A Week Later...

Hola mi familia!

Well...a week has passed since I last posted...so I figured I should update, even if there is nothing to update on...

Well...First, Academics:

Took my statistics intermediate test...I have yet to see the result, but I do not think it will be very good...The test was confusing, and the wording of the problems seemed odd to me...plus, I found many typos...

Social stuff:

I went to see a band the other night, and they were playing at a venue called "Vera" which is apparently where many famous bands, such as Nirvana, played before they became famous...It was very fun.

Random things:

still painting... it is taking forever...

The background is a portion of the painting-in-progress...then I got bored so I painted what I want the bird in the background to look like on my hand...But now I have decided to change the colors...

yeah...that's about it...boring week. Sorry!

In the future:

My friend, Susi who is studying in Bamberg, Germany, will be coming to visit next Thursday and will stay for a week.

Next week is the last week for classes of this semester then we have a two week break where we prepare for finals which will be happening on the 19th and 20th of April...

When the weather gets better, the girls want me to paint a mural outside in the garden area of sunflowers, so that will be something fun to do when the weather gets nicer, and all the flowers are blooming!

I still miss you all...

Random Post

Okay...here we go. Random post with random pictures...

First of all, Grandy- I told you I would get images of the shower-room, so those are below. It is very hard to get a good image, because the room is large enough to stand in front of the sink or move your body awkwardly to try to get into the shower...

second...I bought paints and and some unstretched canvas, and I am going to start painting. I need to stretch the canvas around the posts of my lofted bed first...but it will be good, I think this painting will take a long time to finish (I am going to do some stitching with a needle and thread after I finish the painting)...yup.

Third, I was wandering around the other day, and I found an alley between two houses, so I took a picture.

Fourth- Gave a presentation in my Business Supply Chain Marketing class, and won (didn't know it was a competition)...prize? four chocolate eggs. Score!

The End.

LOVE YOU!

Amsterdam for the Weekend

Hello family!

I have returned from the weekend in Amsterdam with Marie, my father, and Will. They are currently headed to Belgium…and not to Groningen. :(

We had a lovely time in Amsterdam. Marie took quite a few pictures, and I took less than fifteen. It was understood that I have lost camera privileges when our family goes on vacation, because all my images lack people (woopsies…). Marie said that she wants pictures to document that they were actually there (not just an image of a pretty tree or building :P ). The images to follow are relatively boring, and I am sorry about that.

We saw Amsterdam, did a lot of shopping, and other touristy things. I have decided I must go back on my own/with a friend to visit the museums (for a particular European who reads this blog- “museums” is the plural of museum in English. So there. :P )

Mom- I got you a present…but you don’t get to see it for 5 months. Haha

Grandy- I’ve got your birthday present in mind! Haha, finally, I found something you don’t have (and don’t need.) victory is mine!

A document of the Griffin-Odom-Korf Amsterdam adventure:

Thursday- My father and I arrive in Amsterdam at about 6pm or so. I am super tired (had a headache the whole weekend), so, being the lame person that I am- I sleep. This night was low-key, Marie and Will had yet to arrive. Did nothing.

Friday- My father and I go to get Marie and Will at the airport. Their plane is delayed, then it sits forever on the runway, then it finally pulls into the gate. We all ride a train back to Amsterdam Central, unload at the room, then go out for a cup of coffee. We wander around for a bit, see “The Nine Little Streets” which have quite a few little boutiques that Marie and I enjoyed looking in (I particularly enjoyed a thrift store with a mass amount of clothes that would look absolutely hilarious on…and also I found a mask, which I did not buy, and now I regret not doing so. It was just something silly, but I liked it.) Marie and Will (namely Marie- Will slept like a baby on the plane) start to feel the effects of jet-lag so we have an early dinner, and then call it quits.

Saturday- Late to rise. My father runs next door to get pastries, and a cup of coffee (and by cup, I mean 4-6 ounces of coffee. :P European shocker!) then runs back out to get Marie another cup of coffee. We get out, Marie and I do a little shopping (little = hours) while my father and Will go to a Cannabis museum…yes… We meet up and eat lunch. Then, because we are all tired we go on a boat tour of Amsterdam (where the majority of my pictures come from). We then go back to the room, rest, and head out later for drinks and dinner. After dinner we wander some more, to questionable areas of town. We end up at a cute little café on a side street with delicious coffee and desserts (it is 11 pm by now) before heading home. Sleepy time.

