So, I have officially been in Holland for a week. It's been quite the EPIC WEEK.
Moving in, university orientation that went all week, partying, wine socials in the kitchens, meeting new people,shopping in the centre, walking the centre, and figuring out how to not get hit by bikes, and where to buy a bike for cheap without getting arrested for buying one from an undercover cop. It's everything I could have asked for and more. We started a tradition, where we all conglomerate into the kitchen between 8-12pm. Bottles of wine appear on the table, chairs are assembled,the lap top is blaring,and the social chatter begins. The first night,it looked like something out of a movie. Word of mouth and the next thing you know, we are having a party in the kitchen. We produced a sheet of music requests to make sure everyone gets their music played. Being the social planner that I am, I took on the task of finding the music and herding everyone to the kitchen. But, I don't mind.
Partying in Utrecht is quite an interesting experience....
The first club I went to was the underground one I mentioned in the previous blog. What a gong show. They don't believe in limits on people so there were literally hundreds of people in the underground tunnels of what used to be the city prision. Nice to know, after the fact. We danced all night, my roommate and I. We were up on this stage like thing, we had a bit of an audience because apparently the Dutch don't a) dance and b) dance on stage. A little ways through the night, the worst audition for Dutch idol appeared, to show us why he was rightfully rejected from the show. It was one of the most painful experiences ever! Amazing how some people will exploit themselves in what they think is a good money/popularity scheme, but really everyone is making fun of them.
The second place we went to was Woolomooloo. Don't ask. It is atached to a frat house, the only frat house in Utrecht, where the memebers dress in suits all the time, and make their recruits do distrubing things to gain membership- all I will say is chicken. But, I suppose that is typical for fraternaties. The club was pretty packed, the coat check people were arses, and they neglected to mention that the machine on the wall that says change actually dispenses tokens for beer. I found this out the hard way, when the coat check lady wouldn't take my 20 euro note and made me go get change. So, I turn and notice this machine that says 'change' and has pictures of various bills on it. I put my 20 in and got like 15 tokens... was I pissed. I didn't even bother checking my sweater. Luckily, I sold most of the tokens off, and had a pocket full of change. A little way through the party, I noticed 3 girls on the back of the bar 'dancing', so I decided to show them up. Well, more like just dance a good dance because they looked like they were just (sorry for the grotesque langauge) 'humping' each other in the air. So, I asked the bartender if I could go up, and then I spent the rest of the night on the back bar dancing my heart. I don't know why, but I love being elevated like that when I am dancing. I don't like being in the crowds,and I like being away from all the man scoundrals who circle the dance floor looking for prey to stock. So, I had a bit of a crew cheering for me, and the made a few girls jealous, but I was up there for the music not for the potential phone numbers I might get.
Eventually, I needed a break, and hung out with my peeps for a bit. Apparently, I should have been paid for my skillz, according to some of my friends. hahaha,I just laughed. Everytime I think of dancing on stage like that, I think back to Electric Circuit this dance show on Much Music in the 90's. I used to watch it religiously, I think that show spawned the dancer in me. In the show people would crowd around Much Music in Toronto and vie to be picked from the crowd to dance on the show. It was a huge deal, to get picked. So, after 3 hours of dancing like Jennifer Beal in Flash Dance I decided to head home for some much needed sleep.
The centre of Utrecht, is like all European cities, cobblestone streets, the typical tall thin Dutch homes, and canals everywhere. Utrecht has quite a bit of shopping which is pretty nice. There are at least 2 of the same major shops throughout the city, which is kind of bizzare. And, then a major shopping mall. There are markets on Wednesday and Saturdays. Awesome! I love them so much. There is a guy who sells the nicest scarves for 5 euro and it makes me warm and fuzzy inside to have such a wicked hook-up for such nice scarves. Essentially, I can still be a fashionista as long as I have these scarves. Otherwise, shooping is pretty ridiculously expensive, I try not think about it. And, hope that the Euro will drop steadily. The markets are good for fresh produce straight from the sellers farms, cheese, eggs, fresh fish which I saw today, it was crazy... I saw squid and every kind of fish you could want.
We have been spending a fair amount of time in cafes, not to be confused with coffee shops. A standard price for a cappucino is 2.25 euro. So,anything more is a rip-off anything less is a bargain. The resturants are fabulous here, but expensive. The terraces in the middle of the centre are really nice for people watching. And, on the weekends the streets come alive with music and are clogged with people. It's insane but, also kind of nice.
My hunt for a bike might end nicely this week. A friend of ours bought a bike for 25 euro from this guy, and it was legit. Everyone else has been paying 50 euro or more. So, my fingers are crossed.
The grocery stores are good too, my house is right next to one, not to mention everything else in the city I really lucked out. The grocery stores, and dept stores sell wine, and they sell it cheap. It is a nice change to buy Chilean or Argentinan wine for like 3.50 euro... ahhh wine. At least it's not as bad as beer. But, that is pretty cheap here. About 2 euro for a beer, but with 2 inches of foam and smaller than a sleeve. So, really I don't think you are getting a deal.
I joined the gym today, so I am psyched about that. The guy thought I was crazy when I asked if they had a punching bag... I might take a kick boxing class on campus... we'll see. RIding my bike everywhere should keep me in shape (when I get a bike).
School starts tomorrow. I am pretty excited about that, I have really interesting courses such as: Violent conflict and diaspora; Culture Diversity and Identity; and Culture, violence, trauma and reconciliation (might make me a better negotiator/reconcillator). The books are what is going to kill me. Almost 200 euro in books. I can't believe some of the prices in Europe. It pretty much means I won't be leisurely reading magazines or books because they are so expensive. Thankfully, I have the internet.
Anyways, this blog seems like the equivalent of an entrance essay.
Until next time.... stay classy Vancouver.
- For those of you that know my love of movie quoting, that was a quote (slightly modified) from one of my favourite movies. Whom ever guesses correctly gets a postcard! hahha kidding :)
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