Welcome to Groningen

Hey people!

I’m back. :D

It’s been a long two weeks of travel, culture shock, and adventure. Feels good to have wifi and a comfy writing corner from which to think about the events of the past while. I’m currently flopped on the couch in my adorable new apartment. It’s an attic room, and while you might immediately imagine a dark, ugly room full of cobwebs and smelling of Aunt Marcy, mine is like an airy elven treehouse. Three large windows fill the room with sunlight and the walls are whitewashed wood. A reliable breeze blows the occasional butterfly in. I’ve filled the room with plants: lavender, vines, succulents, and an aloe. Sometimes the butterfly decides to stay for a bit. The room is directly in the center of Groningen, perched high above the shops and markets and cobblestone streets. If I look out my window, I can see gilded church spires and perfect red roofs into the distance.

I’m in love with this city.

Groningen is like one of those quaint little porcelain Christmas villages my grandma always puts up on top of her kitchen drawers, but with a dash of modernity. It has all the little lighted windows, the narrow streets, the small gardens and shops. But it also has international stores, oompa-oompa music, festivals in the parks, and a ferris wheel that arrived when we did and leaves again tomorrow. The antique stores are filled with all of the normal things, but I’ve also seen at least four real human skulls and one full human skeleton dangling from the ceilings. Is that normal? There aren’t as many buskers as there are back in Kingston, but hey! Maybe I’ll start a trend.

We arrived a week ago, though it seems like it’s been shorter than that. We’ve been crazy busy. Will is staying with me for the first few weeks, helping me get settled and looking for work. His visa situation is as yet undetermined. So we’ve been hitting up Ikea, dragging ugly furniture out of the apartment, and trying to get our feet beneath us. The crappy guy I posted about earlier DID leave an extra very ugly couch, his red slippers, his broken wardrobe, and some other nonsense. I’m feeling cheated and angry at him still, but I’ll let it go. He’s gone and soon all of his stuff will be, too. None of the other housemates are here at the moment, all is quiet.

We have a few quiet days ahead of us before the ball really gets rolling. My orientation at the University of Groningen begins this coming week with classes soon afterwards. I’ll keep you updated! I’m excited to see what university is like in the Netherlands, looking forward to making new friends, and hoping that I get off to a smooth start!

What do you think of the new living space? Thanks for helping me pick!