12/7/25 - Settling in
Well friends, it’s been another interesting couple of weeks with lots of new highs and lows. Before we left Amsterdam, we went to a friend’s birthday party, who we met through our language teacher. It was so nice to see them, after almost a year. We got to meet some of their friends too, and were happy to be able to keep up in conversation in Dutch! We also found an online bank that worked with our new address, and learned more about the headaches and hassles of how to transfer money from a domestic to foreign account…and all the hidden fees that come with it. Yikes. But…
Last weekend we packed up our things and made it to The Hague and officially moved to our new place Dec 1. When we arrived, we were welcomed by the owner and the realtor to go through a check in process, which was much more thorough than anything we’ve experienced in the US. Before getting the keys, the realtor took photos of everything and we all signed an existing conditions agreement. We also have 2 weeks post-move-in to add photos or comments to the agreement, as we get settled, which is so thorough and appreciated as a renter, giving us more protections. The owner was lovely and gave us a bouquet of flowers and a welcome note too, giving us more history on our new place. Apparently the house is 100 years old, but doesn’t look it! After we got the keys we were so happy to finally unpack all our things and settle into our new home.
The next day we made it to an appointment with the government to get our resident ID number, only to find out 2 things: our lawyer didn’t sign us up for the correct meeting, and our documents were not recognized internationally. We learned that we first needed to set up a meeting with immigration before getting a resident ID, which our lawyer and his relocation specialist did not properly communicate to one another…wat jammer (pronounced vhat yahm-mer, meaning what a shame)! And our birth certificates and marriage license are not apostilled, meaning they need to go through extra certification, a process that differs depending on which state you were born/married in. So, we are now working through getting our paperwork completed to prep for our immigration meeting, which can’t be scheduled until we have the correct documentation.
While we work on this next step, we are appreciating the house, being a 10 minute walk from the beach, and having a full kitchen to make some new DJMC collaborations! Pictured below: saying goodbye to the Airbnb and hello to home! And the beach 😀
Last weekend we packed up our things and made it to The Hague and officially moved to our new place Dec 1. When we arrived, we were welcomed by the owner and the realtor to go through a check in process, which was much more thorough than anything we’ve experienced in the US. Before getting the keys, the realtor took photos of everything and we all signed an existing conditions agreement. We also have 2 weeks post-move-in to add photos or comments to the agreement, as we get settled, which is so thorough and appreciated as a renter, giving us more protections. The owner was lovely and gave us a bouquet of flowers and a welcome note too, giving us more history on our new place. Apparently the house is 100 years old, but doesn’t look it! After we got the keys we were so happy to finally unpack all our things and settle into our new home.
The next day we made it to an appointment with the government to get our resident ID number, only to find out 2 things: our lawyer didn’t sign us up for the correct meeting, and our documents were not recognized internationally. We learned that we first needed to set up a meeting with immigration before getting a resident ID, which our lawyer and his relocation specialist did not properly communicate to one another…wat jammer (pronounced vhat yahm-mer, meaning what a shame)! And our birth certificates and marriage license are not apostilled, meaning they need to go through extra certification, a process that differs depending on which state you were born/married in. So, we are now working through getting our paperwork completed to prep for our immigration meeting, which can’t be scheduled until we have the correct documentation.
While we work on this next step, we are appreciating the house, being a 10 minute walk from the beach, and having a full kitchen to make some new DJMC collaborations! Pictured below: saying goodbye to the Airbnb and hello to home! And the beach 😀
