Biking around Amsterdam

Having the opportunity to live in Amsterdam has been one of the best experiences of my life. The experience has been filled with many memories and experiences and learnings, some of which will be shared with you in this postcard.

1. Studies
   • During my time in Amsterdam i studied at Hogeschool van Amsterdam. The campus was immense and size and filled with multitudes of students and exchange students from around the world. The school was the linking factor for many and brought different people together under the common goal to study and create friendships in  safe and exciting atmosphere.  The school had all the ammenities needed in one place and despite being quite big it was easy to navigate and find each location.
2. Free time
   • A lot of the free time in the Netherlands with student groups consist of drinking or social activities around Amsterdam with student societies hosting different events weekly. These were great opportunities to bond with the other students and meet people form different classes or degrees. In addition the Netherlands is quite active and there are a lot of opportunities to stay active and join work out classes, gyms or sports activites and for me this became a ritual with friends.
3. Comparing studies the Netherlands and Finland
   • The studies were quite similar to that in Finland. There is freedom and personal responsibility with the expectation to perform. In both Finland and the Netherlands there is a big culture on personal responsibility to take initiative to learn whilst being guided. The work life balance is more prominent in Finland however the Netherlands i more moderate in the approach with more requirements to study outside study hours.

To conclude, the Netherlands and Amsterdam has a lot to offer and in some ways is similar to Finland but vastly different in other ways and the beauty if exploring all the opportunities is exciting. My experience in Amsterdam has had such a great impact that I decided to stay longer and i recommend to everyone to visit or experience the Netherlands in one way or the other.