Preparation and introduction.

Dear reader,

First and foremost, let me introduce myself. My name is Thomas Ossenblok and I am 21 years old. Whereas the main group of exchange students is coming home and re-integrating in Dutch society, I am about to pack for my exciting destination: Peru.
And why, out of all places, did I pick Peru? Good question!

First of all, I love nature and history, both of which are very much present, since Peru is the home of the Incan/Mayan societies and one of the most diverse environments in the world.
Secondly, I wanted to learn a new language, preferably one which is spoken by many people. And last but not least, the family-oriented and sort of laidback culture really spoke to my imagination.

First Impressions in Dublin

Hiya everybody!!

Let me first introduce myself…. my name is Steven, I’m already 23 year old, and since 6 weeks I am a proud citizen of Dublin. To explain why I ended up here…. my reasons to go on this exchange adventure were quite simple, in Tilburg I have so many friends that went abroad and their stories were too good to be true. So after long consideration (because it would take me an extra year of my study) I decided to explore it myself.

The choice for Dublin however was less difficult. Firstly, I really wanted to improve my English, secondly, I don’t believe you have to go outside Europe to find beautiful places and people, and lastly I heard Trinity College is amazing and one of the most beautiful universities in the world. I was really happy to hear that I got the chance to study at Trinity college for 5 months.

Before I went on the exchange I really had the following expectations of going on exchange and Ireland:

Fire, Stirling and Isle of Arran

This week I joined an indoor soccer team for internationals. The way Scots play indoor soccer is somewhat different to what I am used to. They have very little and wide goals and you are allowed to make sliding tackles! During the match we smelled fire. A few minutes later an employee of the university came in to tell us that the James Weir building was on fire! The James Weir building is one of the biggest buildings around campus, so it was a pretty big deal. When we walked back to our flat, we saw a lot of smoke coming out of the building, but no fire whatsoever. The police is still investigating what happened, but they expect some kind of chemical reaction set the building on fire (since all the science labs are located in James Weir). All classes that were supposed to take place in JW were cancelled. Luckily for me the teacher decided to relocate the lecture. While everyone had a day of, I had to attend lecture!

Starting to realize that I'm back home..

Dear all! It has been almost three weeks since I came back home =) First one and a half week were great. Everyone wanted to meet up with me, hear my stories and it was great to feel all the love and all the great things about the Netherlands again. Now, things have calmed down and everyone is back to his/her own life again, including me. This week I will be starting my bachelor thesis. Really working on my graduation from Tilburg University! Perfect timing to make an analysis of the pros and cons of both Budapest and home:

Things that Hungary could improve 0=)

- Our International Office coordinator.. what an..
- Getting in separate queues for stamps, envelopes, addresses and sending the actual package at the post office. The bureaucracy is still crazy, especially in the Immigration Office; the only place where people actually need to speak English.. and don't.

- The women in the supermarket yelling "Tessék?!", when I did not come to the counter quick enough.

- The political climate and the challenges of post-communism for the society, first and foremost corruption.

Things that are great at home

- Seeing and hanging out with my great family and friends.

- Normal supermarkets, with normal bread and a nice variety of food.

- Structure and good responses at Tilburg University.

- Okay, this list is too short... uhm!

- Oh! The one I have been coming to appreciate the most about the Netherlands: the freedom of debate. I have become to realize how special it is that no matter the subject and no matter how much we disagree, when we keep our decency we can talk speak about everything in our country. Anything. That is one of the greatest values of the Dutch society I think and it should be cherished.

- My bike!!

Final Goodbye...

I have been back in the Netherlands since a few weeks now and I miss Glasgow and all my friends so much!! My flight back was on the 21th of January, only two days after my last exam. Consequently I had no time to say a proper goodbye to Glasgow, but I don’t need it because I’m certain I will go back to Glasgow within a year! Some of my friends still study in Glasgow for the next few years and they have offered me a place to sleep anytime I’d like to come to Glasgow.

Zài jiàn Shanghai

I have been back now for nearly a week and I must say that I am in some ways really glad to be back. For me the exchange experience has been less drastic than for others, for I have lived in several countries already and have moved a lot throughout my childhood. However, having never lived in a large city before it was quite a change for me. Having now returned home the differences between living in a small village in Holland and a metropolis in China become evident.

Upon my arrival the first thing I saw was a large banner which awaited me at the arrival gate at Dusseldorf airport. Finally, I was no longer a minority! I was among my friends, family and girlfriend once again! We headed over to the nearest bar to have a small celebration. I had to walk over to the bar to order because as we sat down we were not helped. It was the first real difference I noticed, for in Western society labor is a large cost for businesses while in Asia labor is cheap and service is second nature.

Exploring

Last saturday me and my flatmates decided to explore Glasgow some more. Together with my Tsjech friend george, Canadian friend John and my Mexican friend Esteban we walked around Glasgow for the full day. There are a bunch of really nice places to visit in Glasgow. For you who do not plan to go on exchange to Glasgow, the city is still worth visiting as a city trip! It is very common to go to a pub around noon and have a beer and something to eat, so that is what we did. When we were sitting in a pub, some Gaelic dancers came in and a girl with a violin. All of a sudden they started to play music and dance Gaelic dances. It is really cool to see that traditions are a big part of the Scottish culture. At the end of the day we visited the Kelvin Grove museum and the University of Glasgow, which is pretty amazing.

The city that meets all my needs

I've been back for two days, I feel weird. Happy to be home with family. Sad that I left the beautiful city Lisbon. Sad that it is more than 20 degrees colder here. Happy to see friends and pickup normal life. I don't know what I should feel. The last weeks in Lisbon were amazing. I finished all my courses with around 15. Transformed to Tilburg University a 15 will be an 8, so I am satisfied. The last weeks I was more on my own, since a lot of friends already left. But that gave me more inner peace. I could visit the districts, museums that I didn't visit before.