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CLMN | Getting lost in a stranger city - first impressions

04/09/2013

I saw more bicycles on my first day in the Netherlands than I would typically see in a month in my country. This came as quite a shock, because here I was, newly-arrived in a country that had over ten times the GDP per capita compared to home and the number of cars on the roads was negligible in comparison.

It took a while to swallow the cultural shock of coming from a place where cars equate with opulence and affluence, the general mantra being bigger is better. Of course, in the following days, bikes weren’t the only thing I would see in excess: weather changes more frequent than a bipolar person’s mood and all meals are based off bread: bread for breakfast, lunch, supper and dinner.

But I digress.

So far, it has been a love-at-first-sight kind of affair. Seriously! (Notwithstanding the bread, the unpredictable weather and the people all driving on the ‘wrong’ side of the road.) Everyone has been really nice and helpful so far! Well, almost all of them, except for the taxi driver who scammed me – 14 euros for a 2 km ride the day I arrived here – and reminded me of, well… taxi drivers everywhere, in the process.

Another thing that took a little getting used to was the city closing earlier than a six-year-old’s bedtime back home. But slowly, I have come to appreciate the peace and calm of after-work hours. Overall the TIP has been a great experience s well, especially for someone returning to school after a four-year hiatus: it has eased me back into the academic culture and routine.

Experienced people tell me that, like most other kinds of madness (and passionate love affairs), this (love affair with the city) too shall pass. Thinly-veiled sinister references to weather are floating in the air. We will see.

But for now, here’s to the next adventure.CLMN | Getting lost in a stranger city - first impressions

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