I'm Here. I'm Really Here.

And it's exhausting.

The past few days have been a whirlwind of orientation and just figuring out how to do simple things in a whole new way. There are things like:

1. I can't read what it says on the shampoo and none of it is the same. Therefore, I choose one with someone very happy on it. Hey, her hair looks good, right?

2. WE CANNOT OPEN OUR FRIDGE. Last night my roommate and I bought groceries, finally, which is an ordeal in itself. Then, our fridge was like suction closed. Luckily some friends let us store our stuff in their room.

3. Lighting our stove necessitates a lighter or match. Of which we had neither. Another success.

4. Realization? No one eats cereal in the Netherlands. So they don't really sell it anywhere. Who knew that was a thing?

5. Oh my God, you really do have to ride a bike everywhere at an extremely fast pace. Now go find one and don't get ripped off.

And much, much more.

This is normal, though. The foreign adjustment, I live in a sketchy apartment panic.

Here are the things that are flat out amazing:

1. I can literally see an old windmill (part of a brewery) from my window.

2. Everyone is tall. It was actually shocking, getting off the plane. It was like I was related to everyone.

3. And that means everything is my size. A lot of the people in the program can only see their eyes in the bathroom mirror. For me? Perfect.

5. The have wine and beer at the university cafeteria. That is awesome.

6. Yesterday morning I had Dutch coffee (best ever) and a croissant in a cute Dutch cafe for breakfast. It was kind of an out-of-body experience.

7. I successfully set up internet! Me. A wireless router. No problems. Guess I was more of a techie than I thought.

8. We wrote down a list of goals for ourselves as an activity. Number 3 for me was "be mistaken for a local." I thought this was good because it meant I didn't have a constant look of confusion on my face. I met this goal an hour after I wrote it.

9. Amsterdam is beautiful. And I live here.