Week 1
Today is the day i finally moved to Amsterdam! I wanted to move here because i learned Dutch in high school for 3 years and in college for one, and I thought there wasn’t a better way to practice more and try to become fluent than move to a country that mainly speaks Dutch. I’ve been planning where I am going to live for quite a while now, i found a small flat towards the center of the city on a retail website and i think that it will be good, even though it’s small, considering there are many shops, restaurants and cafes in the area.
I really love this city! It’s so beautiful. The canals that run through the city are so pretty. I really like the fact that so many people bike and walk basically everywhere it makes the city seem so much more alive. I think that is how i am mainly going to get around to, just to save on money, since I am just starting out here.
I am in my flat and it’s just like the digital tour i took a while back(https://www.perfecthousing.com/rental-apartments/amsterdam/tweede-laurierdwarsstraat/6967). My new flat is on a street called Tweede Laurierdwarsstraat, in a neighborhood called Jordaan. The flat has a nice balcony on the roof and it has a very nice view of the houses and things nearby. It’s fully furnished, and comes with all the basic necessities like a washer and dryer, a fridge, dishwasher etc. which is a big plus because i don’t have much money because i haven’t started my job yet.
Speaking of money, the rent is about €1,700 a month, which equates to roughly 1,930 US dollars, which at first seemed like a lot to me. But, I did a little research and the average rent in the area was €2,200 a month, so I figure i won’t have too much trouble making €1,700 a month.
One of the ways I hope will improve my speaking abilities in Dutch is working as something like a receptionist or sales or trade worker. I found a place that is hiring Trade Advisors in the Banking Industry and I’m going to apply for the job, I need money if I’m going to last here. I did some more research about the job I am applying to and i found that it’s only about one and a half kilometers away from my flat, which is also very nice, and easy to get to. Also, the job has an annual salary of about €42,000 (roughly $48,000 USD), which is €3,500 a month (roughly $400 USD). I really hope i get the job.

That’s all for today!

Week 2
I’ve been living in Amsterdam for roughly a week and things are going well. European cities are so different compared to American cities. I think it’s really interesting how most of the housing is flats and apartments and there are a lot of housing on top of cafes and shops around the city, which i had never really seen in American cities.I went through the whole interview process with the banking company I wanted to work for...I got the job, and I start tomorrow! I’m really excited, my boss is really nice.
Today was my first day of my job… And it went well, but i was a couple minutes late because I couldn’t find the building because everything was crammed so close together… I had just then realized that there were so many companies all clumped together, which is a good thing, but I think that all these companies should spread out a little and use all the space Amsterdam has to offer. Even in the heart of the city, where i thought there would be no more space for anything, there is a bunch of space these companies can use to their advantage.

That’s all for now!

Week 3
Week 3 is going good. My job is fun, I get to talk in Dutch and English, which was somewhat surprising to me. I thought I would only be speaking Dutch.
I noticed something new…  in the more northern part of Amsterdam, where there is a lot of farmland with awkwardly placed little neighborhoods around them. I don’t really understand why the houses were put there when the majority of the housing in Amsterdam is clustered in the toward the center. Maybe the government wouldn’t let them keep building neighborhoods in that area. I don’t really know why that would happen though, most of the farmland isn’t used for farming every year.
I think the rules and regulations are that are stopping from building homes up north, is a good thing i think that the farmland is very pretty, and the farmland being used for commercial farming has got to be helping the environment.

Not much, but that’s it!

Day 4
There is so much to do in this city. This city is basically just a big tourist attraction, but i really like going to all of the touristy places around the city. The World’s Largest Van Gogh Collection and the Anne Frank House are my personal favorites. I also really like the Vondelpark, it’s so peaceful and there is so much open space, unlike the majority of the city. There is also a big zoo and aquarium called Natura Artis Magistra, which I’ve never been to, but it looks very cool and I would love to go there sometime. 

Until next time!