Navigating a new city

By Hannah Castenskiold, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

As a Geography student, it only came naturally to me to map out the journey of moving and settling into the city of Amsterdam. I decided to use story maps as a way of visually recording the chronological order of funny experiences whilst moving in, in hope to share with others the ups and downs of a big move!

https://arcg.is/1CjSbv

This link takes you to the interactive map which includes more photos but can be found below:

This was admittedly a rather rushed process. I decided it would be a smart idea to partially move in the day after I got back from a 6 week travelling extravaganza so that I could make the Erasmus Student Network welcome week, then sped off to a festival after 2 days of making new friends. Yet, I don’t regret it one bit. I met so many amazing friends and got to finally see the place I was going to call home for the next year (although I would not recommend this approach when moving to a new city) What I do recommend is focusing time and attention on the people you meet and the place you live. When I first moved in, I found my place rather bleak and not that social, and it made me slightly question whether I had made the right decision. Yet, over the next couple weeks, shown in the next slides, I came to finally feel at home in this new city.

The first few hurdles came surprisingly from my bike, kindly donated by my Grandma, which should’ve been the first teller sign that this would be a slightly unreliable ride.

I experienced two punctures within the first four days, and convinced I was being targeted when the third occurred. Yet, this kind old man, seen in the picture, restored my faith in the city, as he kindly stopped and repaired it my tire for me.

It was a reminder that things will naturally, almost always, go wrong in some way or another, but finding the little successes make them so much more manageable. For example, I now have a great friendship with the guys at the bike shop, meaning super cheap deals and discounts on future fixes and punctures to come!

Moving in earlier meant we were could catch the end of the summer rays and sample all the good swimming locations.The warm weather meant longer cycles and cold swims were a perfect way to spend the day and helped us get more familiar with the lay of the land through sussing out the good swimming and picnic spots all over the city.

So, even though it was a tad hurried and chaotic, moving in when i did felt like an extension of my summer and gave me the freedom to take my time comfortably settling in and, in my opinion, experience the city in its best light.

Venturing onto our new campus was both exciting and daunting. Having no idea what to expect meant we were slightly under prepared, especially in the form of lectures.

Our first experience entailed me being singled out, after numerous attempts to get my attention as I was indeed slightly zoned out, to explain why I chose the course, in which I had to restart a few times as my timid voice did not carry far enough in the vast lecture hall. Nonetheless, it was an exhilarating start to studying abroad and I found myself being inspired and excited to learn in new environments where students participate so much more. It also helps when the buildings and campus are beautifully planned and aesthetically pleasing to study in.

This aspect is crucial in any move to a new city; discovering the night life and its diverse options. The plethora of canals here meant we felt it was essential to try both a boat excursion and party.

The boat trip was organised for mine and my friend’s joint birthday, in which all 30 of us clambered onto a boat and were toured around the city for two hours by our own personal skipper named Peter. We got to bring our own drinks and snacks and saw all the classic sites from such a distinctive angle.

The next canal extravaganza took place unexpectedly as our original event at Amsterdam’s Skate Cafe got cancelled. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as we rolled onto our first ever official boat party and got to cruise around Amsterdam for hours on end whilst enjoying sweet Dutch techno sounds.

Unique moments and opportunities like these make you so appreciative of the city you have moved to as I think we can safely say that there aren’t many of these types of trips on offer in Manchester.

I had no idea how different living alone would be and how much your accommodation would affect it until I moved here. I love to host, so the prospect of being confined to an empty, bleak flat and not being able to provide a social space, was a daunting thought. So, to change this, I would invest in my flat and thus myself.

This step has been vital in making my stay here more homely and personal. The markets here are thankfully ample in number, size and varieties. To have Europe’s largest flea market at our doorstep makes it too easy to find weird and wonderful items to decorate with.

It all started with finding plants to finally become the responsible plant mum I have always aspired yet failed to be. Then, it escalated into constantly finding fun lights, candles, overly sized glasses/chalices, and a table, alongside my own posters and pictures dotted around, to elevate the space. The winner of it all was the mini oven purchased for a mere 5 euros. Collectively, these have helped me make the space my own and allowed me to proudly host friends whenever I please (see the last photo)

So, after a rather rushed beginning and reservations about my flat making me question my decisions, I can now confidently state that I feel very settled in, content and grateful to be here.

After a wonderful succession of meeting new people, seeing new places and attending fun events so far, I am really excited about the year to come.

Because it’s such an individual process, it can be difficult to move and adapt at times, but that’s exactly what makes it more enjoyable, and I couldn’t recommend the experience more. I have already had many friends come out and visit, which I find really helps continue the exploration of a city and make you feel like more of a local, further gaining that sense of belonging.