Signs of Spring

First blooms in Beatrixpark

This is the end of my third week in Amsterdam. In the past couple of days is has been raining off and on, and even snowed and sleeted a bit on Wednesday evening.  But today it is cloudy and the temperature is mild, about 45 F. This week I have been working on a writing project, so that has kept me in during much of the nasty weather, sitting at my laptop, next to the nifty gas heater in the living room looking out over the canal and West Amsterdam from my 3rd floor (USA = 4th floor) apartment.   To take breaks from work I have ventured out to eat, shop for groceries or run important errands. I am increasingly relying on my bicycle to get around.  In the past few days I've gone to appointments north, south, and east of my apartment, each time wheeling out into unknown territory, armed with my city map and the assurance that it's actually pretty hard to get lost in Amsterdam! It's not a large city for a main metropolis, and it's neatly arranged around the central rings of canals, kind of like half of a big bike wheel, with the hub at the Central train station. I am learning the local cycling etiquette (such as it is-- Amsterdamers don't cotton much to rules!) and beginning to feel comfortable moving in this efficient and healthy way around the city.  This morning I rode about 2 miles to the "World Trade Center" in the south of Amsterdam to complete my registration process as a foreigner, which is necessary because I will be here more than 3 months and I will be employed part time to do things for the University of Amsterdam. It's a rather complicated process, involving several forms and an "authenticated" copy of one's birth certificate.  (I'm thinking it would be difficult to hide out in the NL!) Everything went fine, the officials were pleasant, and I am now officially an approved resident of Amsterdam!  On the way home I cruised through Beatrixpark (named after the beloved Queen).  It was green, quiet, and pleasant, and I noticed in a number of places crocuses and daffodils were emerging and beginning to bloom.  Damn!  Spring comes earlier here than in Indiana, and I do like that!