I arrived into Amsterdam at 7AM on Wednesday, rushed to my hotel, and navigated (poorly) to my new worksite. After meeting with a few of my new colleagues, I settled into my new cubicle. Microsuede walls, sweet!
On Thursday, the relocation realtor picked me up at 10:30 AM. She had an aggressive schedule to view 12 properties within the day. We zoomed off in her Peugot to our top neighborhood pick, Oud Zuid (owd zowd / Old South).
The first house had 50 steps at a 60 degree incline to reach our 2 level flat. That hike combined with a precarious roof terrace gave it the nix, though it had many nice features. Next, we went to a cluster of blocky apartments. I could tell that the facade would not meet Madeline's criteria, as it lacked all the character expected of Europe. The inside matched -- functional, but bland. Last stop in Oud Zuid was a third floor walk up. It moved to the number 1 spot due to the quiet street (with parking potential!), charming facade, and spacious, well-lit interior.
Next we moved on to Amstelveen. This is a quiet suburb with a large percentage of expats. Although this seemed like an ideal setting, the very selling points became detractions. It was in fact quiet, suburban, and full of expats. We visited 5 houses which each provided adequate living space, and even nice gardens in the back, but they lacked the critical quality of feeling as if we were living in 'old' Europe.
Finally, we drove out to Haarlem. This made the list as a smaller, but very traditional, community. Two row homes presented a very typical Dutch feel. The narrow, precarious steps were a major drawback with two wee munchkins, but the layout and architectural features had a lot of appeal. As the sun began to set (and the rains started) we saw the best house of the day. In the sleepy village of Heemstede stood a charming single family home. The kitchen was amazing, and the dining area had a peaked glass roof. The back yard was an endless jungle for the kids, and the living area had lots of great features. Our last stop was a similar house, but it didn't hold a candle to the previous.
After a long day (and 12 pages of notes plus 270 pictures), I returned to the hotel. I uploaded all the pictures and placed my notes in rank order. After many tries, I finally reached Madeline and we were able to discuss the pros and cons of the various options. The realtor had already made arrangements to revisit the top property, so I was pleased that we agreed which one that was!
The next afternoon we returned to the spacious boulevard of Minervalaan to validate the 'rightness' of the house. Many of the elements that had been clouded by a blur of 11 competitors clearly met our needs upon a second inspection. Even better, we discovered a playground less than a block away and ultra-convenient shopping just a bit further down the road! I departed feeling very confident that this was our new home!!
