EEN MOMENTJE

02/03/12:: Arrived in Rotterdam, knowing nobody, anything. And now…having done my last “final” class at WDKA, it just hit me that i’ll be leaving in less than a month…and all the things that I have taken time to get used to will soon be something in the past. Riding my fiets everywhere, travelling around europe, trying out new things…its all going to end. The fact that I have to go back to my old routine of life is a little daunting, and I have asked myself many times why I feel that way, and I think the reason is because of the word “routine”. Rotterdam to me was never a routine. In this experience, there were too many special moments and spontaneity. It’s just sad to leave so soon, I wish I had more time in this little vacation of mine. I guess there is an expiry date on everything. On a brighter note, these were pictures from last weekend as my friends, Warren, Artem, and Lan came over to visit. We also headed to Amsterdam for a day since Warren and Artem has never been there before. It was a really lovely weekend, and it was so nice to see people from home. We just strolled around and went to see some of the Amsterdam hotspots, the “I AMSTERDAM” sign, the condom store, the red light district….to name a few, haha! And what’s next? Finish some of my assignments for final assessments next week, and then heading over to Basel, Switzerland on Friday to meet our beloved Laurent! I’m super excited, but sad at the same time because this means that today is the last Rotterdam Sunday for me…BUT get ready Basel, I’m coming over!!

Everything happens for a reason and that is to make you into a better person. As cheesy as it gets, be happy (like the guy above) because it happened.
Lots and lots and lots of love, xxx

WEEKEND OF HOTTAYS

Darn, I wish the weather would stay this beautiful forever minus the mosquitoes and the warm sticky air……the past weekend was wonderful, filled with lots of sunshine and chill time. Despite the weather being incredibly hot, it was still great to be able to head over to Den Haag’s “Scheveningen Beach” on Saturday to just chill and lay on the beach and enjoy some Netherland sand haha! Not to mention our wonderful hottay partay barbeque, with lots of food and laughs. Oh, time is just flying by, and I dont even have the time to comprehend everything I’m doing. Some of my friends are already leaving soon (tomorrow), and I guess it’s hitting me that this experience is coming to an end…have to pack up everything soon….i just wish we could have been with each other just for a little longer…….and i keep telling myself that this is not the end, i will be back- europe! emily woo will be back in europe again, someday, to visit all of you guys. However, I’m not saying goodbye for another 2 weeks, so until then, lets enjoy the most as I can, and oh right, I guess i have to finish my assignments too. Oops, that kind of slipped. Assignments are really a pain, especially in this lovely weather. Hopefully on your side of the world, the sun is also shining, the wind blowing, birds chirping (minus pigeons+crows+seagulls+oh-who-am-i-kidding,i-hate-birds-haha) annnnnddddd assignments-less! Enjoy your days! Cheers!

ITALIAN X KOREAN X SWISS

It was suchh a wonderful weekend, with lots of friends, food, and joy! Here are some pictures to summarize my eventful weekend. Friday night, we decided to try out a neighborhood Italian restaurant. This restaurant was on our ride to school and we always biked pass it and have always wanted to go and give it a try. As I thought that we don’t really have a lot of weekends to wait, I suggested to try it out! To end the night, we went to a guerilla film screening. Although the weather was a little chilly, it was still really nice to play some bingo, eat some fruits, and watch some avant-garde films. Then on Sunday, it was one of our lovely friend, Sol’s birthday, and she was so kind to cook all of us a feast of Korean food, and I can definitely tell you that it was really nice to have some authentic asian food, haha! And just last night, we had an amazing authentic Swiss fondue, which means there was a lots of cheese and bread! As the exchange trip is coming to an end, I’m really going to miss this bunch of lovely people, and the opportunity to always meet new people. I have never thought that I would be having this feeling, but theres simply not enough time to spend with everyone here AND go travel as well. As some of you know, I went to Luxembourg, Antwerp, and Belgium during my week of holidays, but a couple of my friends and I are planning to head to Antwerp again since its so close to Rotterdam. In addition, I am currently planning to go to basel, and barcelona for a week…not for sure yet. But I have a feeling that this month is going to go by so quickly with all the events and gatherings, which I’m super super super super excited about. That’s it for now! Hope all of you are enjoying life as it is wherever you are! Cheers! xxx

