Some Observations

1. All the cars here look brand new. No one drives with a dirty car - no one drives with newspapers and crap in the backseat either.

2. There is tons of farmland - but every tree you see appears to have been purposely planted - as you drive you can see that they are in neat rows to cut down on the wind. I have seen very few "woods".

3. I suspect this is a country of conformity. The interiors of houses look mostly the same. Most people have something in their windows - usually in pairs - 2 vases, 2 candles, 2 lamps, 2 statues. Everything is very neat. Along the highway there was an area where they trim the grass on the shoulder for the first two feet and leave the rest until the birds have all hatched. Once hatched and safely able to fly they come back and trim the entire shoulder. This is land that is not really used by people - just strips along the highway next to farms. I don't really understand it but there is a need for everything to be taken care of.

4. Gas is expensive - 1.44 euros (1.5 canadian to a euro) for a litre.

5. The accents really vary based on the area. I have not heard very many people with the strong accents that I hear at the church. I wonder if the European accent as soften with time.

6. I am still getting used to the bicycles. You have to be careful crossing the bike lanes as well as the road. No one wears a helmet - I haven't seen one likely because with dedicated lanes you are not as likely to be hit by a car!

7. Candy, candy, candy. There are lots of different sweets here and every shop has a big section of candy.

8. The houses I have been in have killer staircases. The one here is about at a 20 degree angle curving to the second floor. It is very narrow for your footing. It was explained to me that this is because space is at a premium yet the principle rooms are fairly large.

9. People are pretty open - curtains are not closed during the day. I can see right into the houses through to the other side. Even on busy streets, families sit in their living rooms with only the glass separating them from the busy pedestrians on the street. One house had a baby sleeping in a crib by the fron window bordered by a busy sidewalk. It seemed strange to see this baby by himself "on display". It's like going to a pet store. I realise that Canadians are very private in comparison!

10. It would take me a long time to drive here. They use round abouts instead of four way stops and the room for error is pretty small. It works well but would take me time to get the rhthym of it! Parking is tight and if you can't parallel park you may as well give up!