DAY 123 - 138 Part 1: Oosterhout

From Brussels I took the train to Breda in the Netherlands. From there I had a choice of two busses (326 or 327) to Oosterhout. And then a 10 minute walk to what was going to be home for the next 16 days. Naomi (the homeowner) wanted me to arrive after 4pm to give her the opportunity to pack and clean after work. She quickly showed me what was where and how everything worked and introduced me to Miami, the Giant Flemish Bunny whom I would be responsible for. Naomi (who is a very tall Dutch gal) then left to pick up her boyfriend and depart on their Swiss holiday.

The home is small but comfy and tidy. The only problem (for me!) is that the bedroom is upstairs and the only toilet is downstairs and in between the two there is a very steep spiral staircase! Oh fun, especially at 3am when I am half asleep.

Miami is gorgeous. Sadly, Arizona, his mate had died 2 days before my arrival and the first few days he was definitely not a very happy bunny. But then he cheered right up and is now giddy with glee every time he sees me coming. Wonder if that has anything to do with all the treats he gets from me. He is not fond of the hay that he is supposed to eat. He eats the pellets but definitely prefers the dandelion and mint leaves I pick in the "garden" (I use the term "garden" loosely). And he loves the apple wedges I bring him. And the sunflower seeds.

Oosterhout is a lovely small town with a very lively town centre. Saturdays there is a farmers market with all sorts of stalls. Sundays only the grocery stores open between 12 and 6pm. And Mondays none of the shops are open.... at all! I like that, was just not expecting it that first Monday.

My aim with the whole house sitting thing has been to slow down and immerse myself in the culture, live like the locals, shop with them, talk to them, watch their tv programmes etc. In Britain it was not really that different from NZ other than that the Welsh spoke lots of Welsh which I had no clue about what they were saying. Here in the Netherlands it has however been a different story, the language  again being the biggest stumbling block. I have however enjoyed every minute of it, giving it a go whenever I get the opportunity. Have developed my own version of the lingo and several people have preferred that to speaking English. This gives them the opportunity to speak their own language and they seem to follow what I am saying. I have been watching lots of Dutch TV even though they have many English and German programs. Even read one of the Karen Slaughter books on my Kindle in Dutch. The funniest thing was when I kept hearing the word "puntenel" during TV Ads. It confused me because I could not figure out what they were on about until the penny dropped. What they were actually saying was "punt N L" as in ".nl" (dot N L), giving the web addresses of the companies. 

And yes, I got to know some locals very well... when the front door blew shut and I was locked out... and one of them gave me a ladder so I could climb over her back fence... and I could not do it as the wall was too high and I am not that comfortable with heights...and then that neighbour went and got the other neighbour who luckily was a young girl who is not as scared as me.... :) :) :) Luckily I had left the back door open, so she could get in to open the front door. Or maybe that open backdoor was the actual reason why the front door blew shut! From then on I have been fanatic about that front door key!

Miami, the Giant Flemish Bunny

Miami in his tunnel

He loves mint, dandelion leaves, sunflower seeds and apple wedges

He comfortably sits on the hay rather than eating it!

And here is my nightmare!

On the berm by the primary school on the way to the bus stop

She is called "the pretty girl"

The Nederlandse Gereformeerde Kerk. I managed to make it to service on Sunday morning.

The town centre is walking only and quite busy

The cheese shop

This guy plays music in the town centre. Creates a lovely atmosphere.

The catholic church

This is only part of a church. Most of it was removed, only keeping the front few meters, closing it up in the back, saving some of the windows and installing them on the back wall. If you walk through, then there are cafes in the back, with outside seating. If you however enter the structure, then there is a small chapel with seating and candles for anyone who would like to be still for a bit. On the other side there is a small shop. Upstairs there is a room where anyone needing to talk to someone, can go. On the one side there is a large empty space that is rented out as expo space and on the other side an artist uses the space as his atelier.

Saturday market. EUR3.50 - 5.00 for a bunch of flowers.

Wedding today around the corner. I thought it was a parade, big drum and what sounded like a bagpipe. Turns out it was the Turkish neighbours getting married and what sounded like a bagpipe was that trumpet-like instrument. The whole neighbourhood came out to watch the music and dancing. Reminded me of Mandie and Rami's Polterabend, just very different. No crockery got smashed today.

My last day  here is pretty wet and grey... even the market looks pretty sad.

And very randomly.... the answer to the baffling pyramid of floating drums next to the Diana Memorial in Hyde Park, London. It is a piece of art for which a company in Oosterhout had made the drums!