Send More Snail Mails!

I so love crafting. It is definitely one of my favorite hobbies aside from cooking, baking and watching movies. Coming to The Netherlands just opened up another way for me to express my creativity.

To my surprise, the postal services here in the west still work like magic. Stamps are still saleable and there are a lot of things it has been used for aside from letters and all these things. So what exactly am I talking about? I am so consumed with making happy mails and sending letters. If ever you want more information about it, here are a few FAQs (frequently asked questions) about snail mail or pen paling.

What is happy mail?

💕For me, it is any mail that makes one happy (can be a card, letter, crafting stuff)

Do you like when things such as mail tags or a list of questions are included?

💕 It’s easier to reply to a mail or letter with questions so you don’t need to think of things to open up to your penpal friend

How long is your average letter?

💕 Mine is always a back-to-back sheet of paper. Well, it actually depends. I have a friend in Canada and I also write to small pieces of paper some music I listen to, my favorite scripture of the week, etc

What kind of gifts or extras do you like to include, if any?

💕 I always include different types of paper, and washi tapes as well. Just to fill up the 20g or 100g so it depends. Sometimes, I also include a bag of tea or an instant coffee mix. Last time, I sent a mail with a matcha powder mix inside the mail to Belgium.

Is it possible to ask your pen pal too many questions?

💕 You will know that once you receive a letter from them, it will tell you if they are open or not

Do you prefer decorating your own letters or keeping them simple?

💕 I always decorate mine cause it is very therapeutic. Nothing leaves my table not colored or just plain simple. But then again, it all depends on the person if they want to just write or be creative.

So there you have it. 

Actually, when I learned about snail mailing while living in the west, I also learned that they also still do that in my home country, The Philippines. I wish I could have started while I was there. I definitely love making cards and writing letters.

Cheese Boards in The Netherlands

I am a very huge fan of anything that looks cute! Mainly in crafting maybe but also with food. I love mixing cheese boards when we just feel like making one, and it is just so satisfying to eat, these finger foods.

It is so fortunate on my case because these items are all available in our local supermarkets. Plus, they are just few steps away.



For this specific cheese board, we used four different types of French cheese. Brie with black truffle was my favorite amongst the ones we had, and camembert is my least, I cannot simple take the smell of it.



Back home in The Philippines, I also arranged a smorgasbord (a type of cheese board I belive), but it has more of small chopped vegetables rather than cheese. Cheese is expesive there, plus, we only have few options.

Anyways, do you like cheeseboards as well?

What To Do Next: After Arriving in The Netherlands via MVV-Family

Hello everyone! It's a new day again and new adventure awaits! I have been in The Netherlands for a month now and I am finally settled. There were still a lot of things that needed to be done and things were a little bit confusing at first. But with the help of my husband, family and friends, I was able to accomplish almost everything. It was not easy filing all the documents since my husband works full time from Monday to Friday. But thanks to my mom-in-law, for helping me with some of the calls when I do not know what to do. But mostly, I was able to do them by myself. And that makes me so satisfied and delighted cause I feel a bit of independence. Things were not as complicated as I thought. I just need to be courageous and patient.

So I wrote these steps down because I still have friends in The Philippines waiting for their MVV approval. It was a little difficult for me to find information so I've decided to list them down when I accomplished them so it would be easier for my friends. (Hello Cris!) *wink*

Okay, so let's get started and get things done!

1. Normally, a letter (with the title: "Uitnodiging ophalen verblijfsdocument") will appear in the IND/DigiD portal of your partner and you will receive it via post. It is an invitation from immigration that you can collect your residence card in an immigration office. You need to call IND first to confirm if your card is ready. If it is ready, make an appointment at the IND stated in your letter (for example: IND Utrecht).
   IND Appointment: https://ind.nl/Paginas/Afspraak-ophalen-verblijfsdocument-.aspx
   
   



2. Buy a sim card. If your husband/partner is working and he has no available time to help process the things you need in time, you can call the gemeente/IND/GGD/etc and you can inquire for your own. (They speak good English, so you do not need to worry.) Also, other documents to be filled out needs a phone number. It's better if you can provide your own.
   
   Not sponsored but I am using T-mobile with the package of this subscription: 16eur/month
   7GB data
   Unlimited call in NL + 120mins call to other EU countries
   Unlimited text in NL & other EU countries
   
   



3. When you retrieved your residence card, call the municipal hall (gemeente) asap. Make an appointment for registering yourself to the BRP (Basisregistratie Personen). Bring your authenticated birth and non/marriage certificate, your passport and your residence card. Wait for few days (some take weeks) for you to receive your citizen number or BSN (BurgerServiceNummer). I received mine via post.
   
   
4. You can also immediately make an appointment for your TB exam. Details can be found here: https://ind.nl/en/Pages/General_conditions.aspx?fbclid=IwAR3tlVKa-cjz4uFOugiVAv02LVHLMdDUlBMQJNQwiEpvjsHSsissY3_F9EM
   For this medical exam, you will do an X-ray and skin test on two different days. Some GGD does not require appointments but some do. You can check where you need to take the test by filling out your location and your local GGD will appear. Call them if you need an appointment or not.
   GGD: https://www.ggd.nl/*
   
   For my location, I needed to send them an email and make an appointment. Here's what's included in the mail:
   Name:
   Birthday:
   Phone Number:
   Address:
   V-nummer:
   Native Country:
   
   *You do not need a BSN (burgerservicenummer) in order to take the TB exam, they will only need the information above.
   
   
5. Upon receiving your BSN, you can now get health insurance and get a bank account.
   
   
6. You can now also set up your own DigiD by making an account at https://www.digid.nl/. They need your information and BSN for this. DigiD is important so you will be able to access government websites and other services (like taxes, pension, education, etc).

So that's it for now! I hope that somehow, this post will help you atleast have an overview of the important things you need to accomplish once you arrive in The Netherlands. With the schooling/work and other matters, I might make a separate blog post about them. There you go! Thank you for reading ang have a great day! See you!