1st Day Jitters

Author: Michael Gerdjikian

It's been roughly 24 hours since we landed in Amsterdam. The flight was long but not unbearable. It wasn't until we were about halfway through the flight that I realized the severity of the situation; I'm going to have to last 10 weeks without my family and girlfriend. I know it's going to be difficult, especially with the 6-hour time difference, but I'm going to have to cope. That being said, Holland is amazing. I've never experienced anything like this before and I'm having a great time. Everything is so different from what I'm used to, but it's not too different that I feel scared or lost. The weather here is great, but from what I've been told, we really lucked out in our timing. We came during the few months that the weather isn't dreadful; short daylight hours, pouring rain, cold weather, etc. I'm still looking forward to meeting my mentor at IHE on Monday. We spent a short duration at IHE yesterday and were greeted by Gary Amy. Speeking with him really made me comfortable with the situation. He really eased us into the tough transition and made us feel welcome in this country. All of the locals are friendly as well. I have a lot more to tell, but we're heading out to Kinderdjik now to see what the Netherlands is famous for: Windmills!