Through the eyes of… Kristine Moiseikova from Latvia: Very kind and open-minded people

Waking up one morning, I found myself in a new world. Everything seemed so different, but I enjoyed it. I liked that I can explore my new world. I had never been to the Netherlands before. I didn’t know anything about this country. Thus, the more interesting it was for me to get acquainted with it. More

Through the eyes of… Feng Chien Kao (Connie) from Taiwan: Clean Air and Small Classes

After 13 hours flight, I arrived at Schiphol Airport. It was the first time I visited to Europe. Everything was so new and fresh. I was surprised that the Dutch were so tall. I seemed like a child in the crowd. More

Through the eyes of… Martina Andrés from Spain: smiling people and strange eating times

Coming to the Netherlands has been one of the most exciting adventures in my life. And it still is. I don’t know exactly what I expected when I first came here. Meeting new people, discovering  amazing places, learn, have fun, these are things we all think about when we face a situation like this, when we leave our home countries and take the decision of starting a new life anywhere else. More

Through the eyes of… Marieke Sucker from Germany: Pretty tiny houses and open people

Before I started my studies here in Leeuwarden, I had never been to the Netherlands, even though it only takes me a three-hour road trip from where I used to live in Germany. Why I never came here? I don’t know, maybe because I thought as close neighbours of Germany, the Netherlands wouldn’t be so different andtherefor uninteresting. But only my very first visitprovedme wrong. I was really surprised on the first sight and never stop discovering habits, behaviours, traditions, and places that are different from Germany. More

Through the eyes of… Dela Cardona

I have been in Leeuwarden for more than half a year now, but when I first got here, there was a lot of stuff that surprised me. For example, at the beginning it was quite awkward because at the time of introducing to someone, everyone shook my hand! In Spain, the normal thing to do is to introduce to someone giving to kisses in the cheeks, and that’s why every time I met someone I got closer with the intention of kissing them, but they gave me their hand to shake it. At the beginning it was a bit uncomfortable to me, but now shaking hands is the normal thing to me. More

Through the eyes of… Aline Barbosa from Brazil: Houseboats and quiet parties

Hallo allemaal. My name is Aline Barbosa, I’m Brazilian, 30 years old and I moved to the Netherlands for Love. I knew a couple of things about Holland. In Brazil we learned about the Dutch in school. How they also tried to build a colony in Brazil, but were expelled by Portuguese and British in 1637. More

Through the eyes of… Anna Greifeneder from Austria: A different way to drink beer and budget-friendly coffee

For me as an exchange student from Austria it was predictable that I won´t have that huge of a cultural shock, because Austria is, as well as the Netherlands, located in Northwest Europe. I guessed life and things will be quite similar to my home country, but there are more differences than I have thought there would be. I have noticed many small and nondescript seeming things. More

Through the eyes of… Tomás O’Reilly Gallardo from Spain: The irony and excessive kindness

I arrived in Leeuwarden on January 26th. Prior to my Erasmus application, I had never heard of the city or even Friesland for that matter, so I didn’t really know what to expect. I read in forums that students here had a wonderful time, but I was unsure whether this tiny northern Dutch city would suit me, what would the people be like and a thousand other questions that were flying through my head. It was already dark when I set foot outside the station and the first thing I saw was a whole set of party-like lights and decoration. It was indeed the first of many times I was going to hear the words “Cultural Capital of Europe”. More

Through the eyes of… Karolina Dasenkovaite from Lithuania: Wooden shoes and a greeting from the bus driver

Early morning. You open your eyes and see the world. The world, that is completely new to you, whose walls are freshly painted with the bright new colors you see around yourself. New surroundings, new people, new experiences, new, new, new… More

Through the eyes of… Leo Wildhagen from Germany – Monthly noises and strange kisses

My name is Leo. I am a foreign third year student at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences in Leeuwarden. I was born and raised in the western part of Germany, an hour from the Dutch border. Moreover, my family is partly Dutch. Therefore, I had contact with the Dutch culture nearly all my life. I went to Callantsoog for holidays and ate massive amounts of Kibbeling and Vla. However, when I moved to the Netherlands, I recognized a lot of things, which were weird or special to me. More