Sunday, January 31, 2010

Nether-gay

And here comes the weekend...

Saturday was a beautiful day! The sun was out, there were no clouds - and it snowed overnight. The sight of Rotterdam was gorgeous. :) I love these days. 

Anyways, I went to a Zumba class - and I got to practice all the hip moves and popping while getting my cardio on! The class was taught in Dutch, which by this time, I'm already used to it. (I'm known as the girl who only speaks English in my gym. Ha.) The gym is owned by Mister Universe, btw. (who has the cutest little girl and puppy!) I came home feeling good because I ran to the gym and back to my apartment and up the stairs. Great stuff, I tell you. I'm determined to impress myself by the end of this trip. It should be rewarding. 

As the day goes on, my roommate and I went cycling around town and went into two museums - Wereldmuseum and Museum van Boijmans Beuningen. We also went through Witte de With, which is a very hip street where apparently everything happens. We also went to Hotel New York, where in the past that was the stopping point for people migrating to New York. Yes, indeed it was a very productive day, and we took advantage of the nice weather. :)

Be proud. We went out Saturday night...finally. Guess where we went? Gay Palace, of course! I was literally in heaven being surrounded by gay boys, and then it made me miss all of my gay friends. :( My roommate and I are taking turns with the night clubs - went to the gay bar for her (yes, she's a lesbian) and going to a straight bar this coming Saturday! How did we get to the club, you ask? We cycled of course! It was great. Ha. We dreaded it, and tried to talk ourselves into staying at home - BUT we've been here for weeks and we still haven't gone out!

Gay Palace - you can't miss it, it's got the name in huge and bold letters outside of the building. Not only did we dance the night away, but I got hit on (by a guy!). Whoa, right? So for me to get rid of him, I sat down next to my roommate and told him that she was my girlfriend. Caught her off guard and she sucked as my girlfriend because he didn't leave. Haha. I also met a drag, her name is Nichole and she was interesting to look at. She spoke to me (in her guy voice, of course) in Dutch at first, and it was cute because she saw me yawn. I was exhausted and it was only 2am. The club is open until 5:30. Whoa. No, we didn't stay out that late. Bad idea. This night, I was also reunited with my best friend, Jose Cuervo. :)

The International Film Festival is still going on, and I still haven't watched one movie! I will watch a movie so that I can say that I went to the film festival! Maybe tomorrow. 

Sunday was also another productive day. I finally went to church! Everything was in Dutch, but I understood what was going on and even read along the readings in Dutch. The songs that the choir sang were in English though. It's a huge church, and there were plenty of empty pews. :(  I cycled to church - yet another beautiful (and cold!) day. After church, I went to the gym and ran my life away until I couldn't anymore (meaning 30 minutes later...haha). Then, I went to the grocery store to buy bread, milk, and a big bag of french fries! Dutch people shop at least once a week. In America, we buy in bulks and there are times where we wouldn't go grocery shopping for weeks. 

Last night, I was eating a peanut butter sandwich when I realized the bread had mold. By that time, I already ate two slices. Ew, right? Oh well. 


I also think I'm getting sick. All the cycling and running outside is giving me a cold which sucks because here, they don't have cold medicine. We just have to suck it up. 


Oh! And I finished my lesson plan for 11 days over verbal practice and 4 days over pronunciation! I'm in a good mood. I hope this lasts a while. :)

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Nether-lackin

I'm sorry I've been failing at writing on my blog everyday - I honestly don't have much motivation to do much of anything right now. Oh, no, I'm fine...just being lazy. 

Thursday: I woke up late, been doing that a lot lately. I thought that I had to teach at 9:05 so I got dressed quickly and ran to the tram stop. As it turns out, I didn't have to teach until 12:20, and the 9:05 was cancelled due to French listening exam. I had a class at 9:55 and we just went over the answers for their literature test next Thursday. My lesson at 12:20 went well. We talked about argumentative essays, played four corners, discussed controversial topics, and started filling in the web I made for them. Some of the students did really well, while some I just don't know how to get them to care and participate. Ugh. I'll work on it. After that class, I went to an after school kind of thing - where students who are having problems with English came in for extra help. It was from 2-4 every Thursday. The only problem is only one student came, and that's how it's been. So I'm working with one of the teachers to make this class more productive and try to get more students to come. I have to come up with 5 lessons on pronunciation to teach on Tuesdays - same program, just different day. I also have to write a letter to the parents and students about the importance of English. Before I do all of this, I have to email my overseas coordinator to see if he approves. So I have my own project! The same teacher also wants me to help out with "Open School Day" and she wants me to make posters with English proverbs, riddles, etc. I'm psyched about it. 

After all that hassle with the class, I met up with my roommate and my overseas coordinator to take pictures for the school website. We also received our bikes later on in the afternoon! My O.C. wants to take pictures of us riding our bikes. Ha. We also met some of the primary school students who attend this after school program at our school. The students meet once a week for six weeks and take classes that our school offers - like Latin, Greek, French, etc. It's impressive how some of the students are just so motivated to attend and learn. They're mostly 12 year olds...my favorite. :)

Friday, I went to an American International School who has 258 students. It took me 50 min to get there through tram and walking - and it was raining. :(  I followed 7th graders around and there were only 9 of them in the grade. It's that tiny. On the other side of the school is the Japanese school where the Japanese students are taught in Japanese. All the books in the library are either in English or Japanese. So of course the setting was nice because it reminded me of home. But this school is more like a private school, and the tuition is a bit pricey. The English teacher that I met was very impressive, and I loved sitting in her class. She is certified to teach high school but for some reason she's  teaching 7th grade....so for her sake, she challenges this grade and introduced Shakespeare to them....and the kids loved it. We also watched Supersize Me in Health class which was very interesting and made me not want to eat fast food ever again. For real. When I told some of the teachers that I finally got a bike, one looked at me and said they didn't ride bikes. Ha. Another funny incident was that some of the teachers taught I was a student who repeated. Keep in mind, I'm 21 years old and I know I look young, but not as young as a 7th grader. Whoa. When I told one of the students that I had to catch the tram, she goes "Oh you ride the tram?" Well, I don't have a car. Don't we all love rich schools? 


Needless to say, the experience was an eye opening one. It made me realize just how lucky I am to be in the school that I'm at. Everyone is super nice and friendly, and I actually get to experience their culture, instead of being surrounded myself with all of the familiar things. 


