About the Blog :
The blog is a collection of thoughts of life in the Netherlands and Dutch culture and society from a Gibraltarian point of view. I occasionally use the blog to voice my displeasure with the NS, post a restaurant review or two, share tips for fun days out, post photos of my cats Juno and Rico, or share my thoughts about life, the universe and pretty much anything in between.
About the Name of the Blog :
Analects of Confusion is a play on the name of the ancient Chinese text, the Analects of Confucius. I studied for a BA (Hons) in Modern Chinese Studies so the blog title is a nod to my love for all things Chinese and my general inadequacy to make sense of the Netherlands and its people. It’s very unlikely that hundreds of years from now people will be quoting my words of wisdom so don’t take anything I say too seriously.
About Me :
Here are a few facts about me…in bullet point form. 😉
- Originally from Gibraltar but now living in the Netherlands with my Dutch partner Sander and two adorable cats (Rico and Juno).
- Studied for a BA (Hons) in Modern Chinese Studies at Leeds University and an MA in Conflict Resolution at Lancaster University.
- Previously lived in the UK for 5 years (non-consecutive), China (1 year) and Taiwan (1 year).
- Currently working for a digital TV and media services provider in Amsterdam.
- Previous jobs include a year’s stint as a trainee librarian and a 2-year stint as a freelance Chinese>English translator.
- Can speak several languages to varying degrees of fluency, including Spanish, French, Mandarin and Dutch, and can manage basic conversations in Italian and Japanese.
Here’s a short list of some of my interests and hobbies for anyone who’s interested :
- Languages and linguistics.
- Travel.
- Food and cooking, especially Asian cuisines.
- Archaeology, Egyptology and ancient history.
- Chinese and Japanese traditional culture.
- Astronomy.
- Animals and wildlife.
- Blogging.
- Spending endless hours online and/or playing video games.
Analects of Confusion 
Hi Kelly!
I hope you don’t mind my leaving this here – I was unable to find an email address. I just wanted to write a quick note to thank you for your comments on Clogs and Tulips: An American in Holland. Your experience, opinions, input, and friendship are greatly appreciated by both myself and other readers to the blog. Your work on your own blog Analects of Confusion is also invaluable. Thank you for your contributions! See you around the blogosphere!
:0) Tiffany Jansen
Clogs and Tulips: An American in Holland
http://clogsandtulips.blogspot.com
You’re very welcome, Tiffany. 🙂
I haven’t been writing much lately due to chronic writer’s block and a crazy workload at work (why, oh why, do the Dutch cram a year’s worth of bank holidays into one month??). After spending the better part of my day staring at a screen, I find I have little motivation or energy for updating my blog. It’s a good thing that there are plenty of other expat bloggers to fill the void. If people had to depend on my advice and insight to get them through the day, they’d be in deep trouble. 🙂
Hello Kelly,
I really enjoyed your aspiring polyglot blog and appreciate all information that was given to us by you from there. I am new to your expat blog and so far enjoying it pretty well. I’m sorry to ask but I was unable to locate the answer to this question from your current posts. I wanted to ask you about your story on how you’ve became an Expat in the Netherlands. Was the process looking for work very hard? What about cost of living compared to where you were living before? What steps or guides would you recommend for others who have the same passion of living as an expat in NL? Sorry for these questions.Thank you so much in advance
Hi Felipe,
I’m glad you enjoyed reading my posts over at Aspiring Polyglot. I keep toying with the idea of reviving it but I struggle to come up with topics to write about. Perhaps I’ll just leave it as it is and come back to it when inspiration hits me. 😉
You’ve asked some good questions and I’d be happy to share my knowledge and experiences of moving to the Netherlands. I’ll make a note of your questions and will answer them on this blog in the coming weeks.
Hey Kelly!
I just noticed you did your MA in Conflict Resolution! So exciting – thats the path Im hoping to take after I finish my BA in International Studies. How was the program there? Did you look into any other schools/prgrams before choosing Lancaster?
Hi Ella,
The program was quite broad and covered topics ranging from conflict resolution, diplomacy, international relations and (my least favourite course) peace studies. I don’t know if the program has changed since I graduated 6 years ago so I’d recommend checking the program’s website. I can see that they’ve added a few new courses! If you need any information regarding student accommodation or want to know more about Lancaster itself, just let me know! 🙂