145 Days Left

I have less than five months left living in this quirky country. It's so hard to believe that the half-way mark has come and gone; it feels like just yesterday that I was boarding the plane in New York. Looking back on that moment, I had no idea what I was getting into.

Months prior to my departure, my "AFS Year Abroad" sounded like some distant paradise, where all of my frustrations and troubles would vanish, where I would create a new life for a year. This is true, and untrue in so many ways. I guess, I never really took into consideration all the obstacles that I would have to overcome while living on the other side of the world, and how much stronger I would grow from them. When something seems so heavenly, we seem to be blinded from reality. I was told of the homesickness, struggle, independence and self realizations I would be faced with by AFS Returnees, but I never actually took a minute to think hard about them. Nobody said it would be easy, that's for sure!
Don't get me wrong, this year has been, and will be the most eyeopening year of my life, but not only in the travel sense. I am learning so much more than I can even put into words about relationships between people, myself, ways of thinking, and more. Being here has also made me realize how much I love where I have grown up; really makes me appreciate all of the things I took so easily for granted back home.

I miss the mountains. Bishops Beach. Two Sisters sticky buns. Open, untouched land. Cosmic Kitchen enchiladas. Wildlife. Road trips with my sister, or even just car rides to The Spit and back with her. Hiking with my dad in the summertime. My moms weird, insanely-healthy vegan meals.

When I left home, I never thought about any of these things. Honestly, like any other teenager from Homer, I considered it boring and couldn't wait to get out and see the world. The world has beautiful, special places indeed, and it turns out Alaska just happens to be one of those incredible places.

In five months, when I'm back to living in Homer, I am certain that I will also have aspects from here in the Netherlands that I will long for as well. Maybe it will be simple, silly things like cycling to school everyday, or taking the metro into Rotterdam. Maybe it will be playing card games with my host family, staying up into the late hours discussing morals and analyzing situations. Maybe it will be going to Vierkantje every Friday with my friends. Then again, I'm guessing it will be everything! The sad part is that I don't know when I will be back here again, if it will be in a few years or ten. However, considering my new found love of traveling, I'm guessing sooner than later. And honestly, I think leaving Bergschenhoek, my life here, might possibly be one of the hardest things I will be faced with in this year.
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Next month I will be seventeen, an age where "plans for your future" is a phrase often heard, and constantly thought about. College, career, dreams, plans. Being here gives me a lot of self-reflection time, spent mulling over such topics. At this point, I could realistically see myself joining my sister at CU Boulder after graduation. Being here has made me realize that I really enjoy living close to her, and miss that comfort completely. It also could be the last time that we would live so close to one another, depending on how the future plays out. Mom and Dad could visit us at the same time, and I'd always know that she would be there for me (physically be there, I mean). Boulder is of course a beautiful place, set in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. There seem to be an endless amount of things to do there, both indoors and out. Not to mention, the campus is hands down gorgeous.

I plan to apply early, and visit Maddie during spring break of 2014 to see if it's the place for me. This is only an idea at this point, but a serious one. Thinking further into my college plans, a semester abroad is definitely something I'll consider as well...who knows, maybe I will even end up back here! I will also apply to other colleges of interest....none of which I am certain of yet. I have been on several college tours though, so I have some grounds to start on!
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Time has just flown by since I've been here. Admittedly, day by day it didn't always seem to pass at such a fast rate, but now considering I have less than 5 months here, I can see that it definitely has. I feel as if the next few months will go by even faster, unfortunately! In less than two weeks, I will be skiing in the Alps in Austria! The week after, I will be touring Berlin again, but with my class. In three months, Maddie will be joining me here. We will travel to Paris for five days together! In four months I will be at Concert At Sea with my host family, and in less than five months I will be on the plane headed home, and get to see my parents for the first time in over a year!

I have so many things to look forward to and I am so fortunate.

