A Year Already?!

Hard to believe it’s been over a year since I moved to Amsterdam! It seems as if it’s been almost as long since I’ve updated strom-blog. Sorry about that!

Looking back on the first year, it’s been an amazing ride so far. I thought I’d dedicate my latest blog entry to some of my favorite memories over the past year.

Being in Holland during the World Cup was an amazing experience in its own right, but being here when Holland went to the final game was a once in a lifetime experience. The entire country had the “oranjegekte” or “orange craze”. Even better was watching the games all over Europe, seeing them in Italian, Swedish, Danish, Hungarian, and a strange language in Ireland that kind of sounds like English. Here I am with some co-workers at the final game:

One of the great things about being in Amsterdam is the beer. Europeans love the stuff, Northern Europe especially. Dutch beer is good enough, but Belgium and Germany have the best in my opinion. And there’s been plenty of opportunities to sample it. Two of the best were a brewery-tour weekend to Antwerp, Belgium, and of course, the one and only Oktoberfest!

Of course, some countries are just too fancy for beer (ahem, Switzerland!). I took a great trip there in September to visit a friend, enjoying great weather and a wine festival to boot.

I’ve had been to lots of great places for that matter. Almost too many to remember, but let me try. There was Belgium, and then Dubai, and Portugal, Cinque Terre Italy, Dublin, Edinburgh, Budapest, Belgrade, Munich (for Oktoberfest), Switzerland, Barcelona, and more of Copenhagen than anyone could wish to see in a lifetime. Here’s a few of my favorite pictures:

View across the Danube, Budapest:

Nyhavn, Copenhagen:

Windmill along the Amstel River, just outside Amsterdam:

View of Edinburgh Scotland:

I’ve been lucky to have lots of visitors to come and help me explore my new city. In order I had Emily B, Scott, Hailey, Bill & Cindy (the parents), Jill, Hailey again, Emily again, Sara & Sydnie, Mark & John, and Vinh & Shannon. Hope to see the rest of you here sometime soon.

When all is said, there are lots of things I love about Amsterdam. I am still amazing by the ease of getting around by bike and public transportation. I do not at all look forward to getting a car again and all the hassles and expense that go along with it. I love the pub scene here and the great restaurants. It’s amazing to literally be an hour or two from just about every major city in Europe and decide to fly off somewhere on a whim. Then there’s all the great new friends I’ve met in Amsterdam who have made this a great year. The best is the little things - biking around to the bars, seeing movies with friends, shopping at the street markets, trying a great new restaurant, or just walking along the canals.

Of course, it’s not all perfect. There’s still the frustrations mentioned in earlier posts about paying for things, the non-existent “customer service”, the high prices, and the oh-so-temperamental Amsterdam weather. Luckily these things all seem relatively minor inconveniences now that I’m settled in.

It’s been a great year, and there will be to come (including more frequent blog updates).