Dear Netherlands,
studying in your lovely city of Nijmegen is indeed a rollercoaster, shaped by ups and down likewise.
Erasmus is fantastic! And yet I also developed some homesickness. When I left for the Netherlands, I had a wonderful life with my friends at university, living with my family and enough jobs to keep me busy and earn me money. Nonetheless I took this courageous step and left my nest - out of curiosity and wonder and because I wanted to challenge myself - and threw myself again into cold water. It was cold at first. Then it became warmer, the more time I spent here, the more friends I made, the more I got acquainted with the university and the country. The last few weeks were nonetheless shaped by homesickness, as I realized how lucky I was to live in Germany and to have such a supportive environment. And also university with all its deadlines and requirements stressed me out. Sometimes, I do not feel genuinely productive when I work for university, because it is often difficult to see the results and feel that my work is useful.
I am a bit inactive on this blog, but I am actively writing my biweekly column for the University Magazine, so feel free to have a look: https://www.voxweb.nl/blog/more-homes-than-one
https://www.voxweb.nl/blog/72527
And this column is especially about Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam, about whom I also wrote a term paper for my Dutch history, politics and culture class: https://www.voxweb.nl/blog/dear-desiderius
Yesterday my friends and me participated in the 'fietsparade', a cycle tour with hundreds (or even thousands) of cyclicsts from all over the world, who celebrated the region Nijmegen-Arnhem as the 'VeloCity 2017' and it was so much fun to cycle approximately 17 kilometres in the sunshine on the wonderful fast cycle paths of Nijmegen, all citizens were out on the streets, cheering us cyclists, and music bands on every corner. By far one of the best experiences of my Dutch Erasmus! :D
And now I will return to my books to study for the next exam...
Doei!
Jane
