Holland, will you marry me? part 2

It's amazing how well everyone here speaks English. From the old to the young, from the supermarket cashier to the big businessman, everyone speaks English. I mean, on one hand, I really like how the French have put up a fight against the Anglo-fication of the world, but on the other hand, it's damn nice to be able to easily communicate with people here without having to resort to hand gestures. Though I have to admit that I probably wouldn't have learned nearly as much French nearly as fast had more people in Bretagne spoken English this well.

Which brings me to another thing that surprised me - the number of TV shows in English. I have about 20 TV channels here at the hotel and at least half of them are in English with Dutch subtitles. And it's not just your standard BBC, CNN, etc channels - it's the whole gamme. They've got Oprah, Doctor Phil, Late night with David Letterman, Antique Roadshow, The Family Guy, plus all the typical shows like Desperate Housewives, etc. Granted, these are not exactly the crème de la crème of American TV, but it's still nice to be able to have some background noise on while working. There are also stations like Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, National Geographic & Comedy Central.

Another thing that's struck me is how tall everyone is. I was walking in downtown Utrecht and something felt different. All of the sudden it hit me - I was no longer a giant! There were women all around me that were taller than I was. And the men were gigantic, especially after years of looking at Frenchie midgets. Though that does make it all the more ridiculous when you see them eating chocolate sprinkles on their bread during the mid-morning break.

And last but not least, what's a trip to a foreign country without a trip to a grocery store? I was pleasantly surprised with a selection of hard-to-find items in France (or at least not at reasonable prices): Philly cream cheese, cheddar cheese, baby carrots, bubbalicious gum, cake mixes, cereal bars, coffeemate, light & dark brown sugar and chai tea, to name a few. I am glad this is such a short trip because it means I've got room in my suitcase to bring some goodies back. Including a few packages of the always-delicious stroopwafels. Yum.