Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Update

So, you all probably know I am now back in the US after what I think was my most educational and fun semester of my college career. Amsterdam and Holland in general was a blast. I enjoyed it so much that I am now working on trying to get back there when I graduate. I will post more updates here when significant steps have been taken.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Emporium Festival

So two weekends ago I went to Emporium Festival. I went with Lieselot and a group of friends that included Sara, Iris, Ton, Anneke, Janine. We all had a great time. The weather was fantastic and quite warm. The Festival had 5 or 6 stages all playing various styles of electronic music. It was great! The festival started at noon and lasted until midnight. We wandered between a couple of the stages that featured many of the DJ's we like to listen too. The event was sold out due to the amazing weather so there were around 10,000 people or so attending. Lieselot and I even met up with Inger who was an exchange student at Sandpoint High School the same time Lieselot was in Coeur d'Alene. It was great to see her! Below are a few of the pictures.


The Group - Iris, Sara, Lies. Anneke, and two random people who walked through our previous picture



Lies and Gijs at the Lake Titicaca Stage



The Main Stage (Called the Mask Stage) from across the lake


Iris and Lies



Lies and I (notice the sunburned faces)

Monday, May 18, 2009

My new suits!

I almost forgot to post the pictures of my new suits that I took to Geneva. I love them!


Ebace - Geneva, Switzerland

This past week I attended EBACE (European Business Aviation Convention and Expo) in Geneva, Switzerland. I had a great time. I learned a lot at the seminars and made many valuable contacts with potential employers. The convention featured about 65 static displayed aircraft, 400+ business booths, and 11,000 attendees. It was busy and exciting.

I did also manage to get out and explore a bit of Geneva too. I visited the botanical gardens and strolled through the downtown area. It was an enjoyable week for sure.


The Dassault Booth



The Static Display Ramp #1


The Static Display Ramp #2


The Static Display Ramp #3


The Static Display Ramp #4

Dag van het Levenslied

Alright I finally got a cord to upload pictures so I will begin with the evening before I went to Geneva which was May 10th.

May 10th is also Mothers day in Holland (moeders dag.) In Nijmegen they have a festival called Dag van het Levenslied. This a song festival for a certain type of Dutch song that usually features mothers. It is a bit of a tongue in cheek kind of festival as the songs are a bit ridiculous and the people who sing them also.

Here are some pictures.

Gijs and Gemma all dressed up!



Some of the performers.



More performers.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Wow

So it took me way too long to post on here again... so sorry everyone, but I am back.

I have spent the last few weeks just enjoying myself, going to class, and relaxing in the beautiful weather.

I have spent a lot of time in Nijmegen with Lieselot's family as I only have 2 classes a week. I often am in Nijmegen for a day before Lies arrives and a day after she goes back to Maastricht. I've particularly enjoyed hanging out with Gijs and Heleen when Lies has been gone.

Unfortunately I was not able to get into a dutch class. I am, however, stepping up my study and am understanding more and more every day. Now it's just a matter of speaking it.

This week is Koninginnedag which is Queensday, a big celebration in all of Holland. Lieselot, Heleen, and Gijs are all coming to Amsterdam to celebrate.

This past weekend I bought 2 suits for my trip to Geneva. I am very excited to pick them up friday after they are done being altered. Check back at the end of the week to see pictures of them.

Again, sorry for the long wait for a new post.

The Universiteit Bibliotheek (UB for short this is the Library)



This canal boat with bikers is how DHL delivers packages in a large part or Amsterdam.



This is a tram coming up Leidsestraat, a busy shopping.



The first brick building (straight in front of the Mini Cooper) is Paradiso, one of the most popular clubs in Amsterdam. Very touristy, not my favorite.



This is the bike garage where I park my bike.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

The Last 2 Weeks

So I have slipped into a routine here in Amsterdam. Going to school, writing papers and hanging out. I try not to get too stressed out since school here in Holland is a bit harder than at Rocky.