Friday was another one of those days. I needed a picker upper - I found out that my dad and my ex-bf was in contact, and he told my dad that he has a chance of being sent to Iraq. I don't even know how to react to that. I told my parents and friends never to mention his name so that it doesn't upset me or bring me down. It's hard, not gonna lie. But thank God for a roommate who keeps my mind off of things. We went cycling into town, and it was a workout! We went grocery shopping and stopped by a coffee shop. 


When we got home, I felt better. I ended the night with an 8 min ab workout, and went to bed. 


Now, off to a new day! We have lots of plans for this Saturday so we'll see what happens. The International Film Festival is going on right now!

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Nether-catch up

Monday was a very short day for me. I taught the 5th years at 8:15 am on the text about hugging. Like the other 5th year class, they enjoyed all of the hugging that I demonstrated. For the next class at 9:30, they had a listening exam (because the exam is tomorrow!), but I read more of the text in the WASP report for words and idioms that the students might have trouble with. It's more like a Vocabluary Word List where students will be tested after reading the different articles. Since the 4th years had their volleyball tournament this day, they didn't have class and our day ended at 10:45. However, I did help my mentor teacher grade some papers. She was stressing out about all the stuff she did, and I told her that my job is to make sure she's not as stressful so throw everything at me. :)

Tuesday was yet another short day for classes but a long day for me at the school. I taught another teacher's class at 9:05 about healthy food vs. junk food. The class was for 1st years, and two students were very uncomfortable with their English - therefore they acted up instead of listening. This was another success story - the students seemed to enjoy themselves, and the other teacher complimented me on my directness (which comes as a surprise for me since I'm never direct or strick with students.) After teaching that class, I had to teach another lesson for the 4th years. We had to finish the short story because we ran out of time on Thursday. Like expected, the students didn't read so I actually had two lesson plans - one for which they read and one for which they didn't read. I was ready. :) I also brought in my iHome and iPod and had music playing in the background as a way to manage classroom talking. Students loved it, and I had a couple of requests. :) After those two classes, both of my 5th year classes were cancelled due to teacher meetings.

The first one was about incorporating more sports in the school and the second one was a meeting about the HAVO students. My mentor teacher advised me to skip the first meeting so I did, and attended the other one where they talked about Project Day, Christmas Activities, Year Planning, students' personal problems, test week, and what else teachers could do for the students. This meeting happens once every 6 weeks. :) So I was at school until 5:30. However, I did find out that the school already ordered our bikes, so it should be coming any time soon! Yay!

Tuesday, I also joined a gym to get my swole on. I have to keep my mind off of a lot of things that bother me. I let myself listen to other people, when I should have trusted him all along. I turned into psycho ex-gf which was a bit embarrassing. So now, he doesn't even want to talk anymore. I have to take it day-by-day. That was the reason for my last blog.

Wednesday, I decided to take the day off and just relax. I worked on lesson plans, and booked the trip to Paris and Barcelona. I realized that I had problems committing to booking things because I couldn't change my mind anymore. Another realization is that this little thing led me to think that I am scared of commitment, period. I went for a run to Tattoo Bob, because I've hit rock bottom and needed to get a tattoo to cover up one of my stupid tattoos. Come to find out, the tattoo I want will cost 250 euros ($351!). So probably not. The run was great though...I got lost so my run was a bit longer than I suspected.

I got home, and worked out in my room. I worked on my abs and buns. For the next three months, I will be working on feeling good about myself. :) I'm also planning on joining this dance class to meet more people. I just have to keep myself busy and entertained.

Wednesday night, I went out to dinner with the English Department, and it only ended up being 5 of us. It was a great night though. The restaurant was gorgeous, and the waitors were very pretty to look at - all of them were Dutch boys. Finally! Ha. We each had four course dinner with wine - so I had this salade van krab, scallops, lamb (I've never had lamb before), and white chocolate dinner! Yea! I also rode with my mentor teacher on her bike! Very Dutch! It was pretty exciting! The weather was rainy, but it was a great ride. I can't wait to have my bike....

I was also supposed to go see the caretaker for laundry tokens, and I thought that her office hours were from 10-11pm...apparently it's from 8-9pm. I'm still getting used to the military time here. So no laundry for me...which means I have to buy more underwear and socks. The caretaker is here only once a week. AAAHHH!!

So that's the gist of my week so far. I will write about today later....

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Nether....

I'm a mess right now. 

I don't even know what to do with myself. 

I miss my family like crazy. 

And my dog. 

I'm shaking. 

I can't stop. 

Maybe sleep will cure everything....

Monday, January 25, 2010

Netherrelaxed

As crazy as my Friday was, my Saturday and Sunday were the complete opposite. On Friday night, we did end up going out to dinner with the teachers. Little did we know that we would be so tired from the field trip that we went home right after dinner instead of going out dancing. 

Anyways, Friday night was a total adventure because we didn't know exactly where the restaurant was that we were meeting the teachers at. We ended up walking for an hour and a half trying to look for this place. We stopped to ask for directions twice, but it was useless. So by the time we finally found the restaurant, we were both a little grumpy and way too tired. 

Saturday, the weather wasn't as nice, but we had to go see at least one museum and go grocery shopping. We ended up going to the Maritime Museum, and the brochures were all in Dutch. We did get a really cool pin. Then, we walked some more and found a coffee shop! It's really interesting how some drugs are totally legal here, and I was pretty amazed at how this coffee shop did business. I felt like I was in a really bad place, so it was definitely a new experience. We went grocery shopping for the week also. :)

Sunday, all we really did was go to dinner at my mentor teacher's place. She cooked Indonesian food, and like always, it was amazing. :) Her kids are adorable. Rosa, who's turning 4, actually sat on my lap. Roommate and I are planning a trip to Barcelona and Paris for our Spring Break, but it's a bit frustrating because we can't figure out exactly just how much the trip will be. 

As far as my boyfriend and I. we have a mutual agreement that we still have a lot of growing up before we can really get back together. So for the whole duration that I'm here in Europe, we won't be communicating at all. Which is kind of nerve wrecking because I've talked to him everyday for almost three years. It's weird, but I know it's for the best. It does make me wonder though if we'll greet each other on our birthdays...


Eh. Everything happens for a reason, right? :)

Friday, January 22, 2010

Netherfieldtrip!

CRAZINESS! 

My roommate and I woke up at 5am so that we can get ready and catch the 6:33am tram to school. We were expected to be at the school at 6:50am. The bus that we took had two levels, and the bus ride to Belgium was only an hour!

