So today marks the day that almost six month's worth of work pays off.
I've been applying for jobs in Holland since December, as soon as I returned from the short vacation I took there (which I didn't even write about, but you can find pictures of here).
Holland was amazing. Part of the reason I didn't write or take too many photos, besides the fact that I only spent a few days there, was because I was too busy enjoying myself. I made friends with almost everyone I met. Besides this, there was so much to explore outdoors and all of it was fascinating and beautiful. Everything was so new and different from what I'd ever seen, naturally. The buildings are old and amazing. There are canals everywhere, every few blocks you ride over a bridge as you bike to your next destination, and little boats with windows and tiny curtains are docked on the side, or are cruising by leisurely.
Dutch people bike everywhere. When you ride down to the train station, you can't even find a spot to park your bike, even thought there are a lot of bike racks. A lot. (I can't believe I don't have a photo of the Rotterdam train station. A lot of bikes). I was surprised by how quiet it was. Even in large cities like Amsterdam, it was nowhere near as loud as New York, or even Philly for that matter. There's more bike traffic than car traffic. Anyway, I think you get the picture. And remember, I was there in December. It was cold. It doesn't matter, though; they would be out in their winter gear with their kid in the bike trailer, on their way to run errands or do some other, ordinary thing.
Everywhere you look the street signs and restaurant names say things like Zonnebloemstraat or Hondenlosloopgebied or something insane like that. People speak completely in Dutch until you shyly admit that you don't, in which case they switch to English and carry on with the conversation genteelly. It was a completely pleasant experience. I think it may be Utopia.
So naturally, I wanted to live here. With every blink, I was increasingly in awe of this place. Once I was back stateside and the excitement of the holidays calmed down, I resettled in Jersey and began to apply for jobs.
I'd heard about Au Pair jobs before, when I was working in a restaurant in a rich neighborhood in Philly. One of my coworkers had spent a year in Italy by applying for an Au Pair position, which is just a live-in nanny from another country. We have them in the United States (although I'd never met a single Au Pair until I moved from rural Oregon to the East Coast). They come from all over; Brazil, South Africa, Italy, Mexico, Spain, you name it. Similar to a foreign exchange student, the traveler goes through an application process for a specific visa that allows you to live in the country for x amount of time. The result is a cultural exchange. The host family gets to experience what life is like in another culture and so does the traveler. This was an easy fit for me, because not only have I been nannying for a while now, but I love my job.
So I set up a profile and checked it every week; emailing, videochatting, and sending messages via WhatsApp to different families, but even though I had options to look in dozens of other countries, I kept my sights on Holland. Finally, my work came to fruition. I started talking to Kripa a month ago and after much contact and getting to know one another, she finally asked for my references. A week later, her and her husband called to offer me to the position.
In the Netherlands I'll be working for Kripa and Bas, caring for their two boys aged 7 and 10 and cooking meals on weeknights. I will live with them and eat meals there, making myself a home in theirs, and they'll provide a bike, pay for Dutch classes and give me a small allowance. I'm so happy today that I feel like calling 100 of my closest friends to tell them: after interviewing with different families for over 5 months, I finally clicked with a couple who invited me into their home.
I am going to spend the summer working and saving, I'll dedicate August to visiting family, and then I'll fly out the first of September for my European Year of Who-Knows-What.
Cheers to the adventure!
Alison Maglaughlin
