In this section I publish posts about what it’s like being an expatriate and the cultures and traditions of the countries I’ve lived in: Italy, Switzerland, Germany and The Netherlands.
I also add some observations about places I’ve often travelled to, like for example France and the UK.
Everything was ready for Christmas. Cards were sent, presents wrapped, house cleaned and everything packed, ready to go to meet family for Christmas. But then everything changed within a few hours. First this silly wind that made my eyes cry, my nose tickle and then this nasty caught. […]
If you are a multicultural expat family, deciding which tradition to follow can become a huge issue. What are the traditions you want to maintain? Will your parents, inlaws or extended family be involved in this decision? In our family we opted for a colorful mixture of traditions […]
When you live in a multicultural family and context, there are moments where you have to decide which festivity (or holiday) you want to celebrate with your family, extended family, friends etc. During this time of the year, there are a few traditions that seem very different, but […]
In addition to general informations about Sinterklaas’ arrival to the Netherlands mid November, there is a very important period between his arrival and the 5th December, when Sinterklaasavond (or Pakjesavond) is celebrated. Here in the Netherlands, these are actually very busy weeks for children, parents as well as […]
Are you considering to buy a mobile phone for your child for Christmas (or Birthday)? Childnet‘s mobile phone checklist (using the UK Mobile Operators Code of Practice) is a great resource for making sure that all safeguards are in place. Mobile phones should be treated the same way […]
Today’s Black Friday in the US. If you would like to know more about this, please read Anne Egros’ article about this.
If you live in the Netherlands, today you will experience how a whole country – children and adults! – are gek (crazy) about Sinterklaas. Sinterklaas (also known as Sint Nicolaas or Sint Nikolaas, Saint Nicolas in French, Sankt Nikolaus in German) is the traditional Winter holiday figure celebrated […]
I just read an interesting post from Tessa and a parenting course she was following about how to listen to our children. It’s not always possible to give full attention when our child (or our children!) talk to us. The advise Tessa has been given was to stop […]