-Molly

IAMsterdam

On the third of January, I woke up to catch an early bus into Rotterdam. From there, I trained to AMSTERDAM for the very first time! I had never seen the city in daylight, for the only time I had been was to see Blof in concert at the Ziggo Dome. I met Alaine, a friend from Homer whom I worked with over the past summer. She's studying in Germany, and she and two other friends had been traveling through Europe the past three weeks, Amsterdam being their last stop!

We rented bikes for seven euros, and cycled around the city. It's gorgeous! The tall, skinny buildings squished together on each side of canals. Of course, Amsterdam is also known for it's legal soft drug use (marijuana), in which friends had always told me you can smell it everywhere you went! I always thought that was an exaggeration, but to my surprise it was not...at all. Literally around every corner the strong, recognizable whiff would hit me, even in the train station! The drug, probably for the attraction of tourists, almost dominates the town. Any souvenir shop is stocked with t-shirts, magnets, lighters, glasses, you name it- plastered with the well-known green leaf. Very different than any other cities I've been to in Holland!

Alaine, Andrea, Danae, Austin and I continued to explore the city. We visited the famous Rijksmuseum, where the most gorgeous collection of Delft-ware is (blue/white pottery made in Delft). We also went to Anne Franks House, but unfortunately not inside. The line seemed miles long and we only had a few hours. This was okay with me, being as I will visit it with AFS in a few months.

I had such a nice time catching up with Alaine, hearing how her studies and experiences abroad have been. It seems as if we miss similar things about Homer, but are both having the experience of a lifetime. I was so glad to see her, it was weird being in my (now) home country with someone from the same place as me. Almost like we could just as easily be hanging out, walking around Homer talking....but instead we're in a whole different continent.

We didn't make it to the Van Gogh museum, because it was about seventeen euros per person. I'm sure I will eventually, maybe when Maddie comes! I would really like to. Speaking of, she will be buying her tickets to come see me in May soon!

On the sixth of January, I went to Amsterdam again with Marijke, for an AFS skating get-together. I am horrible at skating, as were many other students, so it was quite entertaining. A few of the students had come to the Netherlands last march, and were leaving in one week. So it was really great to get to say good-bye! Unfortunately I had to leave a bit early, because ever since the Nieuwjaarsduik I have been very sick. Luckily today I am finally feeling a bit better (after two weeks). Tomorrow I will go to school for the first time technically this year, and take an english test. Friday I have my math test, and then in the evening will go out for sushi with my class, and possibly Vierkuntje afterwards.

That's all for now! Today, the fourteenth of January, is Maddie's 19th birthday. Sad that I can't be with her to celebrate, but I know she's having plenty of fun. Miss her so much.

-Molly

Gelukkig Nieuwjaar!

2013 already?! It's always interesting to look back and think about what you were doing last New Years, what were your worries, goals, etc. I spent it in North Carolina with my family of course, eating an extravagant dinner at my gramma's while waiting for the ball to drop in New York on TV. Maybe even a few fireworks across the swamp from her house.

This New Years Eve was as if I was in a whole different world! In a good way, that is. I woke up at nine...why? Well, starting at nine every minute or so I could hear the popping and booms of fireworks. Throughout the day that time interval between fireworks decreased, until literally I could only hear fireworks!

 Early in the day I went to Zoetemeer (neighboring city) with Fiona, Maartje and Beau. We were looking for shoes for both Fiona and I. Not only did I find shoes, I also bought black pants and a cute sparkly top for the party that evening! The rest of the day I spent at home, where the Dijkstras (family friends) came over to celebrate. Rob made "oliebollen," which could quite possibly be the BEST food ever. What are they? Deep fried raisin bread with powdered sugar! It's a Dutch food traditionally eaten on New Years. 

Around Christmas time, there are stands in town or markets which sell them specifically also. They are dangerously LEKKER. 

Until midnight, we all played games and socialized! I use the word "gezellig" too often I think, but the thing is most situations here can only be described as gezellig! This night would be one of them. When midnight struck, we all toasted each other, saying "gelukkig nieuwjaar" of course! Afterwards, we went outside and watched all the fireworks being shot up into the sky, and lit some of our own too! I had never lit fireworks before. It was so much fun! 