The first thing we did was go to Central Station where the fast trains are, and the buildings are absolutely gorgeous. Everything is old school - not like Rotterdam where everything is modern. There were about 100 3rd years, and I had no idea how the field trip went. Everybody received a map, and students had this book with questions they needed to answer - kind of like a scavenger hunt. I thought that the teachers would lead a group of students but to my surprise, the teachers let the students go by themselves, and the teachers all went to go get coffee at this really nice place. I was impressed at the system! Later, the teachers did have to be at certain spots so that they know students are actually going there. Also, the teachers got 15 euros each for lunch! Teachers were well taken care of!

First stop: Diamond Center and when I say Diamond Center, there are at least four streets of just diamond stores, and it's heavily protected by security and such. It was pretty intense. The Jewish community mostly handled the diamonds, but lately people from India are also starting to be in the business. 


Second stop: Jewish community! I literally felt like I was in a different world because all the men wore a top hat or head coverings....and they had the curls on the sides of their faces! It is believed that they cannot cut it! There are two types of Jews in the community: Liberal and Orthodox. It is a very closed community and they don't talk to strangers. Almost everyone wore black with long black coats. The men had long beards and we didn't really see a lot of women. I even saw a synagogue that was bombed because of Anti-Semitism. They even had a street that only sold Kosher!


Third stop: Shopping center of Antwerp. It was absolutely breath-taking because they mixed the old with the new, and it was just a pleasant view. The mall was absolutely beautiful with gold trims. If we had a mall like that in the US, I would definitely go just to admire the building. 


Fourth stop: Ruben's House. Ruben was a well known painter in the 1600s, and his house is just amazing. We couldn't take pictures, but everything looked so expensive. His wall paper was made from leather! He had several paintings by himself and tons by other people. He had his own herb garden! I bet it's beautiful during the summer. He married a 16 year old when he was 53 years old! Crazy, huh?! Ashton and I had headphones to listen to stories of the different paintings and sculptures. 


Fifth stop: Wagamama. Originally, Ashton and I wanted to eat sushi for lunch but since the sushi place was a bit confusing, we just went to the restaurant next to it, which was Wagamama! It's an Asian restaurant, and we both ordered rice dishes. We had 30 euros to spend on food, and surprisingly we still had enough money for desert! The food was totally yummy!


Sixth stop: Ben and Jerrys. Yes. :) Ashton got herself some chocolate ice cream, and I got a Belgium waffle! Both were very happy and satisfied! I highly recommend the waffles - I had apple cinnamon. Yum!


Seventh stop: The Cathedral. It was a bit overwhelming because it was just so big and so pretty. I took lots of pictures! I lit two candles for my grandparents, said a prayer, and was totally excited about everything to look at. I even bought my mom a magnet of the Cathedral, a ring rosary, and two postcards! :) Apparently at this Cathedral, rich people can be buried under if they pay enough. On the floor of the cathedral, you can see the names of the people buried there. Also, this cathedral cost people a lot of money to reconstruct and keep it going. It apparently hurt the middle class and poor...


Eighth stop: Chocolate store: I didn't even get the name of the store. :( Ashton and I had to try the chocolate because everyone kept saying how good it is...so we did...and we fell in love.  :)


Interesting thing that happened today: student was unable to walk by herself and had to be carried by two of her friends. The rumor is that she did some kind of drug and was totally knocked out. Whoa, right?! At a school function. Oh, and the kids totally smoked right after getting out of the bus this morning. Really different from the US.



So yes: Belgium: check. Totally amazing. I'm tired, but I have to go out with the teachers still. I can't wait to see just how much they party here. It should be entertaining.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Netherturnaround!

Ohemgee.

I had the worst day yesterday, and I didn't think today was going to be better because I had to teach two different classes. I couldn't help but dread it because I was afraid that my students wouldn't give me a chance to prove that I am a good teacher.


BUT....

I had an amazing day! I woke up pretty early to work on one of my lesson plans since I couldn't get the motivation to do it last night. I was having a hard time putting it together because of everything that was going on, so I called one of my friends to cheer me up...and he did. :) Thank God for friends. 

I arrived at school at 8 am, and the class I had to teach didn't start until 9:55 am so I had plenty of time to print everything out and go over everything. 

For the 4th years, I went over the elements of a short story with them. I planned out a rap song I found online about the different elements, guided notes, fishbowl activity, and find someone who. The guided notes took a little longer, but it was ok since I found out that most of the students didn't read the short story anyways. We started on find someone who and the students were so confused because I wanted them to walk around the room and find the answers -- my mentor teacher loved it!


For the 5th years, I went over the article, "How About A Hug?" -- which was totally about the American greeting - hugging. I demonstrated to them the different types of hug, provided them with a video about different greetings in different cultures and how it sometimes clashes. We listened to the article on CD, and talked about the pros and cons of hugging. Then they had to do assignments. 


And guess what ---- I'm finally learning the students' names! There was only one that I couldn't pronounce and this other student tried to help me out, but instead he was really just making me say an inappropriate word in Dutch. Whoa, right? I learned to laugh it off -- I even got the nerve to tell these students not to curse in front of me. :)


Then, my overseas coordinator comes up during my break and tells me that the school is buying my roommate and me a bike so that we don't have to pay for public transportation to and from school! That saves us $30 a week for tram and $100 for a second-hand bike! Yay! 


Life is good. :)

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Netherchaotic

I was invited to go visit this university with a group of 3rd years. Little did I know that I was actually going to lead a group of students whom I've never seen and had little respect for little ol' me. I guess looking young and looking like one of the students mean I don't get looked at as a teacher. Grrreeeat. 

Anyways, there were 125 students that were with us, and surprisingly we took the public transportation. My only concern was that students could just get off anytime....and some did. We took the tram, then the subway. Subway was chaotic! The way the system works is that you scan your card and go through the gate, one person at a time. What the students did was push each other to go through and not pay. Shockingly, I was pushed hard by one of the students so they can enter the same time as me. Not only did she not apologize, but she laughed and told her friends. It all happened so fast, that I didn't have time to react. :(

Finally, we arrived at Hogeschool Rotterdam where the 3rd years had an orientation about the school. They choose which group they want to be in like - like Economics, Art and Culture, subjects that they're interested in. They had three sessions about classes that were offered. The presenters complained about the students, which made the other teachers embarrassed. 

One good thing is that I made a friend, and of course, she likes to go out and have a "nice" time, as they would say it in The Netherlands. We exchanged phone numbers and we have to make an "appointment" with them, another phrase used a lot here. 