Sunday- Late to rise…again. Vacation time = sleepy time. We had a mission to go to see the museums today. Get to the Rijksmuseum, and see that there is a long line. Decide to go to the Van Gogh museum. We are standing in line at the Van Gogh when we realize that the only person who wants to go into that museum is Marie…so instead, we go into the gift shop. Haha. After that, Marie and I wander the most expensive shopping district in Amsterdam (where we find out that you have to be the size of Audrey Hepburn to wear anything in the shops) while my father and Will go sit down at another café. After Marie and I realize that it is questionable if either of us can fit into the clothes, we join my father and Will, eat a lovely lunch (and the first giant cup of coffee I have had since being in Europe- thank you Café Boven). We end up walking all the way back to our hotel- and shopping more along the way (dang…that was soooo much shopping. Yikes.) We get back by 5pm, I pack, and head off to the train station with my father to come back here.

Now, I have no idea what they are doing…hopefully not getting lost and enjoying themselves. I am back to studying and freaking out again. :(

I am waiting for something super exciting to happen to make my blog more interesting…perhaps I should go partying or something. Hah…

I hope you all are having a lovely time with spring break. I know Aunt Mary is in Virginia with Patricia! And Jenny is partying it up with Grandy and the Norman crew. I miss you all so much!

I love you!

This is the Amsterdam Crest, it consists of three horizontal X's (not symbolizing the red light district or anything risque) and a Crown.

Darned reflection.

The tiniest canal in Amsterdam. You can see that the houses face straight out into the canal- they have doors that would open into the water.

squished houses.

An art pieces in one of the galleries I wandered into

House Party

Hoi!

All the girls in my house + their families + the landlord and his family = cramped but wonderful!

Yes, because the Belgium girl's birthday was on Wednesday (she just turned 21), her family came up from Belgium to visit her. Also, Vera's (the Dutch girl, who is 22) father came today to install the new washing machine (the other one was broken.)...then the landlord came, and his daughter is the girl whose room I am taking, so she was here as well, and then my father showed up, and it was one cramped extravaganza.

One of the girls yelled "We need a group photo!" so we all went outside to take pictures. Thus, you are about to see extra images of the house, and my roommates with their fathers.

Other than that- I must keep studying. I have a lot to try and teach myself, and very little time to do it in.

I love you all!

(for Grandy- what it looks like under my bed)

(washing machine and "oven")

(The backyard- right now it looks gross, but that is because it is winter...obviously.)

(the bathroom...)

(The kitchen- really hard to get a better picture than this. Use your imagination)

(What it looks like as you enter the house)

The girls and the fathers- From left to right: Vera (The Dutch) and her father, then it is the girl whose room I am taking and her father (the landlord), then it is he girl from Belgium and her father, and you know the last two...and like usual, I'm only one looking in the wrong direction. Go me.

(All the dads- The Dutch, another Dutch, a Belgium, and the American)

My New Place

Hey everyone!

Sorry I have not updated in awhile. I have been busy trying not to drown in my classes and also searching for a new place.

Anywho...since the windmill adventure, nothing has happened. I have been super lame, hulled up in my room every day just watching the time pass.

I do think part of the problem with me finding friends here was the previous place I lived. I need to be around other internationals, and I was around 5 other Dutch girls (which was fine, just not what I think I need right now).

I have a new place (pictures will follow). It is with two other girls, one who is Dutch, and the other who is a foreign exchange student from Belgium. The house has a little backyard/patio area which will be wonderful in the summer time. There is no common living area, but that is fine because my room has a couch, plus...I think I like this layout more.

The whole house consists of:
- tiny hallway
- three bedrooms
-closet with washing machine
-room with shower and sink
-bathroom
-kitchen
-garden area

I like it here. It is on a quiet, quaint street, a fifteen minute walk to the city center, and closer to my campus.

Next weekend I will journey to Amsterdam to join the Griffin-Odom-Korf clan...oh my.

:P

I love you all, and miss you all more than ever!

Taylor