Beer table

Just had to show a photo of our table last night. When it's 5 minutes left of Happy Hour, then this is what happens:

The white cups are Jello-shots (The theme was Willy Wonka). 

Back pain

Last night was a lot of fun, but somehow I managed to hurt my back so I can barely move today. When I sat down in the bar (before the first glass of wine) someting just cracked in the lower part of the spine. I can now barely sit down, stand up or move in general. The hypochondriac in me is convinced that I have some kind of chronic spine disease but the optimist in me hopes that it will go away soon. I really hope I don't have to go to a doctor. Does anyone recognise this?

Today a friend is coming over for dinner, very nice! It's so lovely to finally have a Saturday when I don't think of school work at all. 

Carpe Noctem

Now I'm going out, see ya!

Public disturbance

After a long day in school, I'm finally home, having dinner and relaxing a bit. My brain is completely finished right now, and I can barely think properly. During the meeting we had some hysterious moments when everyone in the group were tired and sugar-rushed. That happens every time. We start screaming, singing, laughing, and making weird sounds until the tables around us start having uncomfortable looks on their faces. They might even leave their tables. When we left our table that we had occupied for 7 hours, it looked like a complete mess. It was kind of representable of the state of our minds right then.

In a couple of hours I will meet up with my friends at Siezo, the bar next to school, for some after-exams drinks. I still can't believe it's Friday.

Thank. God. It's. Friday. 

Creative Friday

Today I have a whole day of project work ahead of me. Yesterday we got feedback on our creative work from a real creative director (not sure if I'm allowed to name names) and it was so inspiring! I just love listening to intellectual people who know what they're talking about. I'm really glad we got the opportunity, because we got so many ideas how to elaborate on our brand concept and that is basically what we are going to do today.

You have no idea how good it feels to finally be done with exams! Tonight we're going out to celebrate, probably first to the international pub and then downtown. Later in the weekend we have to work some more on the project. On Tuesday is our final pitch, so we have to get everything done by then.

Enjoy your Friday people!

Panic

So, I managed to freeze during the pitch which I had practiced so much and imagined would go perfectly in my head. I guess that's just human. When I came home the fire alarm was on in our house. We have an interconnected system so every single fire alarm was ringing. I panicked completely, no one was home, there was no fire or smoke, and I couldn't shut them off!

I called the landlord, and they came to disable them but we didn't have the keys to my roommates' rooms. So, I had to wait 45 minutes for him to go back and get the spare keys. I can tell you now that I am half deaf. Seriously, I was standing outside but I still have a ringing in my ears.

What a lovely Thursday so far...

My morning routine

07.00: I wake up, somehow with my ear conveniently pressed against the radio alarm clock. They start shouting in my ear, louder and louder, and I always think "what do these people want from meeeee?"

07.01: When the shock has settled, I shut off the alarm and put on the regular radio and turn on the lights. I tell myself I will stay in bed like this until they've played a good song.

07.05: I get chased out of bed by the horrible sounds of either Taio Cruz - I got a hangover, or Shary-An - Read my book.

07.06: In the shower, having one of the two mentioned songs stuck in my head. Fighting hard not to sing it out loud and make it stick even worse.

07.20: I make coffee and breakfast, the highlight of the morning so far. Afterwards I'm nearly human again. Still  have one of the songs stuck in my head though. Try desperately to listen to ANY other song in iTunes. Damn radio.

God I hate these songs...

Is it possible to get brain damaged just a liiittle bit by a song?

Hot smoked salmon salad

Oh you are lucky today, because now I will share the PERFECT summer salad. Hot smoked salmon can be a bit expensive but you don't need that much for one salad and if you want you could exchange it for regular smoked salmon.

You need:

Bulgur (or cous-cous or potatoes or basically any carb. I prefer bulgur.)
Hot smoked salmon
Red bell pepper
Mango
Rucola and mixed lettuce
Avocado
Salt & pepper

Chop everything up and mix!

I survived!

Go figure, I survived this exam too! *Starting to feel invincible*

Now this annoying, tense time of waiting for the results has begun. You can read about that here. I have my last exam tomorrow in pitching, but weirdly enough I'm not so nervous about that.

I can't wait for weekend.

About being under pressure

I am what you would call an over-achiever. No, seriously, I am. You can ask my friends and everyone around me. I have always put a lot of pressure on myself and had high ambitions in school and everywhere else (yes, I do realize that I might sound like an arrogant ass when I say that, but whatever).

