Netherlands

Even when living in what I think is the most beautiful city in the world – Utrecht – during my time abroad, the school year or just day-to-day life can get stressful. When that happens, I like to focus on the little things that bring me joy and remind me that the world around me isn’t just about stress.

Even though showing up on-time to class may feel like a burden, I’m glad that I’m finally learning to perfect punctuality – even if being on-time may be five minutes earlier than planned.

The ability to head anywhere on my bike, as opposed to having to wait for the bus or take an Uber, is liberating like nothing else.

On Monday morning, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake and subsequent aftershocks struck southern Turkey and Syria. 

After months of preparation and jittery nervousness, I’m heading to the Netherlands for my exchange program.

We started our day trip to Amsterdam with an arguably late start. After having arrived in Rotterdam the previous day, we spent all night catching up.

I found myself bonding myself to the other Californians over our joint unfamiliarity with snow and the experience of being from the same, glorious state.

“Nothing bad happens here, it’s completely safe,” my friends and I say as we complain about our home country. But, on Monday about 10:35 a.m., something unbelievable happened.

Located in the heart of Europe, Aachen is a city of understated beauty and character. Once the center of Charlemagne’s empire, Aachen is now a small, relatively lesser known German city, but totally worth a day-long visit.

Among all the MCB, EECS and pre-Haas-or-maybe-econ majors, it can be easy to forget that there are dozens of different majors available to choose from.