Hello everyone!!! I arrived in the Netherlands last Monday. It is hard to believe that I have only been here for 10 days-we have done so much already and the semester is just beginning. Classes didn’t start until this Monday, so it was nice to have a whole week off and get accommodated to the city of Den Haag (the Hague). The city is a little smaller than Louisville, but in my opinion Den Haag is much nicer, cleaner, and safer. They have everything to do here. We have already gone to the beach twice (swimming in the North Sea is quite cold), went to a Mini-Netherlands exhibit, been to a couple of dance clubs, been to some parties for international students, etc.

We had orientation on Thursday and Friday. On Thursday our professors took us around the city and bought us lunch and dinner (the only thing better than a good meal is a free meal). Also, as part of our orientation, a large group of IBMS (the business program) exchange students went up to Amsterdam for the day on Saturday. The city is actually a lot nicer than people make it out to be, although there are some questionable parts of town. There were so many people there; everywhere you look, you see thousands of people walking around. They have a lot of festivals and marketplaces they you can go hang out in for however long you want. Although the city is so busy, the mentality of the people is to be relaxed and chilled out. They came to Amsterdam to have a good time, and Amsterdam is a good city to enjoy yourself.

Classes started Monday, and to be quite honest, the scheduling process is kind of crazy. Times can change without notice, and so you have to adjust your schedule several times. I have already made changes to my schedule three times, but at this point in time, I am satisfied with my classes and the times that I take them. The best part is that I do not have Thursday or Friday classes (at least for the first couple of weeks). I was hoping to travel somewhere this weekend for a few days, but I think instead we are going back to Amsterdam to celebrate my birthday. I would like to take a 3 day trip to Belgium or Germany or wherever next weekend.

So far, I have no regrets about studying at the Hague. This already has been a great experience, and I know that the next four months will even be better. I especially cannot wait to get out and travel to as many places in Europe as possible. I have already met people from probably 20 countries varying from Thailand to Romania to France. It is so cool to meet all these people from all over the world and to learn about their culture.

Thanks for reading,

Josh Heeman