Tonight I stopped at Sushi Hilversum (http://www.sushi-hilversum.nl/) for take-out. They don't have tables at that place, so you have to take out. :-) The sushi was pretty good for Hilversum. Ivy liked the salmon and loved the teriyaki chicken and rice I got for her. But the best part of all was when she took Ben's wasabi dish and scraped the edges with her fork and ate it and then smiled and went back for more. Ben was smiling from ear to ear. She is definitely her daddy's girl.
Henry is getting so big!!! He fed himself an entire bottle today. Here's proof.
He is sitting up on his own more and more, and has really started to recognize his mom and need her attention when she comes home from work. His little grin is so precious.
Ben is getting a new bike. It's called a Bakfiet (Bok Feet) and is a bicycle built for 3. Here's a pic. Can't wait til it arrives and we can get some shots of him and the babes on/in the bakfiet.
Banking/purchasing goods in Holland is challenging at times and that can really SUCK. First of all, as a general rule, places here don't take Visa, the most accepted card ANYWHERE. (Except Hilversum and surrounding areas). Visa is a little more accepted in Amsterdam, but I don't live there. The reason this is fast becoming an issue is 2 fold really...- We are only allowed by our bank back home to remove $250 euros daily from the ATM. This is not OUR day in Europe, its the 24 hour period in Oregon...So if I withdraw $250 euros on Monday and need 200 more before 9:30 am on Tues I am SOL! I called the bank and they were no help. That's the limit and it cannot be changed. I realize this is for security purposes, but boy do you look like an ass when you go to buy a bike, they don't take Visa and you tell them (in a foreign language) that you have to come back with the rest of the money because it's being held hostage by a tiny credit union in Portland, Oregon. (WHEW)
- I have to pay the second half of our lease in 7 days. I know you won't be shocked when I tell you that the leasing company doesn't take Visa or Check. They take CASH or Wire Transfer.
I thought I would call the bank to wire the money (3400 euros). They were gracious enough to say that they would make a one time exception for me but the limit of the wire is $3000 usd. Well, that's about $1500 short of what I need transferred.
Their response: "Well, we could do the transfer of $3000 and then you could take 250 euros a day out of the bank. I'm sure it will be a bit in fees, but it's really your only option."
Um, here's a clue. Stop holding my money hostage!!!
Anyhow, that's the happs of the day/night. Despite the banking issues, I love it here!
Hope you enjoyed the stories/ranting. :-) 
Lindz
2 comments:
Okay, we can add the Sushi place to the list of places to go eat while I am there, please!!! =)
I ran into the same issue with OCCU while we were in London in August. I ran up against the daily limit right away. What a pain! You'd think they'd take it off when you let them know you're having an extended stay over-seas.
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