Firstly — It’s true! I’m officially a resident of Brussels. The paperwork isn’t completely finished, but I’m documented with an identification card and everything. With near success a whopping six months later, I’m too relieved to be annoyed at the bureaucracy any longer.

So my little side trip last weekend to Holland was legal. Hooray!

As a professor canceled class on Thursday, and I don’t have classes on Fridays, I enjoyed four days in the land of bikes and windmills.

Old Utrecht with its thousands of bicycles

My first two days were spent in Utrecht, an adorable city about 30 minutes from Amsterdam by train. It’s one of Holland’s oldest yet liveliest — a student city home to one of the country’s most respected universities.

One of Utrecht's many canals

Between the spread of canals and cobbled alleys, it’s impossible not to be charmed by Utrecht. I spent a lot of time drawing comparisons to other cities — it’s like a smaller Amsterdam, but with the young energy it feels a lot like Ghent too. And while I biked alongside other students through the outskirts of downtown, I felt like I was back at the University of California, Davis.

The slight nostalgia continued in Rotterdam. The city center was destroyed during World War II thanks to some German bombing sprees, so the rebuilt Rotterdam is essentially a new city.

Crazy "modern" architecture in Rotterdam, including its famed cube houses

When I got off my train Friday night, I was amazed at how much I felt like I was in America. I was walking alongside tall office buildings and modern window displays, overwhelmed by consumerism for the first time since I’ve been in Europe.

I still find it a bit amusing that Rotterdam and Amsterdam have a fierce rivalry. Given how incredibly different the two cities look — “skyscrapers” and funky 1970′s “modern” architecture compared to the classic Dutch brick upon brick — it’s hard to see where comparisons are made. But there are similarities. The two biggest cities in the country are both hotspots for culture and art, boasting loads of museums and special events. Coffeeshops are prevalent in both, although made into far more of a tourist spectacle in Amsterdam, while Rotterdam hosts a more well renowned nightlife. Rotterdam’s skyline reflects its more cutting-edge offerings.

The Erasmus bridge and Rotterdam skyline

It’s easy to feel at-ease in the Netherlands in general, not just because of its closeness to Belgium, but for its liberal nature and kind inhabitants. And the trip was cheap — with couchsurfing and spending a few more hours on buses instead of trains, I managed to spend less than 70 euros in total for four days of fun!

I’ll get to round out my Dutch experience with an ISA-led excursion to The Hague and Delft at the end of the semester. Combined with an imminent weekend trip to Luxembourg and my past travels through other Belgian cities, I think I’ll be leaving BeNeLux with a fairly thorough education to this second home’s varied wonders.

Janelle Bitker
Brussels, Belgium
Academic Year 2011-2012

You can follow Janelle’s other travels on her personal blog www.janellebitker.com.

Well I think that Prague is finally beginning to feel like home… kind of. I’m certainly doing better than the first day I got here, which consisted of little sleep and a lot of anxiety. Prague is a beautiful and very welcoming city, and now I find it hard to believe that I ever doubted my decision to come. I know the whole cultural shock thing will come in waves as I continue, but for right now I am so very happy to be here. Even just walking around and looking at the buildings is an experience in itself. There is so much history absorbed into the stones and streets, it seems unreal that I get to be a part of it!

Something that struck me about Prague’s history was something a guide said. His grandmother lived in one city her whole life, but seven different countries. That speaks for itself in the changes this city has been through. Yet through it all, the people of the Czech Republic seem to love their country, especially now that it is finally theirs for the keeping. That is one of the most rewarding things about being here, the dignity and pride of the Czechs! They are very quiet and reserved, but you can tell when you talk to them that they really love their heritage. And how could you not? When you walk around a city like this every day, you have to gain some ounce of pride. This is a city that has been won back by the people many times, AND they have a castle. The biggest one in the world to be exact.

So anyways, I would say this first week has been a good one. I am falling more in love with the city everyday, as well as Czech food. I wouldn’t be surprised if I came home at least fifteen pounds heavier- and I wouldn’t even care!

Wish me luck, and I’ll be back soon!

List of things I miss (so far):

• Using my debit card. I rarely carry cash and home, and here is, all cash, all the time!
• Free water in restaurants.
• Convenience of being able to go somewhere at 12 a.m. and get a milkshake!

List of things I don’t miss (so far):

• The constant noise and hubbub of American cities. Quiet hours are an amazing thing.
• People being stuck to their cellphones all the time. I’ve counted less than twenty people talking in public on one since Wednesday.
• Skyscrapers. Here they have architecture and sky!

Na shledanou! (Goodbye)

Valerie Zawada
Prague, Czech Republic 
Spring 2012

Having tapas at Universidad de Pablo Olavide (UPO)

For starters I have classes from Monday to Thursdays and I begin at 10:30 a.m.; there are no classes on Fridays. I’m currently taking 5 classes: Pragmatics and Communication, History of Flamenco, Contemporary Spanish Politics, Relations between the US and Latin America, and Intercultural Communications. All these classes are only an hour and twenty minutes, which is great to me and different from classes at home that are two hours long or sometimes longer. I really enjoy all my professors and classes, and don’t have any complaints. My favorite professor and is Enrique or Harry, since he likes Country music and is relatable to the students. He is also really funny.

Some things I have noticed that are different from home is that I have to take the metro, whereas at home I could leave my dorm 5 minutes before class began. It seems that there are no such things as review sheets. Why do I say this? Well, in my Contemporary Spanish Politics class, when we asked the professor if we would have a review he did not know what we meant and wanted to know if anyone had an example for him. This doesn’t surprise me much because I was told this in high school French teacher, who is from France (not everyone is).  Another difference is that there is not much writing, but reading and partial and final exams are generally the large determinants of your grade.

Overall classes here are just structured differently from back in the US. Something I really like about UPO is that they have intercambios. Meaning the international students office sets you up with a Spaniard so that you can practice your Spanish and they can practice their English. This is also a great way to meet native speakers since you won’t have classes with them, but other international students. Still, the experience is really enriched if you attend events that are held by the office and participate in the intercambio program.

Xochitl Cruz
Sevilla, Spain
Spring 2012