Breaking news from home life: My boyfriend and I broke up. I really don't know what else to say except that I'm still madly in love with him, and I'm scared of losing him forever. It was my decision - to give me time to really want to be in the relationship with him. I felt like all he did was reassure me and persuade me to be with him. He wants me to take this time to really want to be with him. It makes sense, but it's such a bummer. Almost three years later....and I just don't know what to do.


"In the end, everything is going to be alright. If it's not alright, it's not the end."

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Nethercrap!

Crap #1: I had to pay 433 euros for a 6-month visa when I had the impression that it would be a year visa. So I'm going back early tomorrow morning to get an explanation.

Crap #2: I have already spent $1700 in three weeks.

Crap #3: I have to provide a 10-session lessons on pronunciation - um, I still have a hard time with pronunciation. ---- definitely a challenge.

Crap #4: The school has no bikes that my roommate and I could use, so we have to buy a bike ourselves...which would cost close to $100 or more. (It'll be cheaper than spending $120 a month for public transportation.)

Crap #5: There was this huge pile of crap on the sidewalk of Rotterdam...the poop really takes away from all the beautiful scenery. Blah.

Now on to different things!

1. The classrooms have no technology in the room because the money is spent on field trips. They only have one room with a smart board so far. They do have computer rooms though that teachers have to book in advance. This just means I have to be extra creative with my students.
2. The way Dutch people give directions is this: "You go left, then you keep walking and walking, then you turn right, then you walk some more, then turn left, and the store is right there on your right." No street names, it's kind of funny.
3. I'm teaching 5th years, and this is an exam year, so that means that students don't get grades which leads to no motivation to do their school work while in the classroom. I really have to catch their attention.
4. I'm teaching two classes on Thursday and getting my first evaluation from my mentor teacher. I'm also teaching about junk food vs healthy food on Tuesday and will also be getting an evaluation from one of the teachers that I'm working with. I'm super excited. :)
5. I'm going to observe an American International School here in Rotterdam next Friday, and hopefully teaching and networking. The American woman that I met my first week here pushed for me to be able to observe and teach. She's got some major skills, and is well known here. Yay. :)
6. Today, I got asked by a student if we had clogs in Georgia. She made me smile.
7. I absolutely love my mentor teacher. She teaches both of my areas and her favorite color is green! She's so much fun to talk to as well. Again, I'm super lucky.
8. I looked up intensive language classes so that I can learn Dutch -- and it will cost 685 euros -- I'm scared to convert it to dollars. Ha.
9. I HAVE TO STAY POSITIVE. EVERYTHING WILL BE JUST FINE. :)

10. I miss my family and dogs.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Netherteaching

I'm at a disadvantage. 

I taught today for the first time, and I wanted to take advantage of my first day teaching by getting to know the students, talking about rules and expectations, and showing them the difference between social English and academic English. 

Everything is going well, I got most of the students' attention, except for two. Even the 18 year old student kept quiet, participated, and totally respected me. In every classroom, there will always be that one or two students that make the teaching experience really frustrating and hard. 

I say that I'm at a disadvantage because I don't know Dutch. A student decided that he would speak to me in Dutch knowing that I didn't understand the language. Another student made side remarks in Dutch, and my mentor teacher had to send him out. I didn't even know he was making rude comments until my mentor teacher told me the reason she sent him out. 

It's just disheartening, and I'm highly disappointed...in myself. I feel like I can't ask these students to just speak English, because I am in their country. I kept my composure the whole class, but after, I broke down. I always do this though, after first time of teaching. I'm too much of a perfectionist, and expect everything to turn out perfect. How am I suppose to control high school students who dislike being at school? 

I'm teaching again on Thursday, and I'm actually looking forward to it. I'm nervous, but I do feel that once I understand and get to know my students, they'd want to do good work for me. I guess this is how I know I'm destined to be a teacher, I refuse to give up...and the feeling of teaching is just amazing. :)

I have to stay positive. I've been looking at plane tickets to Malaysia, and it's quite expensive so the trip might be postponed which is a bummer. I'm going to keep looking. 

Oh yeah, be proud. I cooked dinner Sunday night, Hutspot - traditional Dutch food! Today, I ate leftovers of Hutspot and Grilled Cheese - I also had tomato soup and cheese bread! So, Kirk, I am eating more than peanut butter. Lol. 

I've talked to my bf, and he makes me smile. He just refuses to fight with me, and I tell him that we're too happy. Lol. Eh. I was bored. He loves me, so it's all good. I miss my pups like crazy. I wish I could fly them here. 

Tomorrow, I'm getting my VISA. I was so excited when I could take out 500 Euros out of the ATM. I really want to take out all of my money from my bank in the US and just have cash with me. My bank charges the hell out of me every time I use my debit card or withdraw from the ATM. :( 

Hopefully, I get a bike soon. Yay. 

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Netherweekend

I'm feeling lonely. I don't know why, but I just am. *sigh*


Here goes my not so eventful weekend: 


On Saturday, all of the ice and snow have melted away. So I was thinking it would be warmer, but it wasn't. It was cold and rainy. I think I prefer snow rather than rain. In the morning, I worked on my lesson plan and grammar tests for Monday. :) My roommate and I tried to look for the farmer's market but didn't feel like walking all the way so we turned around and instead went to a Photomuseum! We finally bought the Museum Card which allows us to have free entry in a lot of museums in the whole country of the Netherlands! :) Hm. We also cooked spaghetti and ate it with cheese bread! It was a break from eating so much peanut butter. 

We were supposed to go out last night, but I passed out. Instead of hitting snooze on my alarm, I hit ok and didn't wake up again. Ugh. But I did get plenty of sleep. I woke up to the sound of my amazing boyfriend. He called right after he got off work, and it was nice to hear his voice in the morning. Now I've been up working on my lesson plans for Tuesday....and I'm finished! I'm excited about teaching, and I really hope everything works out well. *crossing fingers*

Today, none of the stores are open - some open at noon or sometimes until 4 -8. I'm seriously considering joining a gym to keep me sane. I have so much free time, and I really would like to occupy myself with something. I considered taking tango lessons, but the location is on the other side of town, and I can't afford to ride the tram that far. I really need a bike.... 

I think I might go to the grocery store today to buy more variety of food. As much as I love peanut butter, it's getting a little old. I've already switched to cashew paste, and I'm tired of that too. It means I have to cook, but oh well. :)  Good practice for when I live by myself (or get married.)


 

Friday, January 15, 2010

Nether----decision.

It's decided. I'm staying. Forever. 

(Well when I find a job...)

Teachers are awesome.


