A New Chapter Begins: My Amsterdam Adventures
Disclaimer: ただの私の思考整理Noteとなります。誰に対する批判もなく、思ったことをoff the top of my headで書いています。温かい目でご容赦ください。
New Challenges in Amsterdam
My journey abroad continues! Since studying in the UK in 2022, I've embarked on a new adventure in Amsterdam. My time in Sheffield was incredible. I met the best ever person in Sheffield, broadened my horizons, and experienced personal growth.
Simultaneously, it also left me with some regrets. What if I worked part-time. What if I could speak English more fluently. What if I travelled further. What if I ate healthier…
These regrets, along with my academic aspirations, fueled my decision to move to Amsterdam.
This note reflects on how I have been for the first month in Amsterdam.
Crossing the border by bus (with a few bumps)
My journey to Amsterdam wasn't the smoothest. I came to Europe by plane with a Malaysian airline. I had a five-hour layover in Malaysia, which was much better than the eight-hour layover I had in Thailand last time. During the five-hour layover, I ate porridge to feel more comfortable.
Since the ambience on the plane was mid the layover was actually quite pleasant. The next flight, however, from Malaysia to Heathrow, the UK was terrible for me. The airplane was too cold and I could not sleep well. My throat and body ached, partly because I forgot to bring a face mask. When I arrived at Heathrow, I realised I was surprisingly not upset at all. Instead, I felt a wave of nostalgia and emotion as memories of the atmosphere and scenery flashed back.
I took a bus to Sheffield to meet my boyfriend. The drive sucked and I got car sick. To be fair, It's been a while since I've been exposed to British accents, especially Yorkshire accents. Sometimes I struggled to understand my boyfriend and his flatmate's conversations, but it gradually became easier.
A week in Sheffield
I spent six days in Sheffield before heading to Amsterdam. I was supposed to meet my friends there but most of them had already left so I hung out with only one friend. There wasn't much new to experience. I relaxed, went out with my friend or alone, and visited my favourite cafe, 100 Degrees. Unfortunately, severe illness did not allow me to go to pubs. But I feel like I will definitely come back to the UK one day, so I am holding back for now.
The highlight of my stay was I would say when they got a new sofa. They had just moved into their new house a few weeks ago so that not all the rooms were furnished. I was also going to pick up the sofa with them in a rented van at a nearby Costco. First of all, I did not know we could rent a van. On top of that, It was my first time going to Costco in a foreign country. We got a good quality second-hand sofa. The point was the traffic. traffic congestion due to construction made it difficult to get home directly, so we had to carry the sofa a short distance. I was in charge of the key to open the door but I didn't know how to do it, which might have annoyed them since the sofa was very heavy. Even though it was a short distance, it was torture to keep it up. Plus, the sofa was pretty large and fit through the door. Luckily, my boyfriend and his flatmate, who are engineers (which might not matter, anyway), were able to disassemble some parts and get it inside.
I was a bit stressed through the whole process to be fair.
But there is a cat called Goatee. I never remember his name. My bad.
I have converted to a cat person, so it was heaven for me to have him around. Even though he was a kitten and super playful and sometimes bit me, I was happy to be with him
My time in Sheffield was pretty chill except for watching Deadpool and Wolverine. I just pissed my boyfriend off for a certain reason haha.
It was great. He will be coming next month if he does not tell me a lie. I'm looking forward to his visit next month.
Moving in Amsterdam
My arrival in Amsterdam was a bit unique. I took a night bus from Sheffield to Amsterdam, which took around 15 hours. The journey was intense all in all. My boyfriend drove me to Meadowhall station and I easily boarded the bus. I just showed my passport and got on the bus. However, my assigned seat was uncomfortable. The bus was also noisy and uncomfortable, but my noise-cancelling headphones helped thanks to my dad's gift. I was contemplating changing the seats with someone and I traded with someone.
There was a border check in the middle of nowhere. We were asked to get off the bus with our passports and the process was too quick. Afterwards, We then boarded a ferry to France. The ferry was fine, but it was a bit cold. I was very tired and didn't know when I should get back on the bus, so I could not sleep to check the others. Anyhow, I finally got to Amsterdam and I called Bolt to pick me up. I was supposed to take a train but I was exhausted and didn't have the energy to carry my heavy suitcase.