A friend of mine asked me yesterday, after I had rambled on and on about exams and how nervous I was, why I was so insecure. This made me start thinking. To be like this seems to have more bad sides than you'd think. So I made a list (as I always do, control-freak as I am).

Good:
I get good grades.
I challenge myself and therefore grow.

Bad:
I get stressed (I have to sleep with braces to protect my teeth from when I bite together, for example).
I am almost never satisfied or content with my achievements.
I am always scared that I will come across as lazy or that I'm not "enough".

...and this is all because I put so much pressure on myself! So, conclusion of this: Chillax, Alice!
My first practice: the debating exam. I will stop going on and on about how I will fail and simply realize that it really doesn't matter. I feel a lot calmer only by that thought actually. Maybe I won't need my braces tonight...

Anyone else who recognises this stupid habit of pressuring yourself?

Debating preparation

Preparing for the debate exam tomorrow. We have 4 topics to prepare and 30 minutes before the exam we'll get told which one we have to debate about. I can't wait to get it over with!

Discovering new territory

So, I survived the dreaded Media Theory exam. I actually even think it went pretty well for once! But on the other hand, always when I think it went well I end up with barely passing, and when I think it went shitty I get a 9 or something. So, you never know for sure I guess.

After the exam I discovered (yes I know I'm sooo behind) MegaStores for the first time! A friend was going there to shop at Aldi (you know Germans and their loyalty to German brands...) and I never thought it was so BIG. MegaStores is a mall just next to school with furniture shops, grocery stores, Kruidvat, McDonald's and much more.

Hmm.. That would explain all the people carrying around McDonald's bags in school...

Anyway, we went to both Aldi and Jumbo I found my beloved cottage cheese! You can always count on the Germans when it comes to that apparently. I also found warm gerookte zalm filet that I'm going to eat tomorrow. Oh what a luxurious dinner for a student, I'm looking forward to it already! (Not kidding btw, I am this obsessed with food)

Facebook exam discussions

This is what I love about ICM. In a few hours we have the Media Theory exam, and what do people do, if not discuss answers and theories on Facebook? I love how we all help each other instead of "competing".

Long live ICM!

Dutch oral exam...

Teacher: En Alice, wat vind je de belangrijkste tema om te praten over wanneer je met een vriend bent? (what do you think is the most important theme to talk about when you're with a friend?)

Me: Eh... Ja, hetzelfde als Ina denk ik. Relaties, school en zo. (Yeah, the same as Ina I think. Relationships, school and such)


Teacher: Oke, en neem je iets mee als je uitgenodigd bent? (Okay, and do you bring anything with you if you're invited?)


Me: Ja, natuurlijk! En fles wijn! Maar niet als ik naar Ina ga. (Yes, of course! A bottle of wine! But not if I go to Ina's place.)


You should have seen the look on his face... Uh, sometimes it's so hard to express yourself in another language. I completely froze when he asked this question, and what I wanted to say was that Ina and I were so close so we didn't need to bring things for each other anymore. Oh well, now that whole embarrassment is over and I have to study for Media Theory. The rest of the oral exam went well, by the way.

(Sorry, Nederlandse mensen, voor mijn slechtse Nederlandse zinsstructuur. Het is niet zo makkelijk voor een Zweedse!)

First exams

...Project Management and Dutch oral. Here we go!

Friends Lost, Friends Found.

I wanted to write a bit about something that few mention when it comes to moving abroad: the lost and found friendships. Many tend to focus only on the positive aspects of moving abroad, finding new friends, having amazing experiences and so on. But how about the ones you leave behind? I have noticed that when you move abroad, you see who are worth keeping in touch with and who are not. They might be fewer than you think.

I've discussed this with a friend I met here, who shares the same experience. The truth is (how depressive it may sound) that people will say "oh how nice, you're moving abroad! I'm sooo going to visit you all the time!", but then you move, and maybe half of the people who said they would visit you actually do it. Also, you will notice in the beginning of your new life abroad that everyone is very interested in how you are doing. But - and remember this - it is the people that after 7-8 months of living abroad still care about you and sincerely ask how you are that are the friends worth keeping. So you might find that people are not as close to you as you thought.This is necessarily not a bad thing, however. I am of the opinion that it is better to have a few, close friends, than to have many superficial ones.

I don't have many close friends in Sweden. Actually, I'd say I have one best friend. A bff if you will. Since I moved abroad, we have despite the circumstances actually become closer. What I mean is that when you expose your relationships with an obstacle like that, then the true friendships reveal themselves.

