My loves,
I had my first day of class, today, and it went well enough, I suppose, but I promised you a post about my first impressions of The Netherlands, so, first things first.
My first thoughts flying into Amsterdam, as soon as I could see land from above the Black Sea, were, "ohhh, there's a beach! LAND, HO!! And there's a... is that a rice paddy...? Where am I?" Then, I had a headslap moment and realized that, of course there would be a water EVERYWHERE, this entire country is below sea level. That information was back there in the recesses of my brain, it just took a little time to show up because of everything I've piled on top of it lately, you know how it is. Apparently, this part of the world is under drought conditions that are ruining their crops and forcing food prices up (I learned that watching BBC One, this morning, while I was getting dressed), but I would not have guess that, with the amount of water in the fields and canals running along some of the roads between the coast and the airport.
From that moment on, though, my impression of this beautiful country went from fairly neutral to increasingly positive. The people here are wonderful. Nice is not the right word, because they are more than that. They are truly friendly, and I don't mean that in a "hi, there, li'l darlin'" (which is perfectly charming, too, don't get me wrong), I mean, no one is a stranger here. I've made friends with literally everyone with whom I have had a conversation, from the guy who helped me get my luggage onto the train from Amsterdam to the guy who sold me a meatball sandwich, yesterday. I feel like I'm among my own kind, here, haha.
Seriously, it amazes me how much you can learn about people in a short amount of time when you are traveling. Yesterday, a very nice man helped me get my luggage on the train from the Airport to Amsterdam, then I sat down in one of those 4-butt seats that face each other (it's a commuter train, so, like Metra, it has a row of seats in each car where one faces forward and one backward) with a sweet older man who told me about his adventures living with the Inuit in Canada for a year, his grandkids, and his 4-day excursion down the coast of Holland to see a WWI site for the week. Then, there was my Iraqi cab driver from the train station to my hotel, who told me about working for an American oil company in Iraq for 15 years, before he moved to The Netherlands and his wife and kids who live in London. He doesn't like London, so he lives in Den Haag and goes to visit them on the ferry.
The front desk clerk (and maybe owner? the jury is still out on that one) in my hotel is a total gem and I has told me all kinds of amusing stories about American law students of the past. Another amazingly nice person I met as I was on my way to class, who lives down the street from my hotel saw me looking for the ear piece for my headphones (I knew it was only a matter of time til I lost it, luckily, I brought the extra ear pieces), told me that she'd keep an eye out for it and would return it to my hotel if she found it (she, also, was an American, but that's just how things are done, here). This morning, at breakfast, everyone greeted me as they walked into to the room or past my table and I don't mean the staff (because, as far as I can tell, it's the front desk clerk and one maid, and there's no one else who works here), I mean the other guests. It was kind of weird, but in a delightful way. This woman sitting a table near me hummed as she prepared her toast, then, when her husband left the room, she asked me if this was my first time in Europe (she had heard me speak to the front desk clerk, so she knew I am an American), and when I told her that it was my first time in The Netherlands, but that I was already falling in love with it, she told me that she fell in love with a Dutchman, first, then the country (she's from London). She figured that was kind of backwards, but I can't think of a better way to fall for a country then to meet your soulmate and fall for HIS homeland, personally. :P
Another thing that I have found interesting about this trip is that not one person has identified me as an American (except that one woman, and she IS British) until I've told them. Which is really odd, because there seem to be a lot of Americans in Den Haag. Everyone and I mean EVERYONE speaks English here. One of the prosecutors from the ICTY came and talked to us, this morning, and then had dinner with us, tonight, and told us that he's lived here 15 years and doesn't speak Dutch. How crazy is that?!?! I asked if his kids do and he said that his son does, for sure, and he's certain his daughter does, as well, but she won't do it in front of him. He also told me that this is great place to raise kids. Don't worry, Dad, I'm pretty sure I'm not falling THAT hard for this place.
Anyway, that's going to have to be it, for now, because I still have homework to do and it's going to be an early morning. More on the class, itself, later. ;)
Hugs and Kisses!
Emily
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