First Few Days

So I arrived safely on Monday morning, bags and all! Got off the plane and was met by a sorority sister, Annika, who came in on another flight. SO NICE TO SEE A FAMILIAR FACE! We got all our bags and found the other people in our group and headed off on a bus from Brussels to Maastricht. The drive was about an hour and a half, and it gave us all some bonding time. There are a few kids from Colorado College, Indianna University, one from Yukon, and a whole bunch from Muhlenberg (sp?). We got to the guesthouse (the dorm-like place we are staying), and set off to find our rooms. I am living in a single room, on a hall currently with only one other girl...Annika! It's a bit lonely, but more people are moving in, before school starts. At the end of the hall is a communal kitchen, with two hot plates that have four burners on them, four mini fridges (for 12 people..eeek!), a microwave and some pots and pans! There is also a small living room attached to the kitchen that has a big table with chairs, couches, and a tv. 

The first day we went on a walk and were shown were a mall is that has a market, and many other stores that carry all sorts of things. We wandered around for a while and picked up some things to make sandwiches with and came back to the guesthouse (home sweet home!) O and by the way, the guesthouse is or used to be a hospital...we can't quite figure it out. We think that there are still some things that are going on that relate to medical needs. I saw a sign that appeared to say something about radiology..but you can't ever tell, cause its in DUTCH! Anywho, the doors are the big wide hospital doors throughout some halls, so its interesting!! So we roamed around the city a little bit, but didn't see all too much, since we were all fairly jet lagged. 

The second day, we went on a great walking tour of the city and saw where all the shops are, where to eat, and so much more. Its a great city...I can't wait to explore it more!! However, it is a little confusing sometimes, because all the streets look so much alike! I love the old feeling of the city, all the brick, cobblestone roads, and so much character! We had a lot of orientation as well, and then had free time to do what we want. Annika and I walked around and went to a different market that we had seen during the day. We strolled the aisles and were able to find some things that looked familiar, and many that did not! It will be very fun to find different food and try it all. Last night, a bunch of us hung out and had a really fun time. We were supposed to go to a big party, for all of the returning Dutch students, but we never found it downtown. We ended up walking around downtown and found a kebab stand, so we stopped and had one. The man that was working at the stand was extremely nice and we stayed and talked to him for almost an hour. It is amazing how almost everyone here knows english, but I wish that I knew Dutch, and it would be easier to communicate.

Today, we had more orientation and we all applied for our resident permits, which is the Netherlands equivalent to a Visa. We learned about different things we will be doing throughout the time we are here, such as the study trip that we are taking from Friday to Tuesday. We are going to be traveling to Brussels, Versailles, Reims, and Paris and doing all sorts of site seeing and other activities. Then we had a little bit of a break from the orientation, and a few kids and I went walking around the city and found a place to buy second hand bikes. So I am now the proud owner of a Dutch bike!!! Everyone here rides bikes, and it will be really helpful, especially since the school is almost a 20 minute walk from where we are staying. After buying the bikes, we had a Dutch lesson...wow..what a tough language! We are free for the rest of the day, and have more orientation, and a 3 hour bike tour of Maastricht tomorrow!! Better rest up for that! Toodles, or HOI HOI (bye bye) as the Dutch say!