At 12:20 I had to meet Maartje on the main road, so that we could bike together to Pascale's. Dennis biked with me (he had is own party to go to) which was good because it was a bit nerve racking! At midnight, all hell breaks loose here. Everyone is outside on the road lighting fireworks! Maartje's dad biked her to where we were meeting up too. From there, just Maartje and I biked to Pascale's to meet up with Beau, Pascale, Fiona and Pascale's friend Kevin! We all walked in the rain to De Akkers Sports Hall where The New Beginning party was. The line was so long, we must have waited forty-five minutes! Finally we got in though, amongst about 1500 other people. It was such a fun night, dancing and socializing under strobe lights! Best New Years ever, also a night I will never forget. 

The next morning we woke up at ten in the morning! Fiona was packing her stuff quickly because she was going to France that day, and we had slept in an extra two hours. The rest of us had to make it to the New Years Dive on time to get tickets! Doubtful of that happening, we still rushed out the door and headed to the metro station. In Scheveningen (the beach where the Nieuwjaarsduik is most famous), luckily there were a few tickets left! 

The New Years Dive is an event completely out of this world. Over 10,000 people gather at Scheveningen, clad with bright orange hats and prepared to jump into the ocean. Mind you, it is winter time here. When the clock struck twelve, every single person on the beach raced into the water in bathing suits. I had never seen or done anything so crazy! The water was FREEZING, but it was so much fun. Music was blasting, and everyone there was so happy. It was nuts. 

After those 24 hours, I was exhausted to say the least. Today, the second of January, I played tennis in the morning and have done absolutely nothing since! It's been so nice to have a day off...I watched The Notebook, and will probably watch Pretty Little Liars the rest of the day. Tomorrow, I'm headed to Amsterdam in the morning to meet up with Alaine! Can't wait!

-Molly

Treinen door Nederland!

Last Sunday I toured Holland! Well, I went to about five cities in one day. Beau, Pascale, Maartje and Fiona had bought "dagkaarten" a while back at a reduced price, that expired in January. A dagkaart allows you unlimited travel around the country during one day- whereas normally how much you pay is determined how far you travel. They made a plan of which cities they wanted to see, and invited me along! So I too bought an dagkaart, for about twenty-three euros.

At 7:30 bright and early Sunday morning, I biked to Beau's and from there we all cycled to Rodenrijs (the nearest metrostration). From then on until about ten o'clock at night, we traveled and explored different cities! We first went to a city called Roosendaal, but being that it was Sunday morning, the streets were empty and everything was closed. So shortly after arriving there we hopped back on the train!

Breda was our next stop, which I must admit was my favorite city of what we saw that day. It was still a bit early in the day so most everything was closed, but luckily we found a cute little coffee shop! And no, not the coffee shop that first comes to mind in regards to the Netherlands. We ordered gourmet lattes and talked about our plan for the day. Breda, like Deventer/Delft, has the same small-town feeling, but is still a city. I would really like to go back someday and look around more! To the right is Fiona, Beau, Pascale and I posed in front of a gorgeous church in Breda!

Most of the day was spent either walking around or sitting in the train- both were equally entertaining! I was trying so hard to understand what the other girls were talking about, by listening for words I recognized (in Dutch of course). Many times I thought I had a pretty good understanding of what they were discussing, only to end up being very wrong once I asked a question relating to what I thought was the subject! Oops. Most of the time it was pretty funny, because I was so far off! Well, I'll keep trying of course!

Den Bosch was next, which was a very nice shopping city! Prettier than Rotterdam, and in my opinion better shopping! We all had things we wanted to buy (needed attire for the New Years Party), so we went in and out of basically every shoe and clothing store. Beau and I wanted a glittery top, Pascale wanted to find very specific Vans, and Fiona and I wanted shoes. In the end, none of us bought any of those. We literally shopped for hoouuurrrs. Of course it was a blast though! My feet are still a bit sore from all of the walking.

