As mentioned recently in Under Construction, I hope you’ll join me as I navigate the re-entry stage in our repatriation journey. Every three months I’ll share a series of ‘snapshot’ blog posts about the particulars of building a new life from scratch, filed under the post category Re-entry Reality. I’ll look at everything from making a home, engaging […]
Posts Tagged ‘United States’
Why Here?
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Identity, Re-entry Reality, Repatriation, United States, tagged arts, Chapel Hill, concerts, creativity, cross-culturals, culture, Durham, expat, expatriate life, expats, forests, global wayfarers, haven, high-tech corridor, home, identity, international business, NC, Netherlands, oasis, Raleigh, re-entry stage, Repatriation, repats, research, the Triangle, theater, transition, United States, university, writing on October 11, 2013 | 4 Comments »
Autumn = Change
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Catarina Chronicles, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Holidays, Netherlands, United States, Writing, tagged Americans, autumn, Autumn Equals Change, blogging, Catarina, change, costumes, creativity, culture, decisions, different, dressed up, Dutchies, Expat Focus, expat life, faces painted, fairies, favorite season, fresh, ghost, ghouls, goblins, Halloween, holidays, internationals, Little Red Riding Hood, magical, makeup, Nederland, Netherlands, new, seasons, The Hague, trick-or-treaters, United States, witches, writing, zombies on November 1, 2012 | 4 Comments »
Yesterday was Halloween, and it was a smashing one indeed. It began dry and sunny (two big pluses during autumn here) and remained so throughout the day; Halloween night was, well, amazing. Halloween is HUGE in the United States, and every year, more and more Dutchies and other internationals join Americans in celebrating this fun-filled holiday. Cross-culturalism at its […]
Sensory Overload
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Albert Heijn, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Learning Dutch or Other Foreign Languages, Travel, United States, tagged America, different, driving, Dutch, English, expat, familiar, family, going 'home', going back, off kilter, Repatriation, sensory overload, travel, United States, university visits, visiting family on June 30, 2012 | 16 Comments »
I’ve been back in the United States for a week now, and I’m still adjusting. Daughter and I are here for an extended period visiting family, beginning to check out universities, attending a pre-college program (her) while I hole myself up to work on some writing projects, and so on. Oh, and eventually spending some […]
The Unpleasantness of Being Used
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, United States, tagged anti-government, Apocalypse, Armageggon, blogging, cross the borders, crosscultural, end of the world, expat life, expatriates, extreme right, guns, heavily armed, intercultural, milita, militia groups, patriotism, preparedness, reasons to expatriate, renounce citizenship, Seven Reasons Not to Become an Expat, survivalists, ultra conservative, United States on June 11, 2012 | 14 Comments »
A week or so ago, a strange entry popped up in my search filter. I didn’t recognize the website URL, but its name caught my eye. I clicked on the link and found myself reading an article about whether to become an expat, and my post Seven Reasons Not to Become an Expat was included. […]
Politics, Near and Far
Posted in Blogging, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Global Issues, Netherlands, United States, Writing, tagged austerity measures, blogging, cultural issues, differences, Dutch politics, economic issues, elections, Euro, gay marriage, global issues, global recession, governments, human trafficking, international affairs, local politics, Netherlands, policy wonk, political issues, refugees, similarities, United States, writing on May 10, 2012 | 23 Comments »
Two confessions up front. First, credit where credit is due. A comment about my post on Bridge-Building in the city of Peace and Justice, left by fellow expat and talented writer/blogger Russell VJ Ward*, served as the impetus for this plea post. Second, I am a self-confessed policy wonk and international affairs junkie. I’ve studied it, worked […]
That Second Minute
Posted in Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Dutch Life, Expat Life, Holidays, Netherlands, September 11th, United States, tagged Americans, Arlington Cemetery, civilians, Dodenherdenking, Dutch, honor, Memorial Day, military, Netherlands, remembrance, Second World War, service members, service to their country, silence, soldiers, Tomb of the Unkown Soldier, tribute, Trilogy to the Dutch, two minutes of silence, ultimate sacrifice, United States, World War II, writing on May 6, 2012 | 10 Comments »
When this week began, little did I know that by the end I would be writing what has essentially become my own personal Trilogy to the Dutch. I’d enjoyed all the excitement and revelry of my third Queen’s Day, stuck again by how virtually everyone gets involved in what is essentially one big party. There’s something about an entire […]
Not Going Back (This Year)
Posted in Change, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Travel, United States, tagged expat life, United States, visiting home on July 28, 2011 | 6 Comments »
Okay, let’s start again. This year I’m not going back. When I typed that sentence the other day, intending to write about one thing, it spiraled off onto another tangent. That happens. Since my writing muse was not only on speaking terms with me but appeared to be hunkered down for a full-fledged chitchat, I […]
Back Home?
Posted in Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Family & Friends, Life Balance, Repatriation, United States, tagged home, Repatriation, United States on July 26, 2011 | 12 Comments »
This year I’m not going back. I was going to type ‘ back home’ but stopped short. Yes, the United States is my ‘home’ country. I’m lucky in that I’m able to state that clearly, without hemming or hawing or asking several qualifying questions. I’ve come to learn that for some, it isn’t […]