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Years ago, visiting friends was easy: just bike to their room and you're there. Most of my friends moved out of town, so visiting them is not so easy anymore. If they don't live nearby, it's also very expensive if you have to travel by train. Today I visited friends who leave nearby, about 15 kilometers/10 miles from Groningen, it takes only 10-15 minutes to get there by train. It's also fairly cheap and I just LOVE to go there. Both my friends are physicians and work full time and they have two kids (they are the cutest kids around!), so it's not always possible to visit them, it has to fit in everyone's schedule.
Today I had my chance! 
I biked to the railway station and enjoyed a coffee with tiramisu cake first in the old waiting room for 1st class passengers, it's a coffee bar now. I thought I had deserved it. After that I had to catch my eastbound train. My friend fetched my from the station by car, that was very relaxing. Otherwise I had to walk for nearly 20 minutes to get at their place. We had Chinese food, a lot of it. Too much for three persons. But it tasted sooo good! I felt like I was on a holiday and being spoiled.
We talked about a lot of things, about medicine and brains, of course 
I got a book by Bill Bryson: "A Short History of Nearly Everything". My friend's wife read some short pieces of it aloud. I think it's a brilliant book, can't hardly wait to read it. They want to buy it in Dutch, but as I am accustomed to read in English, they gave the English copy to me. Isn't that sweet? I hope there will be a lot sunny days ahead, so I will be able to sit outside and read it in the sun. Or go out and read it in the public park.
Since they know about my difficult financial situation as a student, they gave me Chinese food that was left, a cute bag to transport it, and fair trade coffee and not-so-fair-trade, but delicious chocolate to take home. Coffee can be quite expensive and I'm low on coffee, so it was so very nice of them to do that. I made tiny portions of the food and put it in the freezer. I can survive at least a week on it.
I'm very grateful that God gave those great people to me as friends. All my friends are great, it's so amazing to experience God's grace this way. I know they will not let me down no matter what.
Posted under Daily Life
This post was written by Inge on July 18, 2007
I am so glad that you had a chance to get away and to relax and see good friends. I feel that being with good friends is just as good as a yoga class. You get all the sweetness and recognition of how truly amazing life is and how much love there is, which I feel you got
I love to hear reflections of beauty and true recognition of God’s grace in the everyday.
Thanks for a wonderful posting Inge!
So incredible to be able to share in this way and see your beautiful country