When I arrived at my accommodation, I first picked up the key. I had a brief chat with an exchange student from Hong Kong while waiting in line. This made me feel more mature and confident in my ability to talk to anyone. When I got into my room, I was really satisfied with how spacious my room was. My room was spacious and much nicer than the one I had in the UK, and the rent was fairly cheap. I share the kitchen and bathroom with one flatmate. By the way, she is down-to-earth and lovely.
For the first 3 days, I lived there by myself and my flatmate then moved in with her boyfriend, his cousin and his mom. I was a bit upset at first, but they made me feel welcome and included.
Preparation for the 2024 academic year
After arriving, I was busy settling in. I needed to open a bank account, register the municipality, go grocery shopping and so forth.
Also, I was kinda obsessed with thrifting and I looked up the online free market on Facebook and I found some great items like a yoga mat and decorations.
One of my aspirations was to work part-time whilst studying. Before coming to Amsterdam, I applied for a job at a Japanese restaurant and managed to get an interview on my first day when I arrived, which I know was crazy.
That was easy to get the job (the story does not end…).
Since I have a job, I do not really care about the payment so much as I used to in the UK. It has been good for my mental health so much even though my parents have been supporting me financially.
In the introduction days, I participated in various university events, including sessions on Dutch culture and language, and student association information.
On the last day, there was a closing party. I did not get the ticket since I was not in the mood in Japan where most people are not extroverts when I got the information about party. But since I came here, my extroverted personality has evolved again. But it was too late. As the university has rigorous control over the participants due to the age restriction, I could not buy a ticket from someone else who could not come to join the party. I used to plan in that way and my friends supported me even though they tried to convince the staff to let me get the tickets. This taught me a valuable lesson about planning ahead and dealing with rejection.
I also met some nice friends during the introduction weeks. However, it's been challenging to meet up regularly due to our different class schedules and the fact that we live far apart.
Anywho, I am so glad to meet them.
The Uni started
At the end of August, there was an introduction day for my course; International Business Law; Climate Change and Cooperation. I met my coursemates and they are very friendly. We introduced ourselves and played a game of two truths and a lie. My coursemates were diverse; approximately 40% were local Dutch students and the rest were from different countries; Germany, Kenya, Korea, Portugal, Hungary, Turkey, and Poland.
Before the class started, we had a trip to the lake. it was completely free and we enjoyed vegan food and drinks. I accidentally left my favourite water bottle behind, but it was okay. I could know my coursemates and my professor. Some of my coursemates were surprised when I told them I was going to Bangkok, but they were also encouraging. This was a great opportunity to meet people from different countries and learn about their cultures. I was genuinely competent when I came here to join this programme.
Crazy Schedule; Go back to Asia for 3 days 5 nights
I was going to write the first week of the university but I needed to let you know I skipped three out of four classes. Why? I went to Bangkok haha.
The reason was not for sightseeing. I was participating in the IUCN Regional Conference in Asia. If you are interested, please go to the page here; The 8th IUCN Asia Regional Conservation Forum (RCF 2024) | IUCN
My schedule was hectic. I had a class from 11 AM to 12:45 PM, then took a taxi to the airport (only 15 minutes away), and caught a flight at 3 PM.
I flew with Emirates, which has a long check-in line, so I avoided checked baggage and used my digital passport to expedite the process. I could make it anyway.
On the last night before I flew to Bangkok, I had mixed feelings that even though I came to Amsterdam to study, what I was doing. I was questioning my decision to go back to Asia and skip classes, as it felt like I wasn't starting my academic life properly.
However, I could not prioritise something. I wanted to do both, and I didn't regret my decision.
By the way, I published a part of my conference experiences here (available in Japanese and English);
IUCN Youth Session Day 2（日英） - IUCN日本委員会
2日目: アジアからのIUCN-ビジネスコラボレーションの強化（日英） - IUCN日本委員会
Luckily, my friend shared some notes with me, so I was able to catch up on the classes I missed. Just heads-up
Conscious Periods
When I came back to Amsterdam, there were many challenges I faced.
1. Offensive Whatsapp Icon
The thing happened the day before the first class began. One day, I found the group icon was changed to a meme I found offensive due to its historical and political connotations. Although the dude who changed it apologised, his message seemed dismissive of the offence caused. Just quickly explaining, it was the screenshot of the meme that Biden faced with Eastern Asian countries and the background was the stripe of red and white. That reflects the history of WW2 and the current political issues. It was just he did not know that was inappropriate.
