我在阿姆斯特丹的留学经历

I spent a recent Saturday biking through millions of tulips in the 荷兰 countryside. Alongside my new friends, we cycled past windmills, canals, and countless vibrantly colored tulips before we stopped next to some fields for a picnic. 我骑自行车的时候， I reflected on how out of my comfort zone I felt when I first moved to Amsterdam and how much I had learned – about myself and the world – over the past semester.  
 
This winter and spring, I participated in the IES Abroad Amsterdam - Social Sciences and Humanities program, one of scores of approved programs available to Skidmore students 通过其 校外学习交流处. I chose Amsterdam because I felt up for the challenge of living independently in 欧洲城市. I wanted to experience studying at a European university and was drawn to the charm of the Netherlands’ scenic canals and bike culture.  
 
I knew I would be well supported in my decision by Skidmore because more than half of Skidmore students study abroad at some point during their college experience. As a Skidmore student, you can choose from 120 programs in 45 countries, which include Skidmore-run项目 in England, France, New Zealand, and Spain, as well as shorter, faculty-led travel 研讨会. 火博体育甚至有 在伦敦的第一年经历. 
 
That being said, moving to another country by yourself is still scary! 当我带着 my suitcase into my new apartment, it hit me that I was all alone in a foreign country without the support system I had built for myself at Skidmore.  
 
My first few weeks were filled with lots of new things: making new friends, learning a complicated public transit system, navigating the language barrier, and exploring 这个城市. 而我却习惯了 火博体育餐厅 for tasty and healthy meals, I was now responsible for all of my grocery shopping 和烹饪. Suddenly, I was taking classes at the University of Amsterdam, a major research university with over 40,000 students in the center of Amsterdam. 这是 a very different experience to Skidmore’s tight knit community, small classes, and 风景如画的校园 在萨拉托加斯普林斯.

 

Within just two months of being in the Netherlands, I made friends, found routines, and had experiences that made me love studying there. 我最喜欢的课是高光课 荷兰艺术史. Our professor was a 荷兰 art curator who took us on weekly field trips to museums and architectural sites, where we learned about the Netherlands’ 丰富的艺术历史和文化. Through this class we were granted a private tour of the Van Gogh Museum by the museum’s main curator, who educated us on Van Gogh’s life and work, as well as the many decisions behind curating such an important collection 的艺术.  
 
On a different trip with IES in my second month, I met cows, made traditional gouda cheese, and learned about clog making at Clara Maria, a farm right outside of Amsterdam. In my free time, I regularly went to Amsterdam’s numerous bustling street markets, where I would eat two of my favorite 荷兰 desserts: stroopwafels and poffertjes (tiny pancakes covered in powdered sugar and butter). 到了第三个月，我穿上了 orange to attend a spirited Netherlands verus Scotland football game, like a true 粉丝.   

 
When I’m on campus at Skidmore, one of my favorite ways to spend my time is playing for the Skidmore Wombats, our ultimate frisbee team. 这是一个充满活力，奉献和 fun community that I knew I would miss dearly while abroad. 因为我有多少 love playing frisbee at Skidmore, I joined a student ultimate frisbee team in Amsterdam 名为NUTS Ultimate. It turned out to be an incredibly fun way for me to find routine 和欧洲的社区. I attended weekly practices and bonded with the very international team, making friends with individuals from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Hungary, 和新加坡. I got to know my teammates through regular social outings, such as ice skating and boat rides on Amsterdam’s canals.  
 
After this semester, I have learned so much about other cultures and ways of life. I am more independent, confident in my ability to navigate a foreign country on my own, and I have faced countless real-world challenges that have taught me skills I 会在我的余生中使用吗.