"A friend is one who knows everything about you, and loves you just the same"

- Elbert Hubbard

And how about the people you meet in your new country? I've also discussed this with my friend here in The Hague, and I think that you tend to "click" easier with the new people you meet abroad. Despite the cultural differences, there is still something that you all have in common: you are all people who strive for something more. Every single international person you meet when you are abroad, all share that same characteristic. You all want to see the world. Experience something new.

Of course, another thing that connects you is the fact that you have all gone through the same experiences of moving to another country. Most of the people here have left their families and friends behind, and they kind of become your new family. As my friend here in The Hague, who has also experienced how friends fall out of her life. She knows how it is. They all know how it is. Because we've all experienced it, and that glues us together.

So don't be scared of moving abroad. You will not lose all your friends. It will help you make clear who your real friends are, and also introduce you to new ones. Friends who share your interests and values.


Sounds good, doesn't it?

New design

Instead of studying I thought it was time to have a lighter design, more suitable for the season! What do you think? Anything you miss in the blog that you think I should write about?

Coffee break

Just came back from having a nice cup of coffee with a friend downtown. I really appreciate taking a break from studying and just have some nice girl talk. There were not that many people out today, despite the nice weather. I guess the majority of students are inside studying, like I should be. Anyway, have to tip you about another great lunch recipe that I got from my sister. I'm currently completely hooked on both cottage cheese and avocado, so this is really something in my taste:

cottage cheese + avocado in cubes + sprinkled crisp bacon + salt & pepper = delicious!

It's my new favourite "dish" at the moment. Try it!

Where did the time go?

I read an article this morning about Daylight Saving Time and that it is actually very bad for people. They estimate that in Sweden about 30 people will die from heart failure the coming two weeks because of the stress and lack of sleep caused by setting the clock one hour ahead. Isn't that horrible? I can already feel the stress too. I was supposed to go up at 7 this morning, overslept until 8, and then I realize it's actually 9 o'clock! The first thought was "what the hell...!". It's probably not good for me to read articles like that though, since I'm a major hypochondriac. I will probably have imaginary chest pains for two weeks now...

Powerwalk

Going for another powerwalk to get my head clear of project work. 5 hours of intense focusing is very tiring. Later I'm going to have a well-deserved dinner when I get back! See ya!

Study "break"

This studying is driving me crazy. It feels like the more I read, the more I realize I have to read. Do you get what I mean? Anyway, I feel dangerously close to the point where I just think f**k it, and hope for the best. Therefore, today I will take a short break from studying (for exams) and meet up with the project group instead. We will try to have as much as possible ready before the exam week starts, because on the 3rd April is the final pitch presentation. These coming 10 days are critical, things are happening all the time and I have to be constantly focused. No wonder I sleep like a baby at 23.00 every night...

@ Blueprint

We had the last drink of the night at Blueprint, a cocktail bar at Plein. I really recommend this place if you're in to cocktails! I ordered a Raspberry Caipifruta and it was simply amazing. A bit dangerous too, because it's gone in a few seconds. Anyway, I had a really nice night and for once it didn't get too late. Today I have an all-day date with Media Teory, Project Management and Speaking. Ah, can't wait. 

Strawberry Daquiri, Passion Caipifruta and Raspberry Caipifruta. Every single one is highly recommended. 

Thursday drinks!

Tonight I will replace the books for a drink at Grote Markt for a little while. You notice that people get more of an urge to go out and have a drink when the weather is almost like summer. My neighbours, for example, are at this moment having a barbeque outside my window and I'll probably smell like a grilled beef by the time I get downtown... 

19 degrees

19 degrees and sunny is what I call nice weather! I went with two friends to sit in the park by the Central Station, it was so nice! There was some manifestation or protest or something going on there, so we were surrounded by police everywhere. Felt a bit strange. Afterwards, we went to McDonald's to get some ice cream and it turns out that my new favorite Appeltaart is no longer available. So sad, and amazing how such news could really emotionally affect me.

Police...

I got a McFlurry Mars instead. It wasn't as good as Appeltaart though. 

Exam prep structure

When I study for exams, I try to divide the studying the week before in a way that is logical to the order of the exams. This week, however, I have a feeling I've failed epically with this. I have the following exams this term (in this order):

Dutch
Project Management
Media Theory
Speaking (debating)
Pitching

So, normally, I would've started studying a little bit of everything on the first couple of days, and then focused more on each subject as it gets closer (with Dutch and Project Management first of course). Later, as exam week starts, I would've studied frenetically the night/morning before each exam and crammed. BUT, this time, I don't know what I'm doing. Seriously. The fact that three of the exams are oral and that I also have the project to work on simultaneously messes up my whole structure. Those who know me, know that I am a person who needs structure. Sometimes I think I'm even more German than German my friends in that sense. 


