After meeting Kelly at the Philadelphia Airport, we said goodbye to family and headed to our flight. In the process of checking our bags, we met another guy and his friend who are in the same program as us. It turned out there were more than a half dozen IES participants on our flight.
After a smooth 8 hour, overnight flight we descended into Amsterdam over canals, quaint towns, windmills, and acre upon acre of fields waiting for Spring to arrive.
We found our pre-arranged taxi service and were dropped off at our new home for the next five months, Fuenen Park. (pictured below, photo not taken by me).
While the building is cool, the rooms are nothing special. Two cots that look like they belong in a hospital, white stucco walls, a bathroom, two tables/desks, a couple chairs, and a kitchenette with a sink, mini-fridge, cupboards, and stove top (no oven unfortunately). Thankfully there were some pots, pans, cups, and utensils that were left by the last residents. Below is the view from Stefan's (my roommate) and my room. The windmill is apparently now a brewery. Definitely planning on checking it out!
We are conveniently about 10 minutes from Centraal Amsterdam via bus, bike, or tram.
After settling in we were given a brief walking tour of our immediate surroundings, then set loose to pick up some basic groceries and necessities. In the evening we regrouped and had our first orientation meeting at the IES headquarters which was followed by a hearty Dutch dinner consisting of various salads, mashed potatoes mixed with vegetables and salmon, and some kind of sausage. It was quite good. After dinner, we headed back to our building and went out to explore our immediate surroundings which included stopping in at a local bar for a couple delicious, but relatively cheap beers. After having been awake for almost 48 hours straight, we decided to call it a night and hit the beds.
On Thursday we had two more orientation sessions, Health and Safety and Practical info, followed by lunch. We were then set loose to get cellphones and bikes. I will post a picture of mine as soon as I get a chance to take a picture of it. Currently my camera is out of batteries and my charger is MIA.
For dinner Kelly, Stefan and myself got dinner at a lovely little restaurant about a 5 minute walk away called Langendijk. Kelly ordered a beer that was described on the menue as "sexy girly beer from red fruit" (pictured below). It was actually quite delicious.
Walking or biking around Amsterdam is no joke. It will take a bit to get used to having to look both ways three times while crossing a street. Once to make sure you aren't about to get nailed by a bike, once across the bike lane (s), a second time to make sure you won't get squashed by a tram, and a third time to make sure no cars are going to plow you over. Biking actually isn't too bad. While there are the occasional maniac bikers, it seems most people on bikes aren't in a huge rush which makes navigating the city a little easier.
Today we had two more orientation meetings followed by a boat tour of the city. Here is some information about the Netherlands and Amsterdam for those of you who aren't very familiar with the country and city:
- The Netherlands is roughly the size of one and a half New Jerseys
- 26% of the land is reclaimed from the sea or lakes
- 18% of the whole area of the country is made up of water
- The city is composed of 90 islands
- There are over 60 miles of canals running through the city
After the boat tour, we did some more shopping for basic things and afterward came back to cook our first meal in our apartments. Now to go explore City Centraal!
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