A couple of interesting things:
1. It's illegal to import weed, but legal to buy it. 
2. Restaurants don't have a doggie bag. It's just rude to take home food you didn't finish -- found that out the hard way. 
3. Gays are widely accepted here, and it's not an awkward topic AT ALL.
4. Teachers go to a pub/bar near a school...something that is rare in the US.
5. It's very Dutch to steal a bike and sell it. Lol. I think that we might have to just buy stolen bikes. Bikes here are super expensive. 
6. The ice is melting! Yay!
7. During class today with the 12 year olds, one of the reading selections talked about Irish coffee and getting tipsy at fifteen. Whoa.


 There are more. I just can't think right now. It's 1:20 am. AHH!!! 

Good life. :)

Netherforgot.

Oops, I forgot to write on my blog last night about my Thursday.

Well, I was at school from 9 am until 7 pm. Yes, pretty intense.

I did the whole class thing. I found out that my fourth years (the 9th graders) really liked me. I also found out that the 1st year students were quite fond of me too. I'm pretty excited. They all want me to teach them English.

Exciting piece of information for the day: My roommate and I were invited to go out....as in for drinks and just a good time. Who invited us, you ask. Well of course, the other teachers! Some of them are quite young, only like 2 or 3 years older than us and they invited us out after school today.

Another much older teacher came up to us yesterday and also invited us to dinner and drinks next Friday. So now it seems that we are booked. :) And she said, "We stay out until 4 am so be ready." Whoa.

Then at 3:30pm, my roommate and I went to this good bye ceremony. The head lady of all 7 buildings is moving to Amsterdam to be with her husband. The other teachers and administrators brought along presents, the students performed for her, and there were lots of speeches given. Lots of giving away paintings and art sculptures too. The interesting thing though is that during this ceremony in our cantene at the school, alcohol was served. There were red wine, white wine, and beer. Keep in mind that some students were present. That would never happen at the schools in the US.

During the ceremony, another teacher (who teaches Biology) came up to us and asked about our night life. She said that she will give us a list of places to go in Rotterdam that are safe and legit. Needless to say, Ashton and I will be hanging out with our colleageus.

The relationships here between the teachers are phenomenal. Everyone seems to get along well, and they actually have fun together outside of the school. They make sure to go out with each other at least 3 times a year.

Anyways, I'm off to start doing my lesson plans. Yay for teaching next week!

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Netherproductive

Checklist for today:

1. Get my roommate a phone.
2. Buy a wireless router.
3. Explore downtown Rotterdam.
4. Find the public library.
5. Try the "best" french fries.
6. Set up wireless router by myself. :)
7. Take some more pictures.
8. Planned the weekend. 
9. Bought insoles (?) for my shoes to keep my feet warm. (YAY!!!)

Today was productive, but not in the way that I wanted it to be. My roommate and I went to the school thinking that we would settle all of our meetings with our overseas coordinator. She was going to talk to her mentor teacher about her requirements and we wanted to sit down with our overseas coordinator to talk about expenses.

However, that didn't happen. We only stayed at the school for a short time, and I didn't get to work on the lesson plans that I needed to have. We did explore and got more settled in. The internet is charged per room in our apartment and we decided to be smart and get a wireless router and split the bill. Now we just had to figure out how to set it up. :)

When we got home, I found out that my CD-ROM drive doesn't work, so I had to call Dell to fix it. We needed to have the drive so that we could install the wireless router. Anyways, I was on the phone with this Dell technician for two and half hours, had to pay him $49, and didn't fix my problem. After doing all kinds of things to my computer, this was his solution: just get better quality CDs. What the crap.

Anyways, we have wireless now so it's all good. :) I also set up skype and have a phone number that people can call me. :)

I will be up doing my lesson plans tomorrow, and emailing them to my mentor teacher to see if it'll work.

I guess that's it. Nothing too exciting. My overseas coordinator did say that I have the initiative to step up and do what I need to do, and that they like people with initiative. Maybe a step closer to getting a job here? Ha.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

NetherOMG

Funny stories:
1. I wanted to apply for a bonus card at a grocery store and the application was in Dutch. I took forever so the lady was just like, it's ok...here, just have it. Lol.

2. After my roommate and I picked out our groceries, the cashier thought it would be smart to not give us our change that we desperately needed. ---- So I complained. The lady couldn't understand me, and I couldn't understand her, but I showed her my receipt and she understood. What is that?!?! I don't want to jump into conclusions, but uh...do you think it has to do with my roommate and me being foreign? Hmmm....I just couldn't believe it.

Thought for the day:
If anyone can answer this, I would greatly appreciate it.
"Why is it that public schools in the US don't talk about religion and sex?"

One of my students wanted to know...and all I could say was, well it has everything to do with preventing arguments and parents screaming at teachers. And he still didn't understand...so someone please help me with this.

I went to a remedial English class today, which means students who are very limited with their English. The teacher (who is amazing) wants me to work with the students and do everything and anything that I want (I have the freedom to do whatever I'd like!) Also, they are 12 year olds so on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have them to teach!

Also, next week, I start teaching! I'm teaching 16-17 year olds. Whoa, right? Hopefully my lesson plan isn't too middle age-ish. We'll see.

My mentor teacher is my hero. She called the internet company, and she got my internet working at my apartment! Hopefully, anyway...I'm not home yet. I'm still at the school.

Well, wish me luck! :)

Monday, January 11, 2010

NetherMonday

Question of the day: "Do you know where the Philippine Islands are?"
Answer of the day: "Of course I know where it is, I'm not American."

Whoa. A student today asked me where I'm originally from, and that was his answer. Smart kid, right? He's got so much angry feelings towards America...and I did talk to him about it. He's pretty intelligent, and I respected his opinion, although I did encourage him to go to the US and see how it's really like.

Today has been really hectic. Just full of classes and meetings. I have to attend every meeting that my mentor teacher attends..unfortunately it's all in Dutch. I really want to learn so that I can understand. Today was a training kind of meeting, to give more instruction on how to become better language teachers. The bit that was translated for me was interesting, but my mentor teacher decided that I shouldn't stay the whole time because it was pointless. The teachers didn't feel like they were getting anything out of it.

I went to the grocery store and bought more bread, and I think I might cook tonight. I learned this Dutch recipe which is really easy...but then peanut butter sandwich is easier. I really have to start learning how to cook.

I forgot to mention in my other blog that last night, I walked home from downtown Rotterdam, and had to cross the huge bridge. I was scared at first because it was 10:30 at night, but the view was absolutely breath-taking. And there were people walking as well, so I wasn't alone.

