Koninginnedag!

Koninginnedag or Queen's day is a pretty big deal in the Netherlands. It's a chance for everyone to celebrate their Dutchness (if they are patriotic of course), wear orange and generally have a massive party for a couple of days! This year was even more significant as Queen Bea abdicated from the throne, passing the crown and kingdom onto her son, Willem-Alexander. So from next year it will no longer be Koninginnedag but Koningsdag, and will be celebrated a few days earlier to mark his birthday on 27th April.

Queen's eve was spent in the centre of Utrecht, busier than we'd ever seen it. For the main event a few of us headed to Loveland festival in Oosterpark in Amsterdam for some Dutch techno, copious amounts of beer and sunshine. Good vibes and good beats were in the air and we all danced in a sunshiney crowd of happy orange people.

The new King and Queen on the big screen

Anna and I soaking up the sun

One night in Brussels

On my way back to Utrecht from the depths of northern France, I ended up missing my Thalys connection from Brussels Midi to Rotterdam, due to the fact that the train from Lille had been delayed. I quickly headed to the Thalys office in the station to see if I could get the next one, only to be told that no more trains were running to Rotterdam that evening and I'd have to wait until 07:50am! Of course, the immediate thing that flashes through your head is a chilly, uncomfortable night on a bench, until some rationality kicks in.

Luckily for me I managed to blag a sofa for the night thanks to the lovely Orla, and I arrived back at Midi just before 8am. Even more luckily, this meant that I was able to meet up with Alex, who was en route to see me straight from big band tour in Bergerac! Long journeys are always better with some company, so that worked out quite well in the end.

Alex's visit was filled with a fabulous trip to Amsterdam, where we drank beer in the sun and had a tasty dinner chez Callum and Hannah (photo to come.. when the disposable is developed). We also went to the Anne Frank Huis whilst there and had a general wander - I always forget how crazy the touristy bits are. Back in Utrecht, a bit of shopping led to some top purchases. Highlights included the end of my eternal search for a decent pair of jeans, and Alex's most excellent shirts. Vibesing.

Amsterdam

The many looks of Alex De Little

  

Beer in Orloff

Awaiting Spring

There's no excuse for the huge amount of time it's been since I last documented my adventures. Starting from when we returned for the second semester, there was a turnover of people as some internationals left and some newbies joined - Flat 253 gained two most delightful Aussie girls, Stranga and Bee (aka Sarah and Bianca) and they are simply a fantastic addition to the group. I've realised that, for some reason, a lot more girls do Erasmus exchanges than boys. Maybe this is only the case in Utrecht? Either way, given that my flat consists of 7 girls, as does the flat next door, we have decided to refer to it as the nunnery.

253 girls: Beth, Mahsa, me, Sarah and Bee (minus Nat and Ana)

The nuns have been busy travelling around different bits of Europe recently; six of us went to Copenhagen a couple of weekends ago, Anna went to Norway, as did a few others, Bee went to Majorca, Nat went to Paris.. the list goes on. Maybe the travelling is an antidote to this relentless winter (although heading north isn't going to help). I just can't wait for some springy warmth!

In February, Catriona, Anna and I went to see Alt-J at Vredenburg Leidsche Rijn. They were just great, especially Gus. We love Gus. The following weekend I had the pleasure of hosting cheeky duo JK and Alex for a long weekend. We all had the best time and they were such great guests. I was sad to see them go and it all felt a bit lonely once they had departed.. All of a sudden March was upon us; the lull of the few days after was lifted by a little day trip to Den Haag with Anna, when the weather was deceptively spring-like. We enjoyed some wandering around the main sights - lots of ugly buildings - and an ice cream at the beach. That weekend we were celebrating Beth's 21st birthday. We had an absolute houseful and headed to Amsterdam for a night at Air.

James and Alex, providers of fun

Ice cream at the beach in Den Haag

Once again, we experienced an efficient (possibly over efficient) Dutch system in the club, where you had to buy a card with money on which you used to pay for lockers and drinks. Needless to say there are a number of us who still have money trapped inside these little pieces of plastic, so we might have to return for another night!

The following week we had a visit from Sean, who stayed with Anna. It's been great having a flow of visitors, other people's included - and Sean was no exception! The three of us made an amazing dinner one evening - homemade fishcakes, roasted butternut squash, and avocado, beetroot and feta salad. Delicious.

