I Dream in Dutch

That's right, last night I had a dream in Dutch! Well, the faulty, painfully slow Dutch that I know how to speak. Also, some guy in my dream was named "Goed zo," which is a Dutch phrase meaning something along the lines of "well done/good job." In other news... we went to a birthday party today. Dutch parties are a bit different than American ones. Everyone is invited - neighbors, family, acquaintances - unlike America where only the friends are allowed. So basically, there were A LOT of little kids, all eating poffertjes and running around. We also walked around Leiden for a while. It is a beautiful city with rivers running through it, and many bridges and churches. It's a university city, so it was pretty quiet since school is not in session. Oh, and I was so happy today! Sebastiaan, the little boy, saw a street called "Sebastiaan Street" and said, "Dat is een gekke naam!" Everyone laughed, including me, because I understood! He said, "That is a strange name!" (Good job, Emily, you learned one word. The rest sounds a lot like English. But hey, I was proud, because I didn't need a translation. Yay!) I can understand better now, but speaking is still very difficult. It seems that I know exactly what people are talking about until they ask me a question. Then I totally blank and say something like, "Ja." Hahaha, well, I'm trying, anyways. I can say (short) complete sentences now. ("I want to eat." "I want to learn Dutch better." "That is good.") Oh well. I'm eating stroopwaffels. They're like round wafers with caramel in the middle and they are very delicious. I love these kids! They're so cute! I actually still can't believe I'm really here, after all that preparation, it seemed that I would NEVER get here, but here I am! I think I need to write in this blog less often, as it is allowing me to use and think in English more. So, no post tomorrow, or for a while, sorry. Ik moet Nederlans te leren!

Tot ziens,

Emily

PS: I went grocery shopping today. So cool! I can't wait until I'm allowed to buy things for the family (hehehe, Dutch candy shall spill from every nook and cranny)! Just kidding. But seriously. While I'm here, I'm going to make the best of it. Meaning I'm going to eat Dutch candy. :)