....I really like walking. I feel like that is my exercise. I just have to get some soles for my shoes to keep my feet warm. All the shoes that I brought were wrong...but hopefully I can wear them during March or so when it is warmer.

I will start teaching next week, which is really exciting! I will teach high school students so it's nerve wrecking, but I'm up for the challenge!!!!! However, I will still teach middle school students on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and sometimes Fridays. My schedule is so different here.

Also, I was invited to go to Antwerp, Belgium on the 22nd of this month with an English class! So I'm going!!!!!!!!!!! How exciting!

My roommate is arriving in less than three hours! AM will be picking me up at 6:30 to go to her band practice, then at 7:45, we'll be heading to Rotterdam Airport!!!!

Yay!

NetherOverload!

What have I done the last two days?!?!

Well let me tell you.

Friday night, I had dinner at AM's place, and had an amazing dinner. Stayed to talk -- apparently, my jeans with holes did not make a good impression last weekend. So advice to all Americans: jeans with holes is not cool everywhere!

Saturday:
!!!! Weather Forecast !!!!
Stay at home, because it will be unbelievable cold with the strong winds and all that good stuff ---- I still decided to explore. I went to this store that sold outlet converters (so now I have three! And I charged everything I had!) Then, I tried to explore more...and almost got knocked down by winds. My feet were freezing, I was upset because I got on the wrong tram looking for an adventure that only led me to the same place--
..........so I went home after two hours of being outside. And what did I do? Watch The Hills! (which is a complete waste of time, btw) However, I did cook tomato soup and had bread with cheese. Woot woot.

Sunday ~~~~
My overseas coordinator invited me to visit his city (which is 40 miles away from Rotterdam---a city called Utrecht) --- amazing city! I bought a train roundtrip ticket. 17.50 euros..not bad.

Took pictures, appreciated the scenery, watched people ice skate (so jealous btw), stopped at this cute little restaurant for hot chocolate and apple pie, then went to a Cathedral reformed into a Protestant church --- very impressed with the Cathedral, I want to get married there...for real. All of my friends will have to fly to The Netherlands for my wedding. Ta-da.

Had dinner --- amazing, I was stuffed! Red cabbage, mashed potatoes, beef stew...I've never eaten this healthy before! I kinda like it. My overseas coordinator's house was absolutely gorgeous!

My train was delayed because someone decided to be smart and jump in front of the train. I guess, it's the quickest way to die. Um. Ok.

Dutch people love wine!!! And I do too!

Great weekend, now I have to go to a training thing that'll be in Dutch. I'll be back to write about today...

I'm hoping once again that I have internet by the time I go home today.

Oh, and my roommate is arriving today! I finally get to meet her! I won't be so lonely in my apartment anymore. :)

Friday, January 8, 2010

Nether-American Assumptions

Today was eventful (like every day) and I got a lot of classroom experience with the grade levels that I am accustomed to.

Students learn English through instruction at school, but also from watching tons of shows and movies and listening to our kinds of music. You can only imagine what the students think about America.

I introduced myself to the students (I was in four different classes today), and the students had a chance to ask questions about the American culture. And whoa, their assumptions just sprang through!

Most students asked if the US was just like the movies, about bullying, the metal detectors, the different places, racism, and the curse words. Students thought that that was how we spoke...just a lot of "fuck" and "shit." Which was totally demeaning to me. I was so upset about what they thought about us just from watching movies and listening to music.

I'm scared to ask what they really thought about my country....the assumptions were disheartening and the English teacher I was working with told me to emphasize that the media is NOT how the US is.

I mean, sure we have lots of problems...but we are not a bad country who talks so vulgar and offensive. I loved the students, and I wasn't upset with them...I was just upset about how media makes us look.

It also got to me when they asked if I spoke another language, of course I couldn't lie to them and say yes...but it just upset me so much that here I am teaching them another language when I don't speak more than one.

I feel so much better with teaching because it is the age group that I am used to, but it's just an eye opening experience today because of the assumptions they had about the US. I'm always so used to Americans having assumptions about other cultures that I completely ignored what other people's assumptions are about Americans.

I'm finished with my day. I think I'll go to the supermarket again. I was a bit frustrated this morning about the public transportation. I started out with 20 euros in my card on Tuesday and now I don't have any, and it's only Friday! I have no idea how I could have spent all of that in a matter of four days. If that's the case, I will be broke by March just because of transportation!

I'm hoping to have internet in my room sometime soon. Hopefully, today when I go try it out.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Netherlikin'it

Ok. So I'm super tired.

Here's a summary of my day.

1. Went to Hogeschool Rotterdam with the American woman, and observed her class. She taught in English and her students presented in English. (her students are also my age--yay for making friends!)
2. Her school is the college-level which was totally interesting to observe and look at and all that good stuff.
3. I was supposed to meet up with my mentor teacher at this other college, but didn't leave the other college til later so I just met up with her at our school.
4. Had no classes today because my mentor teacher didn't have any today - she was like a chaperone to this college trip that the students had this morning.
 ----attended a meeting with my mentor teacher...meeting was in Dutch so I learned a lot...not really. I paid full attention to them as if I understood----
5. My bread that I bought from the supermarket was super delicious. I only spent 8.11 euros. Groceries are cheap!! Woot woot! Now, I gotta learn how to cook. Grrreat.
6. I got my $1000 that financial aid forgot to give me. Ugh.
7. I am mailing my internet form today! YAY! And my mentor teacher has an ethernet for me to use because her husband is an IT...or works with computers if that's not right.
8. I talked to the lower level teachers (which is basically the 11-12 year olds' teachers) and they want me to work with them! Super excited since I'm more comfortable with that age group than the older one.
9. The toilet in my apartment doesn't have an exhaust fan or whatever you call it so it smells horrible in there.
10. I think I finally have an idea on how my days are going.
11. I'm hungry.
12. I need to buy toilet paper but it's expensive so I'll just "borrow" from the school for right now. Lol.
13. My roommate gets here on Monday night! Woot woot!
14. I'm just blah-blah-ing. :)
15. And you keep reading.
16. Yup! Super excited about teaching!!!!!!!!!!!!!
17. Missing everyone terribly...

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Netherdedication

My mentor teacher definitely deserved a dedication on my blog.

Not only has she made sure that I feel welcome, but she´s also doing several things that are way toooooooo nice.

