I suppose it is now officially the 5th day I have been in the land of orange (called such due to the country's loyalty to founding father Willem of Orange, the ancestor to the Dutch Royal Family).
The first two days were tough, but exhilarating. After suffering on an 11 hour flight at the hands, feet, and shouts of a family with many young children who maintained no understanding of common airplane etiquette, I made it to Amsterdam airport.
After a night in the hostel, I met up with other UC students at the train station and we all went to our temporary housing. The UCU campus (I am attending UU and will be moving to the city center soon) is beautiful with it's greenery and brick buildings. It used to be a military barracks, but has the feel of a cheery boarding school.
The Dutch people I have talked to so far - mostly coffee servers and helpful civilians in grocery stores - are so kind and amicable. I can easily ask for help pronouncing a word or translating a menu into English, and I haven't had a bad experience yet. Our language class began this morning though, and unfortunately I do not have high hopes for my Dutch. Some of the sounds are so foreign to my normal and concise English consonants, but I look forward to integrating my language skills further. The Dutch have done it, and so will I! (94% of Dutch people can speak at least simple to moderate English).
The first two days were tough, but exhilarating. After suffering on an 11 hour flight at the hands, feet, and shouts of a family with many young children who maintained no understanding of common airplane etiquette, I made it to Amsterdam airport.
After a night in the hostel, I met up with other UC students at the train station and we all went to our temporary housing. The UCU campus (I am attending UU and will be moving to the city center soon) is beautiful with it's greenery and brick buildings. It used to be a military barracks, but has the feel of a cheery boarding school.
The Dutch people I have talked to so far - mostly coffee servers and helpful civilians in grocery stores - are so kind and amicable. I can easily ask for help pronouncing a word or translating a menu into English, and I haven't had a bad experience yet. Our language class began this morning though, and unfortunately I do not have high hopes for my Dutch. Some of the sounds are so foreign to my normal and concise English consonants, but I look forward to integrating my language skills further. The Dutch have done it, and so will I! (94% of Dutch people can speak at least simple to moderate English).
