Cat in a Bag... NBD.

How is it that hippies always find a way to start their little hippie communities? They are so crafty, those hippies! On Saturday night, we went to “Droeffest.” Droeffest is a festival put on by students every year in a housing area called Droevendaal. The entire complex is occupied by students who think it’s 1974. Or that they are Jamaican. There was a main area with a stage for live music, and then each house in the complex hosted a different type of party. Drum n’ bass, trance, relaxing, you name it! One house… well I guess it wasn’t much of a house, more like a horse trailer-turned-student house… put up a screen and played movies. Yay, I love movies! Oh wait, these aren’t movies. These are creepy short stories with no words and eerie music that make me think I’m in a nightmare. Don’t get me wrong, the festival was fun, but I realized that I am so glad to live in a normal house, with a normal housemate, with running water, and a toilet, and a shower, and a real bed, and internet, and… everything else that normal human beings use on a daily basis. Hippie culture is so interesting.

The other day I was out for a run. As I was going through my neighborhood, I came across two kids trying to stuff a cat in a bag. Yes, literally just trying to stuff a cat in a plastic bag. Not in a “Ooh I’ma take you home and throw you in a pot and eatchu!” kind of way, but in a “Weee a kitty! I’m going to take you home and feed you and cuddle with you and love you forever!” kind of way. Except it’s probably not very good to stuff a cat in a bag. Am I right, or am I right??? I didn’t know what to do though, because I can’t speak Dutch. And I’m terrifying looking when I exercise. And I didn’t want to scare the children with my American accent, much like they must’ve been scaring that cat with their whole stuffing it in a bag and whatnot. So I just kept on running. But I hope the cat is okay. I figured if it came down to it, it’ll claw it’s way out and probably attack the children. Cats… what a riot.

Quote of the Day: “Michael Jackson quits baseball!”-My humanitarian aid professor, misreading a headline from an old Time magazine.

My Shadow is Dutch.

And my lip gloss is cool.

Watskeburt?!

Hoi hoi everybody! Welcome to my new blog. I am officially a tech geek. And a Lakeforest mall hoodlum, but that’s a whole ‘nother story. I will try to keep this blog as interesting as the Australia one, but I can’t make any promises seeing as though I am now studying, and no longer being exploited as a gelato scooper, serving illiterate Australians who didn’t know what a cone was. But I’m bound to have some good stories here, as well. This is Europe, after all.

I’ve been in the Netherlands for one month now, and it’s been great. My first week here, we had orientation for school. My orientation at UMD consisted of an extremely boring, one day tour of the campus. My orientation here consisted of 6 days of activities, food, and parties. Our first day, there were different types of games set up around the campus and an opening night party, which was pretty much a big rave tent set up in the middle of the city (God help me, I love Eurotrash). The second day was a scavenger hunt type thing around the city, and the third day was sports day! Sports day was so fun, it was a way to be introduced to all the different sporting associations on campus, and I discovered my new favorite sport, Korfball. Unfortunately I jammed my finger while playing and it ended up looking like a kielbasa sausage for days. My group made me go to the first aid tent and I felt like a complete drama queen when all I got was a pack of ice, but I still had to register with them, and the guy helping me told me that as the day went on, more people came in with miniscule injuries. I assured him I did not want to go and was forced to, but I don’t think he believed me. I AM AMERICAN, GOD DAMMIT! I can handle pain. In fact, I live for it. Just kidding, not sure what either has to do with the other but it sounded good. And I hate pain. Also, they had a giant slip and slide set up, and seriously, WHAT is better than that? Oh yeah, and there were streakers from the rugby team. The next few days were just random activities around the city, like music in the botanic gardens, a global food day, etc. The last day, there was a closing party, where the rave tent continued and a popular band from the Netherlands came to play. They were so much fun! Here is one of their songs:



So everyone knows about the whole bungalow situation. But you know what… it wasn’t so bad. Well, despite the fact that I came up with 4 potential escape plans if and when a crazed murderer broke in. Having no bungmate really freaked me out. But really, the bungalows were nice, and contrary to what they said on their website, you indeed, made contact with humans many times throughout the day. Although we DID see a wild boar on our way home one night, and I was convinced he would be waiting for me outside my bungalow. And I’ve seen LOST, ‘nuff said… But I was only in the bungalows for about a week and a half. I have since moved into an adorable little house close to the city center and my school. I have green carpet in my room and the window looks out into the garden, so it’s like I’m outside all the time! It’s very cozy and there’s plenty of space for visitors (wink wink, nudge nudge).

The town I am in is called Wageningen; it’s really small but also very charming. It’s pretty much a Dutch Star's Hollow. There’s not a WHOLE lot to do here, but everything you need is within biking distance. We are also really close to all the other cities in the Netherlands, but the country is also crazy small so really, everyone in every city is close to every other city. Last week we took a day trip to Arnhem and it was adorable. Cafes everywhere! We also went out here for the first time since arriving, where we got to party with the adolescence of Wageningen. Sike, but apparently the drinking age here is 16, so we were at a bar and there were children all around us. I was all… WHAT the hell are you doing here?? And then I realized that when I dance, I usually do some variation of the running man, and then I was all…WHAT the hell am I doing here??

I have made a few really good friends from all over, and whenever we hang out, it’s like a real life version of Taboo. They describe words that they don’t know in English, and I have to guess what they are talking about. It’s really fun, but also embarrassing when it goes the other way around and I forget a word and they help me. Now that ain’t right.

Also, Dutch people are GIANTS. Seriously, the average height here is 7’3”. Okay, maybe I exaggerated there but I swear, they are not normal. Even the mirrors in all the bathrooms are placed higher than normal, so I can’t even see myself when I go in. If I stand on my tippy toes I can see my eyes. But they always glare back at me angrily like, “Why are you so damn short?” So I’ve just avoided mirrors all together now. I think it’s all the bread and cheese they eat. They’re all tall and skinny. So now I’m eating a lot of bread and cheese, not because I think it’s going to make me tall and skinny, but because it’s delicious. And I leave you with that thought to ponder. Tot ziens! (That’s ‘see you later’ for all you dummies that can’t speak Dutch).

Oh yeah, I guess I should mention school, considering that's the whole reason I'm here… eh, it’s school. Oh, well one thing worth mentioning is the fact that they have re-exams here. You can take an exam over and over again until you pass. Which is great. Because I don't remember how to learn. When I tell people here that in the US, if you fail an exam you take the whole class over, they are appalled. And I am too. Because I’m European now. Oh, I have one professor from the US (Boston), it's for a completely absurd and needless class, but I made it a point to talk to him so that he could hear my American accent and feel a bond with me and favor me over the other students, but he was less than impressed... my plan failed, womp womp.

Quote of the Day: “You know, the things that walk very slowly, and leave the juice behind them, and they have a home on their back?” “Uh… a snail?” “YES!!!!!!”-Elena, my Italian friend, engaging me in a real life game of Taboo.

PS- I’m keeping my eyes peeled for the Dutch Scissor Sisters…