So, let's see how it goes this time. Today it will be 18 degrees and sunny in The Hague so you'll probably find me sitting on the beach studying, or just trying to figure out what to study first. With my indecisiveness, it might be the latter.

 

Studying outside

Ah, what a lovely day! Haven't done that much studying however, but the weather is just too nice! I went to school to sit outside on the grass and study with a couple of friends. Later on, we went to the market and bought a lot of vegetables again. I love that market! Tonight me and a friend from the project group are going downtown to Plein for research purpose.

If you have a lot of papers scattered around, it looks like you're busy.

The school's backside.

Multitasking

Why do I have to prepare for exams when the sun is shining? I've been sitting by the window for 2 hours now, tanning and studying. Multitasking master, oh yeah. Oh, I also have to tip you all about the most perfect lunch/snack that I just came up with:

Cottage cheese + apple in cubes + cinnamon = perfection!  

Hehe, the culinary genius is back in town. Oh, and for the Germans: cottage cheese = körniger Frischkäse. That's what it said on the package anyway. Enjoy!

Yes, I used a bicycle pump to hold up the window. When in Holland, you know...

My friend said that my laptop is living a dangerous life. It's literally living on the edge.  

Ah, pure perfection! You  have to try it!

Free media?

My head is completely filled with Media Theory today, and it's starting to become quite interesting actually! Especially when I read about how the majority of the world's media is run by only 5 or so major conglomerates. That is a quite scary thought. Everything we hear and see in the media is based on the interests of five (or six) major companies. But how is it then in Sweden, where we also have public service that is not under any political or commercial influence? Is that truly free media or is that also biased to a certain extent? Interesting thoughts...

I was going to school to print some papers today, but discovered that my bike had a flat tire. Poor bike, it's at the fietsenmaker now.

Swedish Television and Radio

Evening powerwalk

I felt so bad for sitting inside my room all day so I went out for a 60 min powerwalk through The Hague. I walked almost all the way to Scheveningen, with some detours though. Feels good! Powerwalking is really good when you have a lot on your mind. I thought for example a lot about the exchange to Liverpool. I still don't really know what to do about that though...

Oh well, I will decide that later. I took some photos of The Hague at night on my walk:

If anyone ever feels like buying an apartment for me, HERE is where I want to live! Waldeck Pyrmontkade, so lovely houses. 

President Kennedylaan. I saw the Swedish flag about 3-4 along the street.

Walked past the Peace Palace where it stood in all its glory. 

Exam preparation week

Next week is exam week and this is week is full of resits. Fortunately I don't have any so I can use this week for preparing (and enjoying the nice sunny weather outside). On today's list is Project Management, Dutch, and maybe some Media Theory. I might just leave that until tomorrow though. I've heard that procrastinating the most boring subject is underestimated. Actually, when it comes to exam prep in general I'm a bit of an expert in procrastinating. For example, I found myself cleaning this morning just to not get started with the studying. Then you know it's pretty bad. Okay, deep breath, here we go...

St. Patrick and Grumpy George

Last night St. Patrick's Day was celebrated not by going out, but by having drinks and girl talk at a friend's place. It was really nice, and I saw her new cat for the first time. His name is George.

George is 13 years old, and is exactly like a grumpy, bitter old man. He's a tad overweight and doesn't really miauw like normal cats, but more like he's saying "hey bitch, stroke me!". He's really not nice or well-mannered in any way, but he's still kind of cute. I petted him the whole time, and as soon as I stopped he looked at me with his mean eyes as if to tell me to continue. He really liked my jacket too, and slept on it the whole evening. Amazing how you can feel so used by a cat...

Liverpool exchange

So, happy St. Patrick's Day people! Today I will probably celebrate it at some Irish pub, maybe at Fiddler's. I'm sure it will be a lot of fun! I got a letter from the university today, it was the nomination letter for the exchange. I'm apparently going to Liverpool the second semester of year 2! Could be a lot of fun I think. Now I'm gonna google the crap out of the city and the university, I actually have no idea where I'm going. Does anyone of you have any experience with Liverpool?

Liverpool skyline

Crazy Pianos

Last night I went out in Scheveningen, at Crazy Pianos. I've never been there before but I've heard a lot of good things about it, and it was actually very nice. They always have live music so it's a really nice atmosphere there. Today I have two classes, and then I'm gonna go home and take a power nap. Not that it got that late last night, I'm just very sensitive to not getting my 8 hours of sleep. Anyway, tomorrow is the St. Patrick's Day parade in The Hague! Will I see you there?

