A 32-year-old Dutch "abroad student"'s European summer school trip: full analysis of entry, life and summer school

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This summer, I decided to go on a three-month lifestyle trip to Europe, aiming to immerse myself in experiencing real life in Europe. To do this, I chose to stay in each city for at least a month. By chance, I learned about summer school and successfully applied for the summer school program at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, starting this unique journey.

1. Arrival in Utrecht: city impression and first experience of accommodation

After a long flight of more than ten hours, we finally arrived in the Netherlands. Utrecht, the fourth largest city in central Netherlands, has both a young and classic temperament. The entire city, with Utrecht University at its core, is full of youthful energy. Compared with the diverse hustle and bustle of Amsterdam, summer here is quiet and peaceful, giving people a taste of the traditional and classical Dutch style.

In the Netherlands in August, the sun is abundant and the days are long. When we landed at around 7pm, the sun was still very strong. It only takes 30 minutes by train from Amsterdam Airport to Ute Central Station and 20 minutes by bus to reach your accommodation. Accommodation in the Netherlands is expensive, especially during the summer months, the peak tourist season. Fortunately, I rented a room for international students for only 500 euros per month, and I also met a roommate who had studied abroad for two years. He shared a lot of tips on life in the Netherlands, from supermarket selection to traffic rules, which helped me quickly integrate into local life in the first week. For example, the first day I walked his dog.

2. Busy morning before school starts: work and shopping go hand in hand

The day before school started, I woke up at 6:30 in the morning. Due to the accumulation of some housework, the first thing after getting up is to deal with work. Outside the window of the rental house, there are green trees and blue sky and white clouds. When you are tired, take a few glances and feel relaxed. After greeting my roommate, he recommended a nearby supermarket to me, and I planned to ride there to buy daily necessities. The bike the girl who rented the house lent me had a very high seat which made me uncomfortable.

I rode the bicycle lane with great expectations and soon arrived at the supermarket, only to find that it was not open yet. This is the common and affordable "Albert Heijn" supermarket in the Netherlands (the original word "Zhang Bo" was spelled incorrectly), which only opens at 12 o'clock on weekends. There were still more than 20 minutes before the gate opened, so I took a rest in a nearby park and shared with you my experience of entering the Netherlands.

Before coming to the Netherlands, I read on Xiaohongshu that a netizen who entered the Netherlands with a legal visa in June was interrogated. In order to avoid trouble, I made careful preparations: I booked a fake itinerary to France, claiming that I would stay in the Netherlands for three days and then enter France for three weeks (actually I would study in the Netherlands for a month). I also booked a hotel in France on Booking.com, which offers free cancellation. Plus three days and three nights in Amsterdam, free hotel cancellation and free return flight. When he actually entered the country, the immigration officer asked him where he wanted to go in Europe, how long he wanted to stay in France, and when he would come back. After checking his return ticket, he stamped his foot and let him out smoothly. Therefore, it is recommended that everyone prepare a return ticket and provide a reasonable answer for the length of stay. If you have a visa from another country, it is best to indicate that you will be traveling to that country and staying for an extended period of time.

3. Shopping and summer school exploration: feel the local prices and rich courses

The weather in the Netherlands is always terrible, but I’m lucky that August is the month with the sunniest and best weather in the Netherlands. The community where I live is quiet and pleasant, and there is a small town nearby. My roommate told me that a little further on is a town where rich Dutch people live, and they contribute most of the income of local residents. The houses here are generally shorter, and the apartments are mostly two or three floors, with a unique small balcony on each floor.

After the supermarket opened, I bought some things for 50 euros, which was indeed not cheap. Then I started looking into summer schools at Utrecht University. Its official website offers a variety of summer courses covering business, art and music, humanities and social sciences, engineering and languages, etc. I chose a language course. Taking the early childhood education research course as an example, the fee is 250 euros and the teaching time is from August 19th to 23rd, which is a short period of time. Since the end of July is approaching, registration for many projects has ended, so those who are interested must do so early.

In addition, I also downloaded the Utrecht Exploration Handbook written by the school, which introduced many interesting attractions. The school's social activities are also very rich. From July to August, activities such as kayaking, park picnics, pizza eating, walking, and bar-hopping are arranged.

The European summer school trip has just begun. The next four weeks of studying abroad will definitely be full of more excitement. I look forward to continuing to share with you. You are also welcome to share your study abroad experience in the comment area. If you think the article is good, don’t forget to share it!

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