Lastly was Utrecht! I had been to Utrecht before, but only in the train station. It's very nice! We were there in the evening, so it was already dark outside. The store lights and leftover christmas decorations throughout the main shopping street really gave it an...almost elegant feeling. It was so funny, if we ever have to use the bathroom in general while out and about, the easiest place is normally a McDonalds (doesn't cost too much, maybe 25 cents). So Maartje, Beau and I went to use the bathroom, Beau went first and couldn't get out! The lock was stuck, and after many attempts from Maartje and I to open the door, Maartje had to go ask a worker for help! Luckily Beau finally got it open, but by that time a man and a women had already come in to help. Talk about awkward! Plus, we weren't even customers or anything.

We ate dinner at an Italian restaurant below that street, kind of on the canal. We had hours to kill, so we ate slowly, just talking and gossiping. Afterwards, we figured we might as well head home because all the shops had closed, and there wasn't much else we could do. Plus, it was dark and cold so sightseeing wouldn't be that much fun!

It was such a fun day, one I'll never forget! So many inside jokes and memories made. It's so cool that here one could literally travel all around the country in a day! Anyways, it was a great way to spend one of the last days of 2012. Time is really flying by.

-Molly

Kerstmis!

Christmas has come and gone again. It was gezellig here with eight people- Katharina, her sister Tini, Tim, Dennis, Rob, Marijke and I. On Christmas Eve we had a three-course dinner, and on Christmas day we had a five-course dinner! Each course was prepared by two people. Dennis and I made mussels, and Marijke and I made cute cupcakes that looked like Santa hats!

Sharing gifts Christmas morning was very nice as well- it took hours! From Dennis I got those two posters on my wall (; Vampire Diaries is my favorite show, and I'm slightly in love with Damon Salvator...so it was the perfect gift! I also got very nice perfume from Tim (Burberry!), The Vow, candles, earrings, english/dutch dictionary, and several other gifts! I also opened up boxes I had received in the mail from my aunt in Japan, family friends in Juneau, my gramma, and of course my family!

It's known that Christmas time is the hardest for AFS students, or so I've heard. I can definitely vouch for that...nobody said it was easy, right? Well I won't go too in-depth, but I did have some low points due to homesickness. All in all however, Christmas was gezellig and memorable. I talked with my family for ten minutes or so, and then Skyped them two days later for two hours! It was so so so nice catching up with them, seeing Maddie at home and such (she is home for the holidays). Here my dad's showing me their tree, and pointing out all of my old ornaments I made when I was younger.

On the second night of Christmas (two days are celebrated here), Kat, Tini and I went out to Braaf which was relaxing and leuk. With eight people in the house at all times it got a bit chaotic!

Well, on Christmas Eve I reached the four-month mark here! Sounds like such a long time, but at the same time it went by relatively fast.

-Molly

Kerstgala!

Finally, Kerstvakantie is here! Meaning that Christmas is less than four days away, New Years is soon...and that I can sleep in every day! After school, in celebration of having our last school day in 2012, Beau, Maartje, Pascale and I went to Fiona's house and watched Sex and the City (the movie)! Het was erg gezellig.

   Wednesday was the Kerstgala! My school (Wolfert Lyceum) rented out Sarbone again, the same club in Rotterdam that the Halloween party was held at. Beforehand, I got ready at Beau's house with Pascale, Fiona, Maartje and Beau. From about five in the afternoon until ten, we  were all putting on makeup, painting our nails, doing our hair, dressing, taking pictures, etc.

The party was SO much fun. Similar to "Winterball" in America, all the girls wore formal dresses and had their hair all done up, and many guys wore suits or a nice shirt. For the first hour that we were there, it was very crowded, until at 11:30pm the younger classes had to leave. After those few hundred kids (or so it seemed) left, it was a lot more spacious! The whole night was one to remember, I didn't want it to come to an end at two! However, going back to Beau's house for the night was fun, and funny...we must have stayed up until 3:30 or 4 just talking and laughing. School didn't start until 11am for us the next day though! Nonetheless I was still exhausted the next morning, but luckily I only had three classes for the day.

