Signed, sealed and delivered

Is your Christmas tree up yet? Ours just made its way into the living room and after some heated discussion the light are finally up. Another family Christmas tradition: no tree shall enter without argument about it's size (bigger is better, we have a mark on the ceiling to prove it) and also putting in the light shall not go without a tug of war. But nothing can spoil my mood! Today is another Country and Christmas fair, this time at Marienwaerdt! Details and pictures will follow tomorrow, I promise.
One last thing before I leave you to a lovely Saturday afternoon: yesterday I signed both my employment contract and my rental apartment contract! So its official, I'm stuck in Groningen. I suddenly feel so grown up, it's a bit surreal for someone as childish as me...

Happy Holidays!

Hired!

A celebration is in order! After countless letters, horrible job interviews and many rejections I can now finally say: I've got a PhD position! Woohoo! I remember thinking on the train ride home "I can never really tell anymore if it went well" when I got the phone call saying they wanted me. That's irony for you. It's still just an oral agreement (no papers have been signed yet), but this just feels really good and something really crazy has to happen for it to not go ahead. And the project is freaking awesome! I can't give any details of course, all very classified, but it has something to do with immunotherapy in lymphoma's. Very interesting and enough work to keep me busy for the next four years. If everything goes well I'll be able to start in January, but I even have to option to start a month later. This does however mean I will have to move away from my home town up North, to the city Groningen. It's a two hour drive, which I realise is probably not far if you live in the States, but trust me, for a Dutchy it's a pretty big deal! It almost feels like another country! Just kidding. So the last couple of days I've been hunting the internet for an affordable place to stay. I think I may have found something nice, more expensive than I anticipated of course, but it does have a private kitchen (including dishwasher!) and private bathroom. So I'll keep you updated how that plans out. In the mean time I'm still bubbling with excitement that I finally found a job! This really is the best Christmas present I could have wished for!

With love,

Willemijn

Country and Christmas fair Haarzuilens

Christmas season is in full swing! I don't know how you feel, but I always get deliriously excited! Especially with all the Christmas fairs this season. This weekend was the mother of all fairs: the Country and Christmas fair at castle the Haar in Haarzuilens. And of course yours truly attended the event, cause really, where else would I be? Not only can you buy the nicest pearls, jewels and clothes at Haarzuilens, but walking the lanes up to the castle is a great opportunity to try cheese, wine and baked goods. In the larger tents you can find old antiques, art and buy home decorations (I bought two Kelim pillows!). And once it gets chilly outside you can warm your hands at a nice cup of hot Dutch pea soup (erwtensoep for you Duchties!) or enjoy a glass of steaming glühwein. Not as Dutch as the soup but equally as heart warming!

But the best treat has to be the scenery, the beautiful castle adorned with light, and the Christmas music blasting from the speakers. Stay until it starts to get dark and the light are even more charming! It's truly the best way to get into the Christmas spirit and buy present or just get some fresh inspiration!

With love

There even was a Dickens style choir singing Christmas carols!

My folks! Aren't they sweet?

For more information visit the (Dutch) website 

Or watch a video of the event here

Spirit of Winter

It's starting to get cold over here in good ol' Holland! So that means it's almost time for Christmas! Well, at least once that old fart Saint Nicholas (or Sinterklaas in Dutch) has left the building, but really that holiday has been spoiled already with all the discussions about his little helpers being racist. Who cares, it's a children's holiday! So we decided to skip that whole affair (like we do each year) and head straight for Christmas at Spirit of Winter at Palace the Loo. Plus we got free tickets, and that's always a bonus. If you ever have the chance to go, please do! It's a beautiful place and as the title says, totally gets you in the spirit for winter. ;)

With love Willemijn

The best chocolates! Ever!

 

Of course no winter country fair would be complete without country hats and a basket maker

If you want to learn more, go to their website! It's in Dutch, but there's pretty pictures ;)

Still unemployed

I noticed November (or Movember, if you're a fan) has come around, so I thought it was time to write another post. Not that my life is particularly interesting right now, but I should at least keep you up to date. So, I guess by now you've read the title and therefore now that I'm still without a job. And thus without a life basically. I've got another job interview coming up this Thursday though, but there have been a lot more rejection letters lately. Looking back to August when I just graduated I was so confident I would have job by now.... I'm just very impatient when it comes to these kind of things. Funny thing is, a few years ago research groups were dying for PhD students, cause everyone went to the (pharmaceutical) industry. And now, apparently, it's the other way around *sigh*. Oh well, I guess I'll watch another (Disney) movie...

Fall day out

What do you do when you haven´t been out for a while and are bored out of your mind?

That right, you hijack friends and family to go out with you. And who knows, maybe they have some fun out of it as well. So I went to the paper exhibition at Museum Rijswijk wit my mum, on a shopping trip to the Primark in Nijmegen with my friends and to the Fall Fair at Hunting Lodge Mookerheide with both my parents. That's right, you read it: paper exhibition. Don't believe me? Check the pictures.

Watch a video tour of the exhibition here!

No pictures of the shopping and the Fall Fair though. My friends didn't really appreciate me sneaking into the changing rooms to snap their outfits (party poopers) and as for the Fall Fair, well... I totally forgot! Shopping in such a beautiful setting does that to a girl, she'll forget all about her duties to the blog. So all I can give you is and old post card, but pretty non the less I would say.

Or check out their website

Wasting time

I could write a post right now, but really, I have no idea what it would be about... My life: boring. I'm applying for jobs, and that's it. And even though it takes up some of my time, there's only so much I can do for it on a day. After the applications it can take up to three weeks before I hear something back, and in the mean time... well... I'm bored.
So I try to stay in touch with my friends, and try not to spend all my money on eBay. Cause face it: when a woman has too much time on her hands, she will shop! It's a fact of life. In fact, is has gone so bad that I'm buying stuff for my imaginary house. Ugh, I want to move out...

Got any tips to waste time?

I'll be on 9gag...