Disappointing. Shame on him.
Since then, I have gone to the Academic Advisory and even student therapy to seek support. That was very helpful. This experience understandably upset you. However, I turned it into a positive by sharing information about what is happening in East Asia with others who may not be aware of the current situation and absorbing the information on social media without considering anything (sarcasm).
I've started a social media account to promote environmental cooperation in East Asia. I began by focusing on international law to gain a big picture of international law in general.
Please check it out!
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/neasiaccc_ll?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
2. Working Permit Issue
As mentioned, I wanted to work part-time. So I applied for part-time.
My first choice was a Japanese restaurant. Why? because I wanted to enjoy free Japanese food. I knew I'd miss Japanese cuisine, so I focused on applying to Japanese restaurants. I received responses from two restaurants in Amsterdam.
One restaurant seemed promising. The owner initially appeared friendly. However, I felt a bit offended by the attitude of the owner at the other restaurant, who seemed to look down on me. Despite this, I remained determined to work.
The first job was fine. I was a bit nervous, but my boss and coworkers were friendly. The restaurant was mostly staffed by Japanese people, which made me feel at home.
However, unfortunately,I realised I hadn't asked the manager to apply for my working permit. Otherwise, it would be illegal. When I asked, he said
NO
I did not really get why he did not deal with it. I am pretty sure he mixed up with working VISA cos he explained something stupid and incorrect about the process and claimed it was expensive and time-consuming in an improper way as a demure adult. In reality, it's free and takes only five weeks.
On the bright side, that proved some Japanese people may not understand their domestic labour law and run businesses. For future students in Amsterdam, I recommend being cautious when working at Japanese restaurants.
So since he did not deal with the working permit, I had to quit the job. I was initially upset but decided to find a better job. I didn't enjoy the way some Japanese staff treated customers at the restaurant, which was stressful. However, the location was convenient, though.
Eventually, I found another job at an Italian restaurant near the city centre. The manager was very friendly and mentioned wanting to travel to Japan someday. He even knew some Japanese, possibly from self-study. I'm looking forward to starting this new job.
So Ill see how it goes there and hopefully I can work there!!
I felt in a different way
I would like to reflect on the thoughts I had about studying abroad here.
1. The way to think about language
Language has been the most fascinating aspect of my experience. In the UK, I intentionally avoided Japanese people to improve my English, and I believe it was effective. I also limited my exposure to Japanese content on social media and YouTube. I tried to immerse myself in English.
However, I realise that this approach isn't very crucial for me right now. Because a) I got to improve my English to some extent despite I still have room for improvement, b)many international students and Dutch students do not force them to use English as much as I did in the UK. c) I promised my parents to keep them updated so I should not be away from the chat tool in Japanese.
The first one was no need to explain. In the UK, English was their official language otherwise I put so much effort into learning English since I did not want to feel embarrassed and disappointed in myself when I could not communicate with them smoothly. To make friends, to order food, to pick up packages, I constantly pushed myself out of my comfort zone, which was stressful but ultimately made me stronger and more confident. I don't feel that way here anymore. But those experiences made me much stronger and more confident. I never feel that way anymore here.
Another new realisation is that even though many Dutch people can speak English, their native language is Dutch so they communicate with locals in Dutch. Their English proficiency may not be as high as native English speakers (no offence). This made me realise that people who speak English as a second language can be more empathetic. I used to be afraid of being rejected in the UK due to my limited English skills, but I feel much more comfortable in Amsterdam. My flatmates and neighbours sometimes speak in Russian (neither of us is Russian), which motivated me to learn Chinese as a third language.
2. Mental health and physical health
When I was in the UK, I did not really care about my health due to financial constraints. I was broke so I just ate cheap, processed foods and sweets. I gained weight, felt stressed, and was overeating. That was the terrible negative circulation of my mental and physical health.
However, I realised the connection between mental and physical health and it came to my mind that I started working out, which has positively impacted my mental health. I also pay attention to my diet, focusing on healthy foods like fermented foods and vegetables. This has been beneficial so far. To go further, I plan to join a gym 1 minute away from mine!
Alright, that's the end of my reflections on the first month! There are still a lot of things to come. But I feel like it's going to be great.
Stay tuned for my upcoming reflection ;))