This past weekend I traveled to Nijmegen. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle of Amsterdam. We celebrated Ferry's birthday on Saturday evening (Ferry is a friend of Lieselot's parents as well as a former babysitter.) It was an enjoyable evening for sure.

This afternoon I took my camera with me when I walked to the store and took some pictures of my neighborhood since I haven't done that yet.


A few of the apartment buildings on my way to the store.



This is a theater.




Osdorp Plein - A shopping center.




This is a bike path looking towards the center of Amsterdam (north)





This is the area in front of my building. My building is on the left. Straight ahead is the tram stop called Louis Davidstraat.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Busy Busy

This past week or so has been crazy busy. I came down with a cold in the middle of last week. I still traveled to Maastricht to see Lieselot's new apartment. It is very nice but not for taller people as it is only 183cm tall. I have to be careful not to stand up too quickly or else I will hit my head.

I spent most of this week just relaxing getting over my cold. It seems that all of Holland is sick. Lies came down with the same cold a few days after I did and many of my friends here in Amsterdam have also been sick.

I have been riding my bike into town when I have class or when I go out. It's about a 4 mile trip one way. There have been several days when I have biked into town twice for a grand total of 16 miles!

I went out on thursday evening with Colleen a girl who lives just down the hall from me. She goes to school at MSU in Bozeman and grew up in Spokane. What a small world! We went to a club on Rembrandt Plein called Studio 80. It was a lot of fun. Great music and a great atmosphere.

Lieselot came up to Amsterdam yesterday evening and we went out to an improv comedy show at Boom Chicago with a group of about 10 of my friends from my introduction weekend. It was quite funny and we plan on returning sometime later on.

Today we are going to Nijmegen to celebrate Gijs' birthday. It should be a good time.

Anyways, I am going to try and take more photos this week and put the up on the internet for everyone.

http://www.studio-80.nl/
http://www.boomchicago.nl/en/


This is a picture of a canal (gracht) that I ride along on my way to school.


These are fliers from the party I went to at Studio 80


Monday, February 9, 2009

School Has Started!

Hello again!

Sorry it has been a while since I last blogged. A lot has happened in the last week or so.

I started classes at UvA on February 2 so I am now into my second week. My first course is called From Film-Directors to Film-Authors. We are studying and discussing what defines a film author and how a film director can become a film author. It is a very interesting class but it is also very difficult. It is 4 hours long on Monday afternoons. Each week we have to write a paper either on the history and theory of a that weeks time period or on a film director/author of the time period. It only lasts until March 16 so I won't get too burned out.

My other class that I have now is called Narratives in Literature and Film. It is kind of a cross between a film class and an literature class as the name says. We will read 3 books/short stories. One by Hemingway, one by Henry James, and the last is the graphic novel Watchmen (the movie is coming out soon.) This class lasts the entire semester.

I have one more class but it doesn't start until March.

I came down with a cold last Friday and despite this I traveled to Maastricht to visit Lieselot and to see her new apartment in the city. Her room is very nice and is in a relatively quiet part of town.

Anyways, this week I will take my camera through Amsterdam and take some pictures to show you the town I'm living in. (I had forgotten my camera in Nijmegen last week after Lieselot's Grandfathers birthday party.)

Here are a few pictures that I took before the birthday party.

The Bar Cat at a cafe down the street from where I have classes. He's there to keep the rodent population down.


Just another Amsterdam Canal


The Begijnhof - A place for retired spiritual people to live. It is a beautiful and very quiet place in the heart of Amsterdam.


The Queen's Palace (She doesn't actually live there) on Dam Square.

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Intro with ISN

So I should really be going to bed right now because I am exhausted from walking around the last several days but I thought I'd throw up a blog since it may be a few days before I am able to do so again.

