Hello everyone my name is Eric Tandrian. I am 4th year student in the college of business. I chose to study abroad in the Netherlands at a school call the Hague. The process to study abroad through the COB was sooo smooth that I didn’t even realize I was actually going until I landed in Amsterdam. It seemed like I just signed some papers, got a passport, wrote a couple checks, and I was there on august 24th. When I first arrived in the Netherlands I was shocked. I couldn’t read anything, I didn’t know where to go, I was hauling around all my luggage and getting frustrated. I was a little scared to be honest. When we checked into school they were a little confused about where we were suppose to go because we were late. So we decided to get our dorm room settled first, then catch up with the group later. But it seemed that everyone was on different pages so that did not work out. That night I couldn’t sleep at all. I thought, what did I get myself into? Leaving my friends and family behind to go to a school where I was the new guy. i hated the uncertainties of the situation I was in. I have never been known to be shy or homesick but I wanted to return home after day one.

Now two months into the program I love it. Once I got settled in, learned how the school system worked, wondered around the city, and made new friends I could live here for good. The school here is definitely more aimed toward giving presentations and applying what your lectures teach you. Sometimes its really tough because you may be in a class that is based on classes before it, which you might not have taken. But there is also some positives, the tachesr are really eager to help students if they need it. And also we only have class 5 times a week!

My favorite part of studying abroad is the ability to travel. We invested in the eurorail pass which enables us to use the train systems throughout Europe. Its halfway through the semester and ive already been to Italy, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Sweden and more. Not to mention Amsterdam is less then an hour away. In my opinion this is where you learn the most, not in the classroom. When you go to different palces and talk with locals and see different cultures, this makes you a better, more open minded person. Ive been to places that ive only seen on TV and in magazines. Now I can tell people ive been there and little facts about them as well. Its hard to believe that ive been to the Vatican in rome and the beautiful churches in spain all in a week. My time here is flying by and I hate that. Im tryin to get as much as I can out of it. i am no longer uncertain about why im here in the Netherlands. The homesick side of me was left at the bus station after our first trip to Amsterdam.