A Little Update: It’s starting to get real

It’s been a while since I last posted on the blog, so it’s about time for a little update. To be honest, there’s nothing extremely exciting to report just yet, because we’re still busy decluttering. And believe me, that takes a lot more time than you’d think.

Still, we definitely haven’t been sitting still these past few weeks. We’ve arranged our health insurance in Spain, cancelled all our subscriptions, and scheduled our appointments for new passports and deregistration from the Netherlands. And two weeks ago, I handed in my resignation. That wasn’t an easy thing to do — I actually enjoy my work and my colleagues — but as of December 15, I’ll officially be unemployed. Or rather: free. Because something beautiful is coming in return — peace, space, and a completely new adventure.

Yvonne will continue working until the end of the year and then she’ll stop as well. Our “to-do” list is getting shorter and shorter. We need to fill in a M-form from the Dutch tax authorities, and after that we’ll need to register with the municipality in Spain, transfer the car to Spanish plates, and apply for residency.

For the transition period, we’ve rented a small cottage at a holiday park in Borger. We’ll stay there while our house is being sold, and from there we can wrap up the last bits and pieces in Emmen. We’ll also host a little get-together for friends and family — not a farewell, because that’s not what it feels like, but simply a moment to see each other before we leave. Our plan is to come back for a couple of weeks in May or June anyway, just to catch up over a cup of coffee.

Since neither of us enjoys long car rides, we’ll probably fly from A Coruña to Schiphol in May or June, and then take the train to Emmen. We just need to check when EasyJet has decent prices — and that’s one of the perks of not working anymore: you can travel whenever you want, not just when you can.

For now, it’s mostly about arranging things, clearing things out, and looking ahead. The adventure is getting closer!

Ps.

In the meantime, I’ve also made a few small changes to the website. There’s now a contact form in the bottom-right corner, and I’ve added a short “About Us” section with a bit more information about Yvonne and myself.

At the moment, I’m working on enabling comments on blog posts — but in a way that doesn’t result in my inbox being flooded with spam. Once everything is set up and running properly, you’ll notice it on the site.