I'm really looking forward to this Christmas break! I have so many things to look forward to...

-Christmas, of course! Katharina (my older host sister) and her sister from Germany will also be spending Christmas here, which I think will be great! Communication with her sister might be tricky however...I speak no German, she speaks no Dutch- but some English! So we'll so how that goes. Both Christmas evening and the next evening we have 5-course meals, two of those courses I must help prepare! Looking forward to it all...and the exchange of presents with the whole family too! I think it will be a very cheerful, family oriented 24 hours! I'm interested to see just quite how it's celebrated here. So far, I think I like the Sinterklaas gift exchange better, so much more thoughtful. But we shall see!

-New Years Eve! Katharina will also come, along with close family friends. We'll play games, eat good food, set off fireworks and such! Then at midnight I will go with Fiona, Beau, Pascale and Maartje to a big party in my town. Spending the night at Pascale's afterwards!

-The New Years Dive! The next morning we'll go to a popular beach in Den Hague (Scheveningen), and jump into the freezing water along with over 10,000 other people!

-Alaine; on January 2nd, I will go to Amsterdam to meet up with Alaine Miller, a friend from Homer who has been studying in Germany and is traveling to Amsterdam for a few days with friends!

-Skating in Amsterdam! On January 6th, I will go to Amsterdam again to go skating on the canals with other AFSers in my region.

-Shopping; at some point I hope to hit the after-Christmas sales (:

Unfortunately I also have a bit of work to do...I must write a 500 word essay (in Dutch) for my Nederlands class, describing the difference in school systems from here and back home. For maatschipijleer I must write an essay describing the difference in political structure/elections between Holland and America. For IB Engels I must also complete a writing task regarding a book we've recently read...and I'll have to study for my math test! Hopefully I'll have time to fit all of this is...

For now though, SLEEP!

-Molly

Deventer, Sinterklaas, shopping!

A few weekends ago I visited Marlo, in Deventer! It was so interesting to see how a different family in Holland functions, as opposed to my own here! Her Host Family lives right in the center of Deventer, meaning if you walk outside the building you see the bars, restaurants, shopping, etc., and on Saturday looking out her living room window I could see Deventer's market! I think her location is very...convenient. Especially when going out! Deventer itself was such a cute old town, with the "gezellig" feeling of a small town, when in reality it isn't one.

Friday night Marlo and I went out to one of Deventer's local bars, and it was so great catching up with her! Many, well most, of the feelings, experiences, frustrations, realizations that we've both been going through here on exchange seem almost the same. So that was nice, to be able to relate to each other. Saturday we went out to breakfast at Bagels&Beans, and spent the rest of the day shopping and wandering the streets of Deventer. Later we went with her host family to go pick out which puppy they are going to adopt! So that was definitely a highlight as well. The whole weekend was a blast! Loved seeing a totally different part of Holland as well.

Two weeks ago I went to Papendrecht to a house of one of the AFS volunteer's, with all the other AFS kids in my region! Here we had a Sinterklaas celebration of our own, where we exchanged cadeaus, gedichten, and surprises! I got Belgian Hot Chocolate, a make-up bag, lip gloss and a bracelet in my surprise. My surprise was of course, an Igloo! I had to do the same for an AFSer (we knew in advance to whom we had to make something for) and I got Erica, a girl from Italy. So I made a typical Dutch house, filled with Spaghetti noodles! This was my attempt at combining cultures...she had to dig for her cadeau (present), which were owl earrings and a chocolate letter. The picture on the left here is of Erica with the surprise I made her, next to Isa (who made the igloo for me)! The photo below is of everyone together, with a Zwarte Piet (black pete)!

