Category: Netherlands

Lovely things lately in Amsterdam (summer’s a-coming)

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By Hannah Carter-Moore, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

While your year abroad certainly brings both its ups and downs, time in Amsterdam lately has been filled with those moments of god I love my life. The weeks connecting April to May are a pretty unparalleled time for UvA students as, bar Christmas, it’s the only time you get an official break. Writing this post was so nice for me as it’s put some of my highlights in one place, and will maybe also offer some things to look forward to if Amsterdam is your study abroad destination.

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Hidden Gems of Amsterdam

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by Aimee Kinniburgh, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands

Having lived in Amsterdam now for nearly 9 months, I think I’ve finally earnt the right to talk about some of my favourite, lesser-known places in Amsterdam to go for a coffee, study or for a pint in the all be in very limited, sun. So if you happen to find yourself in Amsterdam feel free to use this list to get away from some of the tourist, and TikTok, traps.

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Cycling In Amsterdam

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Molly Hayward – University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

Before I moved to The Netherlands of course I heard how much cycling went on in Amsterdam. It was one of the things that drew me to come here. However, the city has far surpassed what I could have imagined in terms of both, the cultural relationship with cycling, and the infrastructure built up around this culture. This post is going to go over some of the ways biking is facilitated in Amsterdam, how this differs from the UK and some suggestions of things that can help you when cycling around the city.

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A Day Trip to Haarlem

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by Aimee Kinniburgh, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands

Having explored lots of Amsterdam over the last few months, my housemates and I decided it was time to venture out of the city and explore more of what the Netherlands has to offer. After a quick google, we chose to take a day trip to the historic town of Haarlem. Following a small mishap with buses, namely taking an accidental detour to the airport, we arrived in Harlem in the early afternoon and were greeted by the gleaming winter sun. Haarlem has a more relaxed vibe than Amsterdam and is a place to get away from the busy tourist spots whilst still having that picturesque town feel, so we were excited to begin exploring. Our google search told us we’d be greeted by cobble streets and historic markets, and we were not disappointed.

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Managing homesickness – some (hopefully) helpful advice!

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by Aimee Kinniburgh, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands

When moving abroad, so much of what you’re told is positive: you’ll make the best friends, you’ll experience new cultures, you’ll learn so much about yourself. Of course, all of this is true and already my year abroad is turning into one of the best years of my life. However, what I think people often miss is that whilst you experience some of the highest highs, that also comes with experiencing some of the lowest lows. This isn’t in any way to put you off going, I fundamentally think it’s one of the best things you could ever do. But given all of this I thought it might be a good idea to write about my experiences with homesickness and some of the ways I found to deal with missing your home comforts and life back home, in the hope that maybe this helps someone else feeling this way, or in the least act as some free therapy for me!

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First Impressions of Sustainability in Amsterdam

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By Molly Hayward, University Of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Amsterdam is well known as an ‘eco-capital’ and is a prominent example of a sustainable city. This was one of the elements that led to me choosing it for my study abroad. Since arriving, a couple of months ago, I have had time to create initial impressions of how true this is on the ground, these are my thoughts:

Firstly there is a great deal of visible sustainability. The UVA campus has lots of water points scattered around, the coffee machines recommend re-using the compostable cup and there is a notable lack of plastic disposal cutlery available – choosing instead the wooden alternative.

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Amsterdammer Diaries: First* Month Favourites

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*and second

By Hannah Carter-Moore, University of Amsterdam

The fact that I haven’t had time until now to sit down and write my first blog since arriving here in ‘Dam should give you a sense of what a full on experience it’s been so far. 

I’m currently sitting on my sweet canal-side terrace trying to catch the last rays before Amsterdam plunges into Winter, finally taking the moment to reflect on this crazy past month.

not a bad view eh?
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How to not be homeless in Amsterdam (some hopefully helpful housing advice)

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By Hannah Carter-Moore, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

Nowhere does a housing crisis quite like Amsterdam. When I was in the midst of looking at all the options for accommodation, I wished I had someone to just tell me what to do – so that’s what I’m doing here.

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