Babs and Sean: Crouch Enders in Utrecht

Copenhagen in late March greeted us with beautifully crispy weather. Four of us got the overnight train which was great - we got a wonderful night time view of Cologne and arrived feeling fresh and ready for an adventure. We met Sarah and Beth there as they had got the bus. Highlights included lunch at Pauludan Bogcafe, meandering past the coloured houses with a blue, sunny sky, and the great hostel (Generator - a highly recommended place to stay!).

Bunk fun on the sleeper train to Copenhagen

Crispy!

In the week leading up to the trip to Copenhagen, I had also decided to run for President of the Leeds University Union Big Band, so I spent some of the long train journeys writing my speech. That's what I love about getting the train, you have time to think and reflect in comfort. I spent the Easter weekend following Copenhagen with my Grandma and parents in their sleepy farmhouse in Wamin, Pas-de-Calais. The first day was a bit tense as I was anticipating a phone call from Bergerac to do a question and answer session, but it was all worth it when I found out that I'd been elected. I'm both excited and nervous about taking on the role and it's great to have things lined up for a busy final year in Leeds!

Beautiful artwork in Christiania

A mild winter.. Home and back again

So the festive season is well and truly over - I meant to blog about the Dutch Yuletide celebrations before Christmas but the time slipped away. Some people might have heard of, or experienced the joys of Sinterklaas. Hannah (Leeds buddy studying in Rotterdam) gave a good little account of what you are bombarded with around November and December.. The story is that the Dutch version of Father Christmas (Sinterklaas) arrives here by boat on 5th December from Spain, along with his helpers called Zwarte Piet, where a lot of controversy lies. It was all quite a learning experience to say the least, and there's an interesting Guardian article discussing the issues surrounding it.

I'll let you make your own opinions on this

Before everyone headed back to their respective homelands for Christmas, a few of us went to Antwerp (where it wasn't snowy unfortunately) to experience some Belgian treats and the Christmas market. Just before we left there were two or three days in Utrecht where it was bitterly cold and really quite snowy, but it didn't last for long. Unsurprisingly, whilst in Antwerp we spent a lot of our time eating chips and chocolate, and drinking hot chocolate and delicious Belgian beer, but it was great.

A sprinkling of snow in Utrecht

Quenching the thirst of a hard day's wandering

New Year was the highlight of my Christmas holiday, which was spent with family and lots of lovely friends in Wamin, Northern France. I've spent many a happy time in our little farmhouse away from everything and this was no different. We enjoyed a gripping table-tennis tournament, some absolutely delicious food (including vegan lasagne), a New Year's Eve quiz compiled by Alex and I, and not forgetting the bracing dip in the Channel on New Year's Day! That's one way to cure your NYE headache...

The house in France on New Year's Day

Lovely food, bearable company

A refreshing dip

So after a delightful break, nearly everyone from my apartment is back in Utrecht, getting back into the swing of Erasmus life. Our term finishes in two and a half weeks, after which lots of internationals will be leaving, and a new group arriving for the second half of the academic year!

Rotterdam

Yesterday I made the 40 minute train journey West to Rotterdam - it's easy to forget how close everything is in the Netherlands, and visiting different parts of the country makes me excited for some bicycle tours in the spring and summer months! When we arrived, the five of us hopped on a tram down to the area of Beurs, where we stumbled across a lovely little cafe and enjoyed some delicious and warming soup. With my trusty Lonely Planet guide we had already learnt a bit of history about the city, but only when you actually arrive do you see the stark contrast between Rotterdam and every other place I have been to in the Netherlands. The wide and expansive streets blend in with modern high-rise buildings; it's no wonder that people flock there to study its architecture.

Lovely little cafe

The famous bridge in Rotterdam

Babs and Catriona by the river

Wandering the streets we came across some cute shops selling all those nice things that you want to buy, like finger puppets and lampshades. Highlights of the day included walking along the riverside, laughing at Santa with his prop, and devouring some delicious cakes and coffee. We also found a shop that sold massive shoes (some of them were EU size 55 or bigger), which was quite amusing. Unfortunately I didn't get to see my girl Hannah, but we'll be having a Dutch adventure together soon!

Shoes for giants

Me and Santa, and his toy...

