Benelux 2015: Meeting my Friend Tessa

Just two days after my previous trip to the Netherlands I went there again to meet my Dutch penpal Tessa. We had planned it much earlier that it would be nice to meet up once I come to Belgium to visit my dad and had chosen the date much in advance... But you know, there's always some difference between the plans and reality! ;) On the day when we were originally supposed to meet I was still in bed fighting the Israeli-Hungarian-Belgian virus. Then we chose another day, but suddenly the train tickets became much more expensive! Fortunately, my stepmum was very helpful: she called the Belgian railways and managed to convince them to sell me the tickets at a reasonable price. Training is quite an expensive activity in West Europe - getting from Belgium to the Netherlands costed almost as much as a flight to Israel! But that wouldn't prevent me from meeting a friend in any case! :) 

To be honest, I also didn't realize that Zwolle was actually quite far away from the Belgian border. It took me 4 hours to get there and I had to change trains in Rotterdam. I was afraid I'd miss my connection or wake up in Amsterdam, but fortunately everything went fine and Tessa was waiting for me at the Zwolle railway station! :) I know it may sound strange, but I still find myself feeling quite nervous before meeting a penpal for the first time, even if we get along just perfectly through letters. I guess it's because I sometimes feel embarassed with myself and as far as I seem to be a serious a deep thinking person in my letters, I think I may be a bit crazy and overenthusiastic in the "real life". My friends, who have met me in person say it's not true, but I can't help feeling self-conscious anyway. I guess Tessa could see that I was a bit nervous, so she gave me a hug and I immediately felt a bit more relaxed. :)

A canal and defence tower in Zwolle.

From the railway station we walked to the center of Zwolle. It's not a very big city, so soon we were already in the historic part, which is surrounded by canals and still has some fortifications left. As I've mentioned in my previous blog entry, I'm a bit ignorant and therefore most of Dutch cities and towns look similar to me, but I could see that most of Zwolle's historic sights were older than those, which I've seen in Gouda and Delft. Still, to be completely honest, we didn't spend so much time sightseeing. :)

The bookshop in a former church.

Our first longer stop was in Zwolle's nicest book store, which is located in a former church. Seeing a church being used in such an unconventional way may be surprising to an East European person like me, but actually like this idea. And I've actually visited one more book store like that in the Netherlands a few days later, but I'll tell you about it - as well as about my personal views on the problem of empty churches and their usage - the next time. Apart from buying books and postcards, you can also have a tea or coffee in this old church - and so we did. :) That was a great chance to relax and to finally talk to each other without using the pen and paper. To me it didn't feel like talking to Tessa for the first time though - it felt rather like a continuation of our letters and I really hope she felt the same. Later we decided to eat some sandwiches and so we had another excuse to spend more time talking and being lazy. :) But finally we had to see more of Zwolle...

View from the tower.

... And so we climbed the tower of one of the old churches! The tower was over 50 m high and that was quite a big challenge for a clumsy person like me, who doesn't ever do any sports! :D I was joking that this tower must have been designed to make people more religious: even if you're an atheist, you'll end up saying "Oh my God!" for a few times while climbing it! ;) But it was worth it - the views were really rewarding! When we went downstairs, we got small pictures of the church stamped with the date when we went there - 20th January 2015. So at least we have evidence that we've actually managed to climb it! :)

Again a canal :)

The bridge over a canal in Zwolle was one of my favourite places in the whole city. It looked really beautiful with the old houses and fortifications on both sides, as well as with some ships. Finally I had the feeling that I've done enough sightseeing and so we could walk to Tessa's place without any guilty conscience! ;)

My letter to Erin in the USA.

On the way I've found a mailbox and posted my letter to Erin, who's actually mine and Tessa's mutual penpal. :) I just hope she won't be too confusing when she receives a letter from an Ukrainian penpal sent from the Netherlands while she was visiting her father in Belgium. :D

Then I had a really nice time and Tessa'a and her brother's place - we discussed some interesting topics and ate yummy pancakes! At first I was surprised to see that Dutch pancakes were cooked with gouda cheese inside, but this way they taste even better! Sadly, I was only able to eat one pancake, which was probably caused by the fact that I had eaten too much gouda cheese in the kitchen! :D (Yes, apart from lemons, I can also steal cheese sometimes!) ;)

Tessa and me :)

Unfortunately, soon it was time to travel back to Belgium. I had the temptation to take the very last train, but if I missed my connection in Rotterdam, I'd have to spend the whole night waiting for the next train there, so I decided not to risk. Tessa took me to the railway station and it was the time to say goodbye, but I really hope we'll meet again: maybe in the Netherlands again, maybe in Belgium, Poland or even Ukraine? :) I don't really mind as long as we're able to spend some time together again! To me this day in Zwolle was an absolutely positive experience... and I still hope my behaviour wasn't too crazy! ;)

A typical Dutch train.

What I really like about Dutch trains is that they have the same colours as the Ukrainian flag! I realize it must be just a coincidence, but what a nice one! ;) The way back to Belgium took 4 hours as well and then I managed to get lost at the Brussels-South railway station and couldn't find my dad, who was waiting for me at one of the entrances. That's so much my style! ;) But that was an amazing experience of Friendship and Training nevertheless! :)