to our move, I wasn’t prepared to suddenly be hit by the magnitude of our decision once we were fully committed and saying our farewells. Remember the end of The Graduate? That’s the vibe that struck me: “What have we done? What’re we gonna do now?”
Naturally, we’re going to Disneyland.
Because Dutch schools don’t play around when it comes to taking kids out of school for vacations, we’re sneaking in a trip to Disneyland Paris before Lil O’s school starts in September. It should offer us a taste of the familiar before we dive into a routine in our new home.
Utrecht life has been a wonderful change of pace for us. Lil O still loves having a reason to take her scooter for a ride and scope out the local wildlife, whether it’s cute dogs, shop cats, or pigeons. It’s refreshing to know that if there’s anything we need, it’s usually just a short walk to a nearby store or market.
On our first night as immigrants, we let Lil O determine which direction we would walk and stumbled upon a charming Indian restaurant, where we were joined at our terrace table by the restaurant’s cat, Jimmie. Rather than staying entertained by her tablet while we waited for our meal, Lil O was able to burn off some energy by safely scooting up and down the street, which is reserved for pedestrians and cyclists.
Can we talk about rail travel for a minute? It’s so damn peaceful here! For four hours and under $400 round trip for all three of us, we’ll have traveled from Amsterdam to Paris with plenty of legroom and none of the frustrations of air travel. It’s definitely my favorite way to travel, and I hope the infrastructure for it continues to grow in the U.S.
Speaking of the U.S., we’re appreciative that despite complicated global sentiments toward America and its government, we’ve been treated with kindness everywhere we’ve gone. We’ve encountered curiosity, warmth, and welcoming people throughout this adventure so far.
Hopefully that streak continues into Paris. Fingers crossed. 🤞🏼