Coffees and scrumptious cakes

Bicycle bicycle, autumn splendour

Whoops... It has taken me far too long to get around to a second blog. But from this point I intend to write more regularly. So, I really like bicycles. I think I was definitely swayed towards studying in the Netherlands over a lot of other countries because of the cycling culture, and it's living up to its expectations in that way. I love the fact that anyone, no matter what their age, occupation or outfit choice, can be seen upon their two wheeler (sometimes three if it has a Christiania bike-style box at the front) . There are a few funny things you tend to see, and a few bits of etiquette you quickly learn when cycling around... Helmets are rarely seen, you can fit at least three people on each bike, in various formations, and make sure you don't walk on the cycle paths!

The sophisticated system of bike networks in Dutch cities means that it makes complete sense for it to be the chosen mode of transport for most journeys. It's quite novel to experience heavy bike traffic and weave your way along the canals with other hoards of cyclists. Navigating your way on foot or bike takes some getting used to though - there's probably more risk of getting into a collision with a bike than with a car!

Me on my bike, in warmer times

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So since I last wrote a blog, autumn has made its presence felt. At this moment there is the thickest fog outside my window, which looks like we could be in a high-altitude ski resort. The temperatures have dropped, the sun hides away a lot of the time, and the trees are showing their vibrant autumnal colours.

Mahsa's autumnal photos

We've just started a new "block" of courses at uni, and before that I had a trip back to London/Sheffield/Leeds, which quenched my thirst for some hills. Turns out that cycling here significantly reduces your ability to cycle with any sort of gradient - my thighs definitely got a good workout with the journeys back home! It was nice to have a change of scene for a few days, and I think having a break put a bit of energy back into things here in Utrecht.

Last Thursday a few of us went for some delicious Tapas in the cellars underneath Winkel van Sinkel for my flatmate Natalie's birthday, and we had a party on Friday. Safe to say it was a good one, but the state of the flat afterwards left a lot to be desired. Thankfully its back to a liveable state now. The day after the party I went to Efteling theme park along with my Californian gals Mahsa and Katelyn, which was a great day out despite the freezing temperatures. One of the highlights of the day was hanging out with a peacock by a big fire. The peacock seemed to enjoy popcorn...

Nat's party - guess the theme..

Efteling

Katelyn's innovative solution to cold feet

Just your average peacock by the fire

Hallo!

It seems a bit late to start a blog, as I've now been living in Utrecht for over six weeks... better late than never! The building I'm living in is called Cambridgelaan, which is student accommodation in De Uithof, the Utrecht University campus on the east of Utrecht. It's surrounded by sheep, fields and forests, and its a 20 minute cycle into town. The building that we live in is funny, here's a picture (I live in one of the bridges, suspended 14 floors above nothing). I'm ok with the height now, but it is still quite disconcerting when the whole flat wobbles in the wind.

The view of Anna and Catriona's flat from my bridge to theirs!

The first six weeks have whizzed by. I've met some great people from all over the world, explored the city and got lost many times. Anna (school and Leeds buddy) is living in the flat next door and provides me with much needed Leeds chat, as well as general entertainment and baking. People have been travelling quite a bit to various European cities, but I've generally stayed around here apart from making a trip to Gouda with Anna a few weekends ago. I'd like to visit some other cities but haven't felt the urge to rush around just yet.

Anna on the train to Gouda

Cheese! 

Beautiful canals in Gouda

Apart from getting acquainted with the local area, we were thrown straight into uni at the beginning of September. The pace is very different from Leeds; there is a much more consistent workload. So far I think I've written about 7 or 8 essays, two more to go plus an exam before the end of October! We've then got a week break before the next block of courses - I'm making a cheeky trip back to Leeds to catch up with friends and hopefully walk up a few hills.

My parents paid me a quick visit the weekend before last, before they went on their cycling trip in other parts of the Netherlands. We had a great time climbing the famous Dom tower in the centre of town, where you can see Amsterdam and Rotterdam on a clear day! I had a little rendezvous with James when he passed through on his way from Prague to Rotterdam, and was also visited by the lovely Alex for a few days. Overall I'm having a great time, despite missing mountainous terrain, Cadbury's chocolate and cheddar cheese!

JK in Utrecht!

A lovely walk close to Cambridgelaan

Alex + hot choc + cream