Hey everyone! There’s only a few days left until my first month is the Netherlands comes to a close, and I have to say, the time has flown by. To be honest, I don’t know where to start. Schipol airport is absolutely amazing. Once you leave the boarding area you enter into this huge foyer that is lined with stores and restaurants, and is filled by crowds of people from all over the world. Luckily I met a very nice woman from Cyprus who helped me get a train ticket and find the correct platform. Even then, I still would have gotten on the wrong train if it hadn’t been for the help of some friendly locals (what Albin said in an earlier post is true, the Dutch have been extremely helpful). Unfortunately I got in on Sunday due to a flight delay and the housing office was closed. The upside is that I got to stay in a hostel that was situated on one the cities canals.

The next day I got situated in my apartment and met my roommate. Her name is Jin, she’s from South Korea and is completely awesome. She’s been showing me around the city and and tonight, she, Maddy, and I are going to a well-known local bar called The Fiddler.

It feels like we only just started going to class but in reality we just finished our third week. There are a lot of in-class assignments and group projects that we have to do, as well as the final exam that takes up the majority of our grade. I really like most of the classes that I’m taking and my teachers make their subjects very interesting. And speaking of school, the building that is De Haag Hogeschool is so cool! The building is made up of four different parts: the Ovaal, Slinger, Strip, and Rugzak. All of our classes are held in these four parts and there are a lot of places you can sit down and chat with your friends or study.

So far Maddy and I have traveled to Amsterdam, Haarlem, and Antwerp, Belguim. This upcoming weekend we are planning on going to Disneyland, Paris. Maddy and I are both very excited and are looking forward to going on the rides and taking pictures with the Disney princesses. And a few weeks from now we (the UofL group) and a bunch of other exchange students are going to Oktoberfest for a few days.

Since everyone has been providing small details that they’ve noticed, I’ll add my own in here. You have got to watch the bikers. The cars in this country will politely stop for you and wave you across the road while the bikers will yell at you if you are in their way and almost run you over. I haven’t seen a single car accident while I’ve been here but I have seen several bike collisions. It’s very different from the states. Another thing is that Belgium has delicious food. I think the main thing Maddy and I did while we were in Antwerp was eat. I mean, yeah we walked around and saw all of the cool sights, but we mostly ate. Belgian waffles, Belgian fries, gelato, donuts, and the most delicious chicken I’ve ever eaten for dinner. If you go to Belgium, make sure you have a good food budget.

I think I’ll end this post here. I’ll be back soon though to tell you more about our trip!