1. Cooked me dinner all weekend long just so that I wouldn´t have to do it alone.
2. Let me use her internet to keep in touch with all of you.
3. Took me around downtown Rotterdam.
4. Gave me her transportation card which already had some money.
5. Guided me through putting more money in my transportation card.
6. Complained to the main office about my apartment for lack of pots and pans, and how the kitchen was not as clean as she wanted it to be.
7. There are more, but the most important thing...

8. She´s letting me use her bank account so that I can have internet in my room. Finally! How nice is that?

If we  had a Grammy´s for amazing teachers, she would definitely get the Most Supportive Teacher EVER.

I´m thankful for her.

Netherlaughs

Question of the day: ''Oh you can just heat up the soup from the can."
Answer of the day: "Have you not heard of Campbells in America?''

Whoops. So I totally had my first tomato soup today, and I have to say...it's one of my favorites. :) Today is my work day. I just had to come in and research different activities I can do with the different classes concerning English grammar of course.

So as I was searching and doing work, I get a phone call from my mentor teacher telling me that she got an email back from the American woman and that I have to call her before 12.

Ok, so I did. And she gave me directions to her house and said "Come on over." But I had things to do, but of course, I couldn't say no. And if you're my friend, you know that I just hate dropping things...you have to let me know in advance.

I had to find her house by myself, and at first I was thinking, Man this woman is pushy. Great. But she's absolutely amazing. Of course, she knows what she wants. She told me that I needed to grow balls and hair on my chest. Lol. Whoa, right?

Anyways, we picked up her two adorable daughters from a Montessori school, and she's hooked me up with that school. I met the English teacher, and I can drop by anytime. I have to email the English teacher my schedule. :) Also, I'm going to class with this American woman tomorrow (she teaches Nursing at college level in English). Her students are all my age, and she wants me to meet them. She's also planning on introducing me to the education professors there.

Then, she told me about this American International School in Rotterdam...and BAM! She's giving me another opportunity to work at another school. She wants me to teach at different schools so that I'm definitely gaining new perspectives on education and all that good stuff. How freakin exciting!!!!!!!!

So now, I have Calvijn (my main school), Montessori school, College, and AIS...not even including the primary school that my mentor teacher´s son attends, and her husband´s contacts with another school!

I´m super excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now off to the cheap supermarket that this American woman showed me. Goodness. Americans can be so helpful....and she gave me a hug! I miss hugs! They don´t hug here, they shake hands. And it takes a while for them to do the whole three kisses on the cheeks...

I´m turning in my paperwork for internet tomorrow. So hopefully by the weekend, I will have skype!! Ah!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Netherthoughts

I went on an adventure today! I woke up at 10 (and I was planning on waking up at 8 and I don't have to be at the school until 12) and went to other parts of Rotterdam by myself! I went to the main office of the apartment I stayed at by tram and got lost. :)

Then I finally decided to call the number that was on this piece of paper, got directions, picked up my cards (so that I will not get locked out again), and decided that I have plenty of time to get to school on time.

When I reached the other tram stop, had to switch trams, completely confused myself as to which direction to take....so i decided to look at the maps and instructions (in Dutch) telling myself that I understood it when really I didn't. So after 20 minutes of trying to figure it out, I finally went to a bank to ask for money exchange and they politely declined since I didn't have a bank account. Then I asked for directions.

Finally got the directions, then the tram has problems and had to wait for a while. I was smarter (or so I thought) today and wore flat shoes, but didn't wear thick socks so my feet were freezing. Ugh. And when I finally got on the tram, I completely missed my stop and had to walk to school. Haha.

Walking through Rotterdam is not as gorgeous. There's poop every three steps I take. And fireworks stuff everywhere because of the New Year. Cute dogs here though. Huge and hairy! Oh, and I watched this little kid drop his fruit on the nasty ground, look at his mom to see if she saw and put it in his mouth. I mean, I do the same thing sometimes but the ground was totally gross. Ick!

Finally got some classroom experience but it was with high school students and they're a bit more rowdy, I suppose. Some students thought it would be funny to curse in English, and I find it to be a bit disappointing since I had high hopes of students being well behaved because of the school being Protestant and all.

Um, I met a Filipino student. Her family still cooks Filipino food, and I was invited. Of course, I said yes! I miss my Mama's cooking.

I discussed lesson planning with my mentor teacher, and I have a couple of things in mind but need more direction. I don't really know where to start because I don't know how much students already know.

Tomorrow is my work day where I'm just on the computer finding out more information about what I could teach the students. I'm a bit confused and frustrated, and I need a professor to tell me exactly what to do. I just need help figuring things out.

One day, I will write a blog where there isn't so much negative feelings. I'm still getting used to the system and everything around me. I am going grocery shopping after I get offline, so I'm looking forward to the food! I already learned some Dutch recipe and I'm excited!

I don't have a bike yet, so I'm having to pay for transportation and it's a bit expensive but I think I'm ok for right now. I'm really looking forward to my roommate getting here already so that I have someone to talk to about my experiences here.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Netherfirst!

Idiot moment of the day: wear heels while ice on the ground - def gonna fall on your butt....more than once. Hahaha.

I woke up early today, got dressed nice (since first impressions last a lifetime) to attend the breakfast, and rode the tram to the school by myself. Had to ask the lady beside me which stop it is, and when I got off the tram...BOOM - I fell on my booty. Whoops. It was quite hilarious.

I met everyone I could meet, and I don't remember any of the names, which is really sad. The people here are super nice, the students are super curious, and the school is super huge. Lol.

It's a Christian School and it's got years 1-6. They do ability grouping, and different teachers have different schedules. Punishment is being sent to another room to isolate you from everyone. A lot of students still rode their bikes to school even when there's ice outside. One of the house rules of the school is to only speak Dutch...don't know how I feel about that.

Found out about my VISA today. I can't set up my internet without a bank account. I can't have a bank account until I have a permit. Permits/VISA cost 433 Euros for a year...totally unnecessary since I'm only staying here for 4 months. Ugh. Very frustrating. We have an appointment on Jan 19, so we'll talk then. They don't have student visas, surprisingly.

Also, they don't serve hot meals here. Just sandwiches and very healthy food to keep the weight down for students and teachers. (wish the US had some kind of program like that).

It's snowing outside...and I'm still at school. It is already 4:30. I'm riding the tram by myself again. Riding the tram is expensive. Everything here is expensive.

But other than that, I'm loving it so far! I'm getting used to the cold. I just can't wear heels ever. So much for bringing pretty shoes.

