Settling in...

My bike, originally uploaded by gniezen.

So I'm slowly but surely settling in in Eindhoven. I received my bank card from the post office today, so now I finally have access to money I transferred while still in SA! I also received my BSN (Burger Service Nummer) number, a type of Social Security number, which is required for everything from bank accounts to being able to receive a salary. Along with the BSN number came a "stadspas" (city pass) which may be used at the city library, city swimming pool as well as city ice skating rink. In total I already have about 6 access cards: one for my apartment, one for the university, one for the sports centre, one for the metro, one for opening the garbage disposal and the city pass. And at least 4 are RFID-enabled.

The bank card is quite interesting, as it also contains a smart card that is used as a so-called chipknip. Credit cards are used very rarely here, and some shops don't want to pay the debit card banking fees involved for very small transactions. You can load small amounts of money onto your chipknip and use it to pay for small transactions without having to enter a PIN. As the chipknip is a smart card, the amount is stored on the card itself and payments are deducted directly from the card, so a network connection to the bank is not required.

I got an bicycle as a present from my grandparents on Sunday - it's a little old and doesn't have any break or gear levers, but it's a bike none the less! Lots of people ride very similar bicycles here, as more expensive ones will just get stolen and they're more comfortable than mountain bikes (and more practical when it rains). And if you were wondering, braking is performed by back-pedalling ;)

My latest purchase is a Philips Senseo coffee machine. It really is the coolest coffee machine in the world! There is a similar one in South Africa called the Russell Hobbs Uno Uno, but the coffee doesn't taste as good as this.. You put a coffee pad in the top, press the button and a few seconds later you have creamy, foamy coffee :) See my Flickr set for a photo.