Lachlan shepherded us onto a local bus to Aalst, the small town just outside Eindhoven where he and Melde live. Their apartment is in one of the main shopping centers so ducking out for last minute supplies is very easy.
That evening we walked about 20 minutes to the neighboring town of Waalre for a superb dinner at a lovely restaurant there. We didn't get there till 8pm (which is when many Spanish restaurants open). In he Netherlands this is considered late- most people eat at around 6pm. Consequently no menus were offered and we were told which meal options could be available. No matter as they were all delicious- lots of seafood which I adore. The walk back home was useful to help the digestive process!
Aalst and Waalre are what we think of as typically Dutch-very neat and clean and lots of cyclists. And of course, many English speakers. Which means we can be very lazy- unfortunately.
The next day we went in to Eindhoven where Lachlan works. Eindhoven does not have an old historic Centre or quarter and is really a small contemporary city. Phillips was once the major employer here and still seems to be an influential presence in some ways. There is a technology focus apparent through the university and also some precincts which are encouraging innovation.
Our overall impression was of an attractive and very live-able city which looks to be economically comfortable.
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