The whole celebration was so much fun, we ate lots of papernoten (specific mini-cookies eaten around Sinterklaas) and Speculaas treats.
The actual date of Sinterklaas was yesterday, December 5th. What is Sinterklaas anyways? Well, I hadn't heard of it either before I came here....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas
that sums it up quite well. For my Host family, weeks before Sinterklaas names are drawn. This year, I drew Renee. This means that I had to buy a present for her (cadeau), craft a surprise that contained the present, and write a gedicht (poem "from" Sinterklaas, which often teases a bit, and hints at the cadeau and surprise). The surprise, cadeau and gedicht must be personal also. Every family member wrote a 'wish-list' to help "Sinterklaas" get them a cadeau. So I looked at Renee's list, which contained certain art kits, books, etc. For her surprise, I crafted a Clothing Store because she wants to have own of her own when she's older.

Above is her surprise I made (I stole a few of her Barbie's clothes and accessories...). The large green box is her actual cadeau wrapped. I bought her a Paint-By-Numbers kit, with an orange cat pawing in a fish bowl. We have an orange cat here named Falkor, who is always doing this at home...so it was sort of an inside joke!

Here is the gedicht I wrote her:
Lieve Renee,

Elke dag Sinterklaas dacht wat hij zou moeten krijgen voor Renee
eindelijk kwam hij met het perfecte idee...

Maar ben je al een goed meisje elke dag?
met jongens je hebt verdacht gedrag...

Sinterklaas denkt nog steeds dat je leuk geweest zijn!
en hij herinnert u wilt uw eigen kledinglijn!

Met dit idee weet hij precies wat te leveren aan,
en Zwarte Piet helpt hem met zijn baan.

Je cadeau komt me bekend voor...
het deed Sinterklaas denken aan Falkor!

Heel veel groetjes,
Sint en Piet

The gedicht must rhyme (AA,BB format) which was SO HARD for me. It must have taken me hours. The basic translation is:
Dear Renee,
Every day Sinterklaas thought what he should get for Renee
finally he came up with the perfect idea ...
But have you been a good girl every day?
with boys you have suspicious behavior ...
Sinterklaas still thinks you have been nice!
and he remembers you want your own clothing line!
With this idea he knows exactly what to create,
and Black Peter helps him with his job.
Your might gift look familiar ...
it reminded Sinterklaas of Falkor!
Many greetings,
Sint and Piet

So, it hints at her surprise as well as her cadeau. It also pokes a little fun, because lately at school she's been a little too wrapped up with boys!
Last night we exchanged surprises and Katharina came over.

The whole night was gezellig. Marijke had me, and I had to dig through some pretty nasty consistancies for my cadeautjes! My surprise(s)! Inside each tub was a cadeau! I got cute slier earrings, a 2013 Agenda planner, a bike seat cover (which was much needed in all of this rainy weather!) and a chocolate letter (M of course). The clinique tub was filled with yellow, sticky hair gel that I had to dig through! The Max Factor tub was filled with crushed papernoten (cookie crumbs basically) to look like eye shadow, that I had to dig through....and the pink tub was filled with yogurt (to look like nail polish!) that I had to dig through also! It was so funny though.

Sinterklaas also came to Wolfert Lyceum on Wednesday, and there was lots of singing, humiliation for some, and papernoten involved...I enjoyed it though!

In two weeks (the 19th I believe) is the Kerstgala, where once again the school rents out a club in Rotterdam for a party! Only this time, as opposed to the Halloween party, it's formal! So last Sunday a few friends from school and I went shopping in Rotterdam (: the theme of the party is Las Vegas, so I bought super glamorous heels to match the dress I have (from one of last years school dances).
Shopping was really fun, I met up with Nhu, Bien and Ella!

Anyways, the Christmas party is the next exciting thing coming up for me! It falls on a wednesday, and then that friday is our last day of school! For New Years eve, my friends and I bought tickets to this biiiig party Bergschenhoek throws! So stoked. The following morning we are going to do the "Holland Dive" or something...in other words, jumping in the freezing ocean in the morning?! It'll be a long 24-hours...but fun no doubt!

-Molly Bowen