KOREAN NIGHT

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SWISS NIGHT

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NEIGHBORHOOD

Can’t believe its already May, and I only have a few more weeks left in Europe. A month ago, I was still pretty homesick, probably because of the stress that came with the due dates at school. But now I’m starting to get used to this lifestyle and culture that I’m afraid I’m going to miss it when I’m back home. What can I do though? I guess the best thing is to enjoy the rest of my time here with my lovely exchange and dutch friends, and travel as much as possible. One place I really have to go is to the tulip fields near Amsterdam, uh hello? I’m in Holland, its like a must visit attraction. Weather in Rotterdam right now is kinda temperamental. In the morning it can be like pouring rain, but in the afternoon, it gives us the hint of summer with the sun beaming over our shoulders as we bike around town. Yet at night, it would turn back to as chilly as the winter times. Oh Rotterdam, we do have a love-hate relationship at the moment; your weather is definitely not the most charming trait of yours. However, you did bring some pretty good memories for me. Anyhow, these photos are just taken on random occasions that best reflect the nice days. And hey! wherever you are, take the time and explore where you live, go to a nearby restaurant you’ve never tried before, or walk around that park near your house, who knows, surprises may be hidden in those little changes and actions. Cheers! xxx

KONNINENEDAG

Last weekend (April 29-30) was Queens Day and Night in the Netherlands, also known as Konninenedag. People dress in all types of crazy outfits, in addition to shades of different oranges and stroll on the streets with beer in one hand and the patriotic things with the other. My friends and I decided to venture off to Amsterdam as we heard about how busy Amsterdam would become on national holidays. Not to our surprise, it was flooded with orange people. It was a really nice experience to see how people would gather and celebrate this event together. To sum up our little adventure: orange, tourists, flea markets, boats, and laying in the grass. Talking about boats, there were some pretty crazy boats going around the canals, alot of them were filled with older crowds pumping loud TOP40 music and partied like high school kids, it was quite funny haha, but nonetheless, it was definitely an interesting sight. Enjoy some of the photos I have taken! xx

  

PRAGUE

I am back!! Last two weeks was crazy, with all the midterms and assignments due, I really didn’t have time to update and write about my trip to Prague! I took over 300+ photos over a span of 4 days, so it’s really hard for me to post all of them up, but I did select a few that pretty much sums up my beautiful trip to Prague. To be honest, Prague was never on my list of “to go” places, but because my ECUAD friends wanted to go there, I was like what the heck, why not!! So going to Prague without any expectations was the best thing that happened to me. It’s not because it was bad, but because I was sooooo blown away by the beauty of Prague. Although it was quite tourist-y for our whole trip, I did find it very lively in that way, with everyone on the streets, celebrating Easter.

(This photo was taken on the famous CHARLES BRIDGE, which is a must go if you visit Prague, because every single tourist have set foot on this bridge, haha!)

    

We actually went to Prague during the Easter long weekend, and as Czech is a Catholic based country, Easter was definitely a national festivity that everyone was excited about! There were Easter markets near the astronomical clock, the center of the city, where people performed and also had a chance to try out some Czech specialties! On another note, we also experienced Prague in all types of weather: rain, snow, hail, sun. It would probably rain for 15 mins, and then hail, and then soon it would become sunny, but then in an hour or so, we got snow. The weather was definitely unpredictable, so consider yourself to be warned, hahahah! 🙂

(This was taken on the first day of the trip, the weather was crappy)

The last day of the trip, where we got some blue sky and sunshine!

It was so nice to be able to see friends from home and able to see how they’re doing on their exchanges as well. If I ever get a chance to go again, I would definitely go to Prague again. Yet, because my time in Europe is so limited, I think I will have to wait until my second Europe tour to go there again. Talking about another trip, the coming week is May holidays, which means that I will be travelling again! This time, I’m going to Belgium (Antwerp, Brussels, Bruge?) and Luxembourg! And once again…….those were definitely not on my “to go” places, but it was a good deal and somewhere close to Netherlands.

As for school, got my grades back from my first assignment, it was okay, i passed! haha, i was really worried that i was going to fail, but as usual, everything works at the end, very very thankful!
I hope those who are still suffering from exams and all the finals have the chance to rest because everything, seriously, works out at the end, as long as you try your best.

6 more weeks of school!! Very excited to go back home to see my family and friends.
Until then- I will keep you updated with my school and all that fun stuff! 😉 Doie!

oh sunshine

Its finally sunny in Rotterdam! Hopefully the sun will decide to stay a little longer. Its always nice to wake up with the sun beaming, birds chirping, and men cleaning your windows, LOL obviously the last one was a joke, but nonetheless, it is quite lovely to see Rotterdam so different from the usual grey and cloudy weather 🙂

Last night a couple of us were invited over to our friends place for a crepe party! Their apartment was so cozy! With some Billie Holiday playing in the background, we had a very nice time just hanging out and eating together.

 

My friends and I came out of the supermarket one day, and saw this amazing sight. At first, my friend thought they were people, but they were actually DOGS! SO CUTE! i couldn’t miss this awesome photo opportunity! 🙂

They just looked so cute and funny! hahahah!

Anyways, just a short update about the weather in Rotterdam 🙂

I heard that Vancouver’s weather has been lovely, so hopefully wherever you are, enjoy some sunshine, get some Vitamin D!

Cheers! Dag (Bye) 🙂