Terug in NL...the adventures are over...

...for now at least... At this moment namely, while writing the first words of what will be my last story for some time to come, I am looking at thousands of can’s containing some kind of chemical substance racing over a conveyer belt in front of my nose. It feels rather strange; one day you’re in Japan enjoying sushi and walking through beautiful gardens and temples, and the other day you’re sitting at work, living the boring life again. The great adventure that this year certainly was, is over...from Mexico, to Cuba, to Taiwan, to Hongkong, to Japan...and now back in the Netherlands.

But before I write my conclusion whether all this travelling was worth it, let’s first go back to my last days in Japan. Thursday evening I arrived in Osaka, and after some initial scary moments during which I came to the conclusion that the Japanese really don’t speak Chinese or English, I found a train that brought me to the city centre and my hotel. As I was only going to be in Japan for two days, I had to maximize my exposure to Japanese culture of course :) ...therefore I got a ‘traditional Japanese room’ which turned out to be a tatami mat and a very thin mattress (probs a good thing, because my back can’t really handle soft mattresses anymore) Hen youyisi...anyway, the next day I could start exploring Osaka on my rental bike which I got from a lady who apparently was also running a flee circus. I quickly got myself into a true bike-ma-geddon as the Japanese drive on the left side of the road (wonder from which loony’s they got that from ;) ) ...so my Japanese vocabulary came in very handy :P (xiexie taito...for the zanghua! :badgrin: ). Despite the bike-ma-geddon ‘the bike’ was an excellent method of transportation: I saw loads, the sun slowly coloured my skin red, and yet my feet weren’t all blistered after a hard day’s work as a tourist.

In Osaka I already saw a lot given my limited time (oa Osaka castle, America mura...check the pics), but in Kyoto, the old imperial city, I ran a marathon and saw even more...it felt that way at least. In one day I visited a bunch of temples, shrines, temples and neighbourhoods (ginkakuji, kinkakuji, nijo-jo, gion etc).
Nice...hen piaoliang ye hen youyisi...but when I finally came back in Osaka around 23:00 I was exhausted...and still had to pack my bag again (of course). I managed though, and Sunday morning I was greeted by some grumpy KLM chicks and flew back to NL (no goodbye committee this time unfortunately...and even crowd control was off pooing somewhere :P). Yet fortunately in NL there was a welcome committee...and it was great to see my parents, brother, family & friends again (apekop :)).

However soon afterwards came that nagging feeling I already anticipated...the one of: adventure is over...boring work life starts that must ensure my financial survival next year. For sure, I have some great experiences to look back to...because I can honestly say that both in Taiwan and in Mexico I had the best time of my life.... I never thought I’d learn so much (from good and bad times) and make so much new terrific friends (whom I all hope to see very soon again!!). I have grown as a person, also thanks to these friends, and conquered myself by building up a life in a foreign country where I didn’t know anybody and hardly spoke the language...something I always found quite scary.
...And, along the way I also graduated my bachelors, learned Spanish and Chinese. Ow and of course....this years I was introduced to things that made my life so much more complete: choudoufu and the male dormitory :D :S
This year had it all...it was fantastic, and I am happy that I was able to share my experiences by means of my website. I hope you had fun reading my stories... it was certainly fun writing them. So...

-Thanks for all your reactions and messages... until the next adventure!
-Bedankt voor alle berichtjes en reacties...tot de volgende reis, het volgende verhaal!
-Muchas gracias por todos los mensajes y reacciones...nos hablamos pronto...hasta la proxima viaje!
-Xiexie guangling!!! :D

Besos,

Mike


P.s. wo taiwande pengyou: wo xiang nimen...zheli zhende hen wuliao! Suoyi wo xiangyao hui Taiwán, zai zue zhongwen yici ;)!

p.s.2 oww...for everybody who I didn't tell yet/wants to know: I’ll be moving to Maastricht again soon to start my masters there

p.s.3 pic's order is f*cked up...sorry :)