Tomorrow is the last day of my introduction here in Amsterdam. It has been a whirlwind experience but a great one at that. My intro group consists of 14 other people and myself. I will name them and their countries so I can talk about them in the future without needing further explanation. There are two girls from Belgium (the Flemish speaking areas) named Nathalie and Marilyn. A french guy named Richard, a Brazilian girl named Juliana, a German girl named Eva, a British girl named Abbie, a spanish guy (Speaks Catalan) named Pol, a Turkish girl named Ceren, a girl from Singapore named Bevelin, two Canadian girls named Jen and Cathy, our two Dutch "coaches" Jasmijn and Marte who come from Gouda (yes, where the cheese is from), one other American named Lix and myself.

We all get along very well and we have been having a great time together. It is very interesting how we all interact together being from so many different cultures and countries. We all have great fun together. I suspect we will continue to meet up occasionally during the semester to go clubbing or just sit at a nice bar (Amsterdam has so many) and just enjoy a nice cold beer.

So far we have done some typical get to know you activities that we do in the US but we also have participated in some typical Dutch "get to know you activities." Last night we attended two borrels which are informal drinks at a bar. One was put on by the housing corporation De Key that provides most of us exchange students with a room. I was held at the club Odeon and there was an open bar that was taken full advantage of. The second one we went to immediately after the first was at the Heffer which is where the International Student Network - Amsterdam (ISN) typically has their weekly borrels. It was crowded at first but eventually became more comfortable. The borrels are held every Tuesday so I am sure you will hear more about them in the future. Several of us went to another bar for an hour or so before deciding to hit the hay. I caught the night bus (for the first time) from centraal station to my apartment without any problems.

This morning we went on a walking tour through the city. This was awesome. I suggest anyone traveling to Amsterdam (A'dam) to take one of these free walking tours that start at the famous Dam Square.

Next we had some dutch pannenkoeken (pancakes) with bacon in them. After this we went on a tour of the Amsterdam Historisch Museum. This is a great museum housed in a former orphanage that was in operation from the 1500's until 1975. I greatly enjoyed this museum and I plan on returning when I have more time to spend wandering and learning.

Tomorrow we are playing sports and in the evening will be the final party at Odeon.
Sunday I will be traveling back to Nijmegen relatively early in the morning and then hitching a ride with Gemma to the birthday celebration of Lieselot's grandfather in Venray.

Last but not least some pictures.

Marte (Dutch), Me, Jen (Canadian), Cathy (Canadian), and Liz (American)

The Dutch "coaches" dancing on the bar at De Heffer.

Walking at night along a canal on our way to a borrel. I know it's blurry but I like the "mood" of the picture.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Amsterdam!

The day is finally here. I traveled to Amsterdam last night and stayed at Iris' house so I could get up early to be at an appointment this morning (Iris is a friend of Lieselot's.) At 10 I went to the international student coordinator's office to fill out paperwork for my Residence Permit as well as to set up an appointment and get the necessary introduction letter from the school to a bank so I could open a student bank account. After that meeting I walked to the bank and promptly opened an account. I then went and spent an hour filling out more paperwork to get the keys to my apartment but also to register with the city government and get a SOFI number (their version of a SS Number.) I then returned to Iris' place to retrieve my luggage then I made my way to my new apartment in the burrow of Slotervaart. The room is larger than I expected which is nice and also has internet and cable TV provided.

My introduction put on by the International Student Network - Amsterdam begins tomorrow and continues through Saturday night. I will post pictures soon.

I am now off to bed. I am tired and I need to get up early.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

My day with Gijs



So yesterday Lieselot had to work from 2:45 in the afternoon until about 3 in the morning. I didn't really have anything planned for the day. So Gijs invited me to go to a bar with his soccer team. What started as a trip to the bar turned into a 14.5 hour adventure that ended at a club in Nijmegen called Doornroosje. The music and atmosphere was amazing. Here are pictures and videos.