Summer in March

Sunshine, finally! The Hague has been struck by some kind of premature summer weather today, it's 17 degrees and sunny! I just came home from having a debate class, but it feels like such a waste to sit inside by the computer today. I want to go out and do something! Any ideas?

SUN!

Insane efficiency

Wow, what a day. I just came home and now I'm eating some kind of improvised dinner. We worked on the project today until 20.30 in school, and afterwards we went to Plein to have a well-deserved, celebratory drink. We finished basically all the graphics, the concept and the brand key. Way to go girls! However, towards the end we got so tired and hungry that everything just seemed funny, hence the picture below... Now I'm going to bed, see you guys on the other side!

Tickling the other group sitting in the far back

Doing graphic work!

Cheers to a job well done!

Sugar rushed project meeting

Sitting in school now with the project group, we're having a break after realizing that we were not going anywhere. To quote my friend:


"Why can't we start with the creative part and do the lame stuff later?". 


So, I'm filling up with caffeine and sugar because we still haven't finished our goals for today. Tomorrow we're going to start with the creative side of the project, which is going to be a brand book with name, logo, slogan etc. It will be a lot of fun, but first we unfortunately have to do the lame stuff. 

ID discrimination

I feel like I have to complain a bit about the Netherlands now. I came to the bank this morning before school, and wanted to unblock my card.

- No problem. Do you have an ID?

- Yes I do. (I gave them my Swedish driver's license)

- What is this?

- It's my driver's license.

- Oh I'm sorry, we do not accept driver's license as an ID here.

- Sorry? But this is my ID. It's a European driver's license!

- No, we do not accept any driver's license that is non-Dutch.

- That is very strange.

- Well, those are the rules here.

Shame on you, Holland. I really don't see how this country, while being all "oh we're so international and welcome everyone", can only accept Dutch driver's licenses? Like anyone carries around their passport in their bag? I don't anyway, so I had to bike home after school (skipping Dutch), get my passport and then hurry to the office before they closed at 17.00. The stupid thing is that another reason why I couldn't show my driver's license was because they needed to make a copy of it and that it wouldn't be approved. They didn't make a copy. 

Confessing to the bank

A bit of sun on a Monday makes the whole day better. Today I'm going to the bank office to get my card unblocked. Uh, I feel a bit ashamed about blocking it, and I guess I have to tell the whole story to the person at the bank too. Ah well, the price you have to pay when you do stupid things.

Spring clothes today! Finally!

Spring!

Oh my, we had the craziest night/morning ever. Now I think I need a few quiet nights out for the coming weeks. I just walked downtown with my friend to get our bikes that we left there. The weather is so nice today,  it's spring finally! We noticed that the city looks so much better now, when people are walking around, sitting outside cafés and the sun is shining. It's like a completely different city, and I like it! I celebrated the first day of real spring with the new McFlurry Appeltaart. It was so good! I strongly recommend those who live in NL to try it.

My little buffé 

The Hague in the morning

Plein and The Hague's skyline in the afternoon

Pimped ride

I spent the whole day today pimping up my bike. I really don't know anything about these kind of things, so I just bought 2 spray cans of paint and started. After covering about half the bike, I ran out of paint. Fortunately I live just by a hardware store so I got another one (for double the price, of course...). I also got a flower to put on the handle bar, and a new bell. It's been a long day's hard work but I'm happy with the result! What do you think?

Before...

...and after!

Stooopid

Ah, Alice. Now you've done it again. Blocked your bank card by typing in the wrong code three times. You know when you have those blackout moments when you suddenly start thinking of what your pin code actually is, and then just forget it? That has happened to me two times now. I should start being like those superstupid people who walk around with their bankcodes written down ON THE CARD or something. You know, taking a few risks, living on the edge and stuff.

The heating and hot water have broken down this morning too. Is that what you call bad Karma? But okay, focus on the positive things Alice. Last night was a lot of fun, and they even served green beer at the International Pub. Tonight my Germans are coming over for a preparty, it's going to be so great! I've been looking forward to this all week.

Me and my lovely, green Germans!

After School drinks

So, after school we headed to the bar Siezo to grab a few after-school drinks during happy hour. It ended in me agreeing on going out tonight to the International Pub. Apparently they have a pre-St. Patrick's Day party there. Sounds like a lot of fun! I won't make it too late though since I'm going out tomorrow too. Gosh, I feel so boring for saying that. A couple of years ago I could go out three days in a row without a problem. Am I getting old?