Many of you have been asking me to tell you about where I am living now, and you may have noticed that I have not done so. In keeping w/the old adage referenced in the title and in an effort to demonstrate that I did, in fact, learn a lesson or two from the whole Chad fiasco, I have not yet given any info or anecdotes about Maastricht. But since no situation is ever wholly bad (even there is not much good), I offer the following:
-- I like the town. Maastricht is a medium-sized city that is a bit of an oddity in this region. The Limburg region of the Netherlands is not unlike the Southeastern US -- poorer, less educated, and its inhabitants identify more w/their region than they do w/the rest of the country, but also friendlier and more easy-going than the rest of the country. Maastricht, however, is quite wealthy, populated mostly by posh middle-aged and older people, along w/a large college community. The city itself is small enough that a person does not need a car, but also has a lot of bigger city attractions -- TONS of shopping, lots of cultural events/festivals, restaurants, etc., not unlike Charleston.
-- The River Maas runs through the town, leading to very picturesque daily walks across the bridge. I live in a nice neighborhood on the 'new' side of the river (it's still medieval) and my office is on the old side (initially settled by the Romans -- holy crap!), so each day I walk across the river at least twice and have been treated to lovely sunsets, cloudscapes as the rains move in and out, and this amazing fog that fills the streets and settles on the river in a layer so thick, you cannot see the end of the bridge on which you walk. You all know how much I love water, so this makes living inland seem not so bad.
-- The buildings in the older parts of town are great -- medieval, Renaissance, and 18th century stone contraptions w/slate roofs...Very nice. Oh, and the streets are nearly all cobblestone in these areas, which is quaint.
-- I like that they have hung and lit the Christmas garlands across the streets and now the stores are open past 5 and on Sundays.
-- I LOVE my favorite cafe/pub where the owners know my name and I only pay for half of my drinks, and they always have good music -- Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, etc. Also, it is the smallest cafe in the Netherlands and is super-cute.
-- I have met nice people and really like my living situation. Our apartment is awesome -- three stories and everyone has their own room -- and well-located (you can Google it if you want: Wycker Grachtstraat 24, Maastricht). Since my roommates are also students in my program, we are all often busy and therefore do not usually have logistical problems like bathroom-sharing or laundry issues. But when we are home, we often cook together or watch movies (or Gilmore Girls if Melissa is in charge) or just chat and hang out. We also do fun things like bicycling or dancing (well, everyone else bicycles all the time, but I only bike when it's above 60/15 and when we are not in the busy parts of town -- haha -- and we only go dancing when the School has an event w/a DJ b/c the only dance club in town is called 'Dance Club for Students' which tells you all you need to know). We go to places w/other people from the school, like the shisha bar or the Turkish restaurant a few towns over or this neat movie theater that plays only indie films and is staffed entirely by volunteers. I now have good friends from Uganda, India, Turkey, and of course the EU, so I will have lots of interesting vacation options in the future!
-- There is a small nature preserve not far from my house where wild horses live. I was disappointed the first time I went there b/c I did not see the horses, but every time I have been back I have seen them and they even followed me around one time, which made me happy except that I wasn't sure how wild they really are and I was worried that they would start chasing me or would bite me if I petted them -- haha....
-- What I like best is that I will be here for only one year.
-- I like the town. Maastricht is a medium-sized city that is a bit of an oddity in this region. The Limburg region of the Netherlands is not unlike the Southeastern US -- poorer, less educated, and its inhabitants identify more w/their region than they do w/the rest of the country, but also friendlier and more easy-going than the rest of the country. Maastricht, however, is quite wealthy, populated mostly by posh middle-aged and older people, along w/a large college community. The city itself is small enough that a person does not need a car, but also has a lot of bigger city attractions -- TONS of shopping, lots of cultural events/festivals, restaurants, etc., not unlike Charleston.
-- The River Maas runs through the town, leading to very picturesque daily walks across the bridge. I live in a nice neighborhood on the 'new' side of the river (it's still medieval) and my office is on the old side (initially settled by the Romans -- holy crap!), so each day I walk across the river at least twice and have been treated to lovely sunsets, cloudscapes as the rains move in and out, and this amazing fog that fills the streets and settles on the river in a layer so thick, you cannot see the end of the bridge on which you walk. You all know how much I love water, so this makes living inland seem not so bad.
-- The buildings in the older parts of town are great -- medieval, Renaissance, and 18th century stone contraptions w/slate roofs...Very nice. Oh, and the streets are nearly all cobblestone in these areas, which is quaint.
-- I like that they have hung and lit the Christmas garlands across the streets and now the stores are open past 5 and on Sundays.
-- I LOVE my favorite cafe/pub where the owners know my name and I only pay for half of my drinks, and they always have good music -- Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, etc. Also, it is the smallest cafe in the Netherlands and is super-cute.
-- I have met nice people and really like my living situation. Our apartment is awesome -- three stories and everyone has their own room -- and well-located (you can Google it if you want: Wycker Grachtstraat 24, Maastricht). Since my roommates are also students in my program, we are all often busy and therefore do not usually have logistical problems like bathroom-sharing or laundry issues. But when we are home, we often cook together or watch movies (or Gilmore Girls if Melissa is in charge) or just chat and hang out. We also do fun things like bicycling or dancing (well, everyone else bicycles all the time, but I only bike when it's above 60/15 and when we are not in the busy parts of town -- haha -- and we only go dancing when the School has an event w/a DJ b/c the only dance club in town is called 'Dance Club for Students' which tells you all you need to know). We go to places w/other people from the school, like the shisha bar or the Turkish restaurant a few towns over or this neat movie theater that plays only indie films and is staffed entirely by volunteers. I now have good friends from Uganda, India, Turkey, and of course the EU, so I will have lots of interesting vacation options in the future!
-- There is a small nature preserve not far from my house where wild horses live. I was disappointed the first time I went there b/c I did not see the horses, but every time I have been back I have seen them and they even followed me around one time, which made me happy except that I wasn't sure how wild they really are and I was worried that they would start chasing me or would bite me if I petted them -- haha....
-- What I like best is that I will be here for only one year.
1 comment:
Hmmmm... sounds nice. I wonder if I should write something similar about where I live in Philly. "I have a wonderful view of the electric plant which provides so much pollution that I can barely see the garbage filled river. It reminds me of former East Berlin, in a good way..."
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