Two weeks ago, I flew to the Netherlands. I had two speaking events, three shoots, a meeting, and a panel scheduled—and it was a great opportunity to catch up with friends and family.

Since those two weeks were going to be jam-packed, good planning was essential. I was smart enough to give myself some time to recover from jet lag; during the first few days in Almere, I met up with friends and did a little round of thrift shopping. I bought a few granny dresses and a cheese slicer (to take back to Japan).

I saw Riemer, Ruud, Charlotte… The latter also brought my Vinted orders with her. (Since Maan is going to take our official wedding photos in a few weeks, I decided I needed some dresses.)

So my first week was spent in Almere. Now you might be thinking: WHY?!, and I get it—but my hotel is right across from the station, it’s affordable, and Almere is close to a few of my friends. One of my website clients also happens to be from Almere, so on Monday we met up over a cup of tea for our first-ever chat in real life.

On Wednesday, Charlotte and I took the train to Utrecht for a photoshoot (or three!) in Maan’s studio. When I emigrated, Maan took over all my photo gear (paper, lights, and so on), and in return I get to borrow her studio from time to time. Three women wanted portraits of themselves, so Charlotte and I got to work.

Afterward, Charlotte and I traveled back to Almere. At the station, we realized this would be the last time we’d see each other during this trip. Charlotte suggested we grab a farewell drink at Starbucks—just like we do in Japan. We’d briefly forgotten this was the Netherlands.

We were quickly reminded when a large group of teenagers came in to cause trouble. They were loud, obnoxious, and didn’t order anything. The young girls behind the counter eventually had enough and asked them to leave. Naturally, they didn’t. One of the staff members then yelled at them to get out or they’d get a “kaolo punches.” The teens started to leave, but one cocky kid stayed behind and said, “Then punch me?” Moments later, he was behind the counter, with the others filming the scene—making it even louder and more annoying. The police showed up, and the Starbucks closed. So there we were, tumblers in hand, standing outside.

The next day, I packed my suitcase—the souvenirs I’d brought had now been replaced by wedding dresses, so everything just barely fit—and dragged the beast over to The Hague. My brother picked me up from the station, with my hyper-enthusiastic three-year-old niece in the back seat. “Auntie Bianca! Auntie Bianca! You live in Japan, right? Auntie Bianca! Auntie Bianca! They have trains there, don’t they?” And, pointing to a tiny scratch: “Auntie Bianca! Auntie Bianca! Look, I fell here! I had BLOOD!”

More souvenirs were handed out, and the inflatable KLM plane I once found in a Japanese thrift store was an instant hit! The thing looked like it was from the ’90s, so even though it was still in its original packaging, I was a bit worried. Had it deteriorated over time? Would it be leaky and useless? But no—it was perfectly fine! I’d also brought coloring books featuring Japanese trains, and of course, snacks. I’d later burden my brother with even more of my stuff, but first, it was time to head to Delft.

In Delft, I gave the first of my two scheduled lectures, at the library. It was easy to get there from my brother’s place, so I took the tram and train, and for a moment I felt like I was back in the old days—when I still lived in The Hague and often went to Delft. Before the lecture started, I received an incredibly sweet gift from two readers: a bag of candy in a Miffy tote, with a lovely card congratulating me on my recent wedding. How cool is that!

Originally, I had planned to stay with my brother over the weekend too, but a few weeks earlier, when I glanced at my schedule, I realized that wouldn’t be ideal. I had to be at my publisher’s in Zeist that Saturday to work on the planner we’re creating, and all that traveling on such an intense day didn’t sound great. So I rearranged things: I canceled the hotel I had booked in Rotterdam for later, and stayed with my brother during those days instead. That freed me up to book a hotel in Utrecht for the weekend—nice and close to Zeist. (And it gave me the chance to have breakfast with Maan, grab a drink with Aafke, and give Effy the tumbler I brought for her from Japan.)

That Sunday, I traveled from Utrecht to Rotterdam. First, I stopped by Riemer’s place to sort through the clothes, books, and paperwork I still had lying around there. I had already moved most of it earlier, in suitcases or massive barrel-style moving boxes, but there were still a few things left—mainly stuff I hadn’t missed in three years, but still had to deal with somehow. Riemer is about to become a dad, so he’ll soon need that space for a crib and baby clothes. (If you’re thinking, “WHAT?!”—yeah, that was my reaction too when I found out, haha. It’s not really my story to tell, but hey, I’m happy for him!)

After all that organizing, I headed to Ahoy, where I’d made plans with Elyse—we were going to see K3! This might just be my most autistic interest, but I definitely wasn’t the only one. Right behind us, on the very last row, three grown women were singing their hearts out. “K3 is for everyone,” they say—and it really is.

After the show, I went back to Riemer’s place. We had dinner together at Loetje, and I did a bit more sorting. The next day, my dad was coming by car to pick up the stuff.

On Monday, my father picked me up at my brother’s place, and we drove to Rotterdam. We dropped off a bag of clothes and a crate of books at the thrift store, stored my paperwork (which I still have to keep for the tax office) and photo albums in my dad’s attic, and brought the bags of clothes and other small items I wanted to take back to Japan over to my brother’s. I packed some of it into my suitcase now; the rest I’ll take in July. My Polaroid collection will go to Léonie, who will be selling it in her vintage store Froufrous.

That evening, we all had dinner together at my brother’s place: my dad, stepmom, my brother, his wife Zita, and my niece Ollie (3). But before we ordered roti (you can’t get that in Japan!), my brother suddenly pulled out a gift: A WHOLE F*CKING NEW CAMERA!

And not one of those “Sweet, but I actually wanted the other one…” situations—no, it was *exactly* the right one! The exact camera I wanted! On the drive over, I had just said to my dad—after getting an email with a new booking—“If only my clients paid on time, then I could get…” But I didn’t have to finish the sentence! (Though yes, dear clients, please still pay on time.)

On Tuesday, I had one last lecture, for an undisclosed client. After that, I took the tram back to my brother’s place, packed up the last of my things, and was dropped off at the station by Zita and Ollie. I caught the train to Schiphol, where I’d be flying out the next day. To spare myself the stress—and to avoid any NS-related mishaps—I stayed at CitizenM, with a view of the airplanes. It felt a bit like time travel; during the pandemic, I used to stay there often, sometimes with Charlotte.

I posted a photo of my view on Instagram, when suddenly I got a message from Cynthia—with a photo. “Wait, are you here too?!” Cynthia was flying out early the next morning, on her way to the retreat she was organizing, so she couldn’t stay long—but of course she came by to say hi.

The next day, I flew back to Japan. Not to Tokyo this time, but to Osaka. I booked a hotel there and met up with Maan and Yves the following day—they had arrived one day earlier. We did a classic round of thrift shopping. (Mini reel here.)

And now I’m on the shinkansen home, typing up this blog. While the two weeks were indeed as busy as I had predicted, it was actually totally manageable. Partly thanks to my planning. (I was testing our own sensory planner, and I have to say—it works!) I made sure to give myself enough time to decompress after every busy day (shoot, panel, lecture…). I’m also incredibly grateful for the support of my lovely friends and family.

Of course I miss Japan when I’m in the Netherlands, but these days I can really enjoy being in the land of cheese and windmills too. I’ll be back again in July, and I’m already looking forward to it. I used to feel torn—half in the Netherlands, half in Japan. But now, that’s changed. I feel at home in both: the Netherlands and Japan. I feel so rich.