Windmills and Tulips: The true story of a family, the strange people they met and even stranger situations they found themselves in after moving to the Netherlands - Tapa blanda

The search for the Holy Grail was easy compared to my search for a Dutch language course. Finally I tried a dusty little bookshop, I repeated my request for a Dutch language course, the young gum chewing assistant frowned then smiled.. Suddenly she said ‘Dutch. Yeah, that’s the place wiv de windmills and tulips right’? She went off toward the back of the shop made a dive into a very crowded bookcase and after a quick search she came back with a dusty package containing a book and cassette tape that had the title Teach yourself Dutch. This is the story of an ordinary family who decided to emigrate. We packed our belongings, children and the dog and moved to a small town in the northern province of Friesland in the Netherlands. We spoke no Dutch and had no idea of what awaited us, this is the story of how we coped.

Deborah Allen is a Professor at Jefferson College in Missouri, where she teaches microbiology as well as several other courses for students entering allied health careers. Her graduate work was in zoology at the University of Oklahoma and in neurobiology and behavior at Cornell University. She participated in cancer research at the University of Arkansas Medical Center before embarking on a career in publishing, working in acquisitions and development for books in the life sciences. She is now thrilled to be working on the other end of the desk with the Nester team. Away from campus, Deborah reads or listens to her favorite Eve Dallas novels, floats the rivers and listens to folk music in the Ozarks, and fully appreciates the local microbes while visiting Missouri wineries.