Thursday, January 15, 2009

Skating/Chilling


Blaauwe Hand - Up the stairs to the right is the church called Sint Stevenskerk.



Biking Back From Ice Skating Thursday



De Ooij



Jules and I



Hannah, Jules, and Leentje




It took me a little longer to get this posted than I wanted but here it is anyways.

Last week I stayed in Nijmegen instead of traveling down to Maastricht with Lieselot. It's the end of her semester so she is busy with projects and lots of homework. During the week I just relaxed and hung out with Heleen (aka Leen, Leentje), Gemma, and Gijs (Lieselot's sister, mom, and brother, repectively.)

Ferry, a longtime friend and former babysitter of Lieselot and her siblings came over for dinner last monday.

Tuesday Hannah (a family friend from near Maastricht who lives with Gemma and goes to Radboud University in Nijmegen), a friend of Hannah's named Jules, Leentje and I rode our bikes to a small lake called the Ooij which had frozen over in the cold weather to go ice skating. It was very fun. The first time I have skated on natural ice.

We also went skating thursday afternoon. Thursday evening Gemma, Leentje, Floortje (a friend of Leen's) and I went to the Blauwe Hand which is a very nice bar. I sampled several of the quality beers they had on tap including two local beers brewed in Nijmegen's brewery De Hemel(http://www.brouwerijdehemel.nl/ned/product.htm). I had a Tiep Top and Nieuw Ligt from De Hemel. I had 2 Chimay's and a Grand Prestige made by Hertog Jan (http://www.hertogjan.nl/bier_grandprestige.html). Translater http://translate.google.com/translate_t?sl=nl#

Wednesday I had dinner with Guus (Lieselot's dad) and Leentje at Guus' place. It was very nice.

Friday evening Lieselot returned to Nijmegen from Maastricht.

We all just hung out over the weekend. Lies and I did some shopping. On sunday evening we headed down to Maastricht.

Last night Lies and I went to dinner in town and Lies went and viewed an apartment the she was interested in (she was offered the apartment and accepted.) While she was doing that I hung out at the Shamrock. An Irish bar down the street from where Lieselot was. Nice atmosphere and good beer. http://www.cafeshamrock.nl/home.htm

We are heading back to Nijmegen tomorrow and will be visiting Robb (our former exchange student) at his home in Tiel.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Oude Nieuw (New Years)





Oude Nieuw was leuk!! (New Years was cool!!)

We did some grocery shopping in the early afternoon for the evening. Lieselot and I went to her dad's place for about an hour before we rode our bikes to Marij's house (Marij is a friend of Gemma, Lieselot's Mom.) We went to Marij's last year for Oude Nieuw also. Marij's 3 sons, Joes, Niels, and Rens were there as well. We did gourmetten which is a tradition for their families. Everyone has a small pan and there are many different types of meats and vegetables to choose from and each person cooks what they want. It is very good.

We finished eating around 9pm and Lieselot's friend Anneke and her boyfriend Ton arrived around 10. At about 11:30 Niels and Lieselot started to make Olliebollen which are tradtional New Years donuts that the dutch make. They have raisins in them and are sprinkled with powdered sugar.

At midnight we toasted with champagne then everyone gave the tradition 3 cheek kisses to one another (men shake hands with each other) and then we all went outside to wish the neighbors Gelukkig Nieuw Jaar! (Happy New Year) and to shoot off fireworks.

At 12:45 Lieselot, Anneke, Ton, and I went to Anneke's brother's girlfriends house which was just around the corner. We visited for about 45 minutes or so and then we went back to Marij's to get ready to go to Discotheek Inferno for their new years party.

We got to Inferno at about 2am and we met a group of Lieselot's friends. We met Janine, Piet, Sara, Iris, and Gabi out front and went in. We had a great time. The music was good and it wasn't too crowded. We left the club at around 6:15 or 6:30am and rode our bikes back to Lieselot's house. We had a bite to eat before heading to bed.

In all we had a great time.