Oh yea, yesterday, I was locked out of my apartment. My card would not work and I had to wait for 45 minutes before someone came and open my card. The mechanic lives 30 minutes away from the apartment. It used to be caretakers had mastercards, but not anymore. I met someone who lived on my floor, he was really nice. Can't remember his name. Names here are just hard to remember and pronounce.

Btw, I'm learning Dutch. Borris who is 5 or 6 taught me the alphabet, and I'm picking up the sounds of certain letters and learned 4 phrases so far. It's pretty exciting. The /g/ sound is super hard!

Hm. I'm becoming more bold by asking questions, hard to communicate with people but I'm getting more comfortable with it.

I miss Skype. I wish I had internet to use Skype.

I'm going to the main office of the apartment I live in tom morning by myself. Another part of the town by myself. Yay! I love traveling by myself. I feel like such an idiot sometimes. Not a bad thing, I guess. :)

Anyways, that's it. I gotta catch the tram. It's still snowing. :)

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Nether---no.

American moment of the day: went to the supermarket today and assumed they took credit/debit cards. Put my groceries on the lane, they started ringing up my stuff, then I decided to ask if they took cards...and they DIDN'T. Ugh. Embarrassed, yes.

Anyways, my sleep schedule is still icky. I just cannot go to sleep until late at night and wake up around noon. I did decide to take a walk around the neighborhood. I found the supermarket and the gym and started taking pictures. My battery is dying though, so I have to be careful.

My roommate ordered converters so hopefully I can borrow at least one. I really need it.

So after I walked around, just went back to my room and slept. Room Raiders 2.0 is always on! AM called me 13 times, and I slept through it all. Oops.

Now I'm at her house again waiting for dinner. I'm so hungry. I haven't had a chance to go to the bank and exchange money because banks are closed on the weekends here. I could just take money out of my debit card but the bank charges $5.95 everytime I take money out. Hopefully tomorrow, I can open up a bank account and start eating again. Ugh.

Also, I start school tomorrow! I'm excited and nervous at the same time. I'm riding the tram to the school by myself and meeting with my overseas coordinator there. A breakfast is set up, like I mentioned before. I have to be on the tram by 7:35 to get to the school by 7:45.

I think that's it. The supermarket was really cool. Lots of choices. Prices are expensive, when converted to dollars. Their meat portions are also very tiny! I was there looking for bulk and couldn't find any. Lol. Oh my American ways.

I'm also hoping that by tomorrow, I will have internet set up. Cross your fingers. I'm just ready for my roommate to get here so we can explore the world together, and I'd feel safer.

My walk back to my apartment last night at 10:30 was not bad at all. :)

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Nether-WHOA!

Ok. So I have mixed feelings.

I couldn't go to sleep last night because of the time. When I did wake up, all the TV was showing were naked girls. Complete shock, but then I am in Europe right?

My apartment isn't as nice as the pictures. It's very mediocre. Um...the toilet and the shower are in two different rooms. My bed is super small. I have a bright red couch. The kitchen is well...ok. I have to pay for laundry and sign up for the hour/s that I will be using the washer and dryer. If I accidentally leave my card or just can't get in the apartment, I have to pay everytime to get in. Whoa, right? Ha.

Oh and the outlets are different here! I should've known, and I came unprepared so now I can't charge anything.

The view from my room is absolutely gorgeous. It's just in front of the river. :) My room is huge!! And I just unpacked today.

I hung out with my mentor teacher today, and we rode the tram to downtown. There are hundreds of stores and a crap ton of people! I bought my prepaid phone. I will put down my number later. We also went to Hotel New York where the service was terrible. My mentor teacher pointed out that people here are normally not so helpful.

The boys are cute, I guess...but definetely not my type, not that I'm looking. (I'm truly lucky to have my amazing bf.)

I rode the subway back to my apartment, then we walked to my mentor teacher's, AM's, place. I have to walk back by myself, so hopefully I paid attention so that I don't get lost. Ha.

Oh yeah, right before I got on the plane to Amsterdam yesterday, this complete stranger walked up to me to tell me that I left my wallet (which had my insurance card, money, all the important things) and that he turned it in at the information desk. So I had to run to the desk before the plane left me, and everything was in my wallet as if nobody touched it. I know, I know...I need Anthony to look out for me so that I don't forget anything. Ugh. I was super embarrassed and felt so stupid.

It snowed today! So def cold and wet.

AM already has plenty of projects for me to do such as working with 10th grade Turkish students to help them better their English, and working with a primary group of bright students with their English. I'm also going to observe this American woman's college class to see how she teaches....things like that. So I'm def getting a lot of experience...def interesting! I can't wait!

Um. I guess that's it for now. I have to set up my internet by Monday, or else I'll die of boredom in my room. Ha. Maybe I'll start a book today.

I don't know what I'm doing tomorrow.

Just going with the flow. :)

Friday, January 1, 2010

Netherhere!

So I'm currently in Gatwick Airport in London waiting for my flight to Amsterdam in an hour. I've been here for two hours and all I did was sleep. I decided to walk around. The airport here is just like a mall! The clothes are cheap, but it's all in pounds!

My trip to London was 8 hours long. I was served dinner (beef steak and mash potatoes) and breakfast (cake and yogurt). The plane was really cute. There were a blanket, headphones, pillow, socks, toothbrush, and eyeshades on every seat. They also had cute little give aways to little children. :) I sat by the window but didn't see anything since it was dark. I got to watch The Hangover, and it is hilarious just like what everyone's been telling me. I also threw away my retainer (accidentally, of course!) after I ate my breakfast. Ugh. And I just got that fixed.

Um, everyone around me has a British accent. It's totally cool and different. Although people speak English, I still have to listen hard to understand everyone. Everyone seems so nice so far. :)

What I'm seeing right now....tons of cute people and I haven't seen anyone who is overweight yet. So different from the US. The fashion is also very cute, a bit like the US. I went to this shoe store and was tempted to buy at least three pairs of shoes. But I said no, since I'm already short with money.

Hmm...I'm ready to be out of the airport already. My gate opens in ten minutes and I'll be heading to The Netherlands! How exciting! I haven't eaten but I'm not hungry.

I don't know what else to write about. I think I vented out everything....I'm liking everything so far. I don't know when I'm going to have internet in my apartment but I'm hoping ASAP like tomorrow so I can call everyone and anyone I know. Lol.

Damn verizon phone won't work. Ugh.

I looked at my bank account, and it seems that I'm being charged twice on everything...like using internet right now and the phone. It's costing a pretty penny right now. Hopefully they take off one of the charges.