small space living

Luckily, I got the keys to my temporary apartment this evening, so I'm no longer putting on shows for the tourists. I did have to lug all four pieces of luggage from the hotel to the apartment, tripping over cobblestones as I dragged everything over, but now that I'm here, I've been able to unpack and attempt to settle in a bit. The suite is compact, but comfortable.








When the landlady showed me the suite, I thought the place was pleasant and well-kept, but I wondered aloud where the bedroom was. "Oh, the sofa converts into a bed. Let me show you!" she said with great enthusisasm.

"And the kitchen?"
"Behind the folding doors that looks like it leads into a closet, right here!"

"The bathroom?"
"Beyond the pocket door, of course!"

"And if the kitchen is in what I thought what was the closet, where's the actual closet?"
"Tucked behind the door!"

Talk about small space living!

The church bells ring every hour from the steeple of NieuwKerk, just a few steps away and I've got a view of a waterlily strewn canal from my window, where red geraniums are spilling out from the window box, so it's making me feel like I'm in a postcard world.

As for work, the team here is great. I haven't gotten to spend a lot of time with them all yet since I've been at appointments with local authorities trying to sort out my paperwork, but they're a great bunch. And, get this – my first official day isn't until tomorrow, but I was in the office today, and I've already requested vacation. Before I've even started! I'm going to Rock Werchter, a four day music festival in Belgium . The line-up is pretty awesome, so I couldn't resist. I'll be spending some $300 USD for tickets and the campsite, and it'll probably be one big boozefest, but it should be fun.