{"id":102617,"date":"2019-09-06T10:32:58","date_gmt":"2019-09-06T08:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=102617"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:24:27","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:24:27","slug":"theres-no-way-i-can-carry-all-this-stuff-up-on-my-own","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/09\/06\/theres-no-way-i-can-carry-all-this-stuff-up-on-my-own\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018There\u2019s no way I can carry all this stuff up on my own\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cI mainly hope that I won\u2019t end up buying too much \u2013 that\u2019s the main thing.\u201d As the escalator carries him up to the entrance of the furniture retailer in Barendrecht, Rodrigo Oropeza shares this resolution. It will prove hard to keep.<\/p>\n

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Kristina Piro and Gloria Rivas with their IKEA purchases.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFabienne Hoogendoorn<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Have a look around; stick to the list he made at home; and, above all, avoid going home with bags full of merchandise. But only three minutes in, the 19-year-old Mexican student has already chucked a Svallet<\/em> in the store\u2019s iconic blue shopping bag; \u201cA desk lamp for five euro \u2013 I can hardly pass on that, right? It\u2019s a great bargain, and it will definitely come in handy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eating in<\/h2>

The IKEA Service is an initiative of the International Office, the dedicated desk for international students studying at EUR. One Friday a year, a number of coaches drive between campus and Barendrecht for the single purpose of helping international students to stock up on furnishings for their rooms. \u201cWe launched this initiative last year,\u201d says Rose Korver of Erasmus University\u2019s International Office. \u201cIt was a huge success \u2013 everyone came back pleased as punch.\u201d<\/p>\n

And so Korver and her colleagues decided that this year, they wouldn\u2019t just do it again \u2013 they\u2019d actually expand the service. Three coaches (a morning, afternoon and evening service) will be taking international students to the Swedish furniture giant\u2019s location in nearby Barendrecht.<\/p>\n

Unknown phenomenon<\/h2>\n\t
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\n\t\t\u2018Right now, it\u2019s very dark in my room, so I\u2019m mainly in need of a lamp. Hopefully, this will make me feel less homesick too.\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

In the coach, Korver urges the 26 students over the announcement system not to buy any beds or closets (\u201cYou\u2019ll have to carry everything yourself\u201d). But Kristina Piro (23) and Gloria Rivas (26) had different plans for the afternoon anyway. \u201cSo far, I\u2019ve had a really nice time in the Netherlands and my room \u2013 but it is a bit empty,\u201d says Rivas, who\u2019s from Peru. Today\u2019s main objective: make sure she doesn\u2019t have to share dinner with friends or eat out this evening. \u201cI don\u2019t have anything in terms of kitchenware. So I\u2019ll be looking for pans and plates \u2013 so I can finally cook my own dinner this evening.\u201d This is her first visit to the phenomenon that is IKEA. \u201cBut I\u2019ve been told everything is cheap and of good quality.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her fellow student from Greece is familiar with the concept. In fact, she has even visited the store after arriving in the Netherlands. \u201cOn my second day in Rotterdam. Today, I\u2019ll be adding stuff that I forgot to buy the first time round. Food containers, and a coffeemaker for making Greek coffee.\u201d A few seats down, we run into Media Studies student Yuexia Tian (23) from China. \u201cRight now, it\u2019s very dark in my room, so I\u2019m mainly in need of a lamp. And I hope to find some things for my room. Hopefully, this will make me feel less homesick too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Traps<\/h2>

Although he broke his resolution within a few minutes of entering the store, Oropeza does have a very clear list to work from: a chair, pans and above all, a mattress topper. \u201cThe mattress in my room is way too hard,\u201d says the Mexican, as he walks through the sample living rooms. \u201cI sleep OK, but I\u2019m hoping that it will be a lot more comfortable with a topper. And I need pans too \u2013 because at the moment I have to eat out all the time.\u201d Arriving in the chairs section, the Arts and Culture student turns out to have fallen into another IKEA \u2018trap\u2019. He has been lugging around some pans that he found in one of the demo kitchens. \u201cHey, so I\u2019ll run into them again later on? Oh that\u2019s handy \u2013 thanks for telling me!\u201d<\/p>\n

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Rodrigo Oropeza would have loved to take everything home.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFabienne Hoogendoorn<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

It becomes clear these Scandinavian customs take some getting used to after Oropeza decides to buy a Snille<\/em> chair. As far as scoring a stubby pencil, filling in the form and going over to the self-service warehouse, he\u2019s a complete novice. \u201cHaha, I never would have made it without you,\u201d he says with a smile. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot more complicated than I expected.\u201d After popping the Kalas<\/em> mug set and a Malinda<\/em> pillow into his bag, he walks over to the beds. With a big grin, he collapses onto the first mattress topper he runs into. \u201cI\u2019m staying here \u2013 this feels like a hotel bed.\u201d After a while, it\u2019s time for an extensive comparison of the Tuss\u00f6y<\/em> and Tuddal<\/em>. He ultimately decides on the former. \u201cI\u2019m going to sleep like a rose tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unsafe<\/h2>

And of course, a debut at the yellow-blue store isn\u2019t complete without sampling IKEA\u2019s famed Swedish meatballs. Oropeza also takes time in between shopping to try this \u2018delicatessen\u2019. \u201cIt\u2019s good food \u2013 and not too expensive.\u201d And the furniture store and associated lunch aren\u2019t the only things to his liking. The student has really enjoyed his first few days in Rotterdam. \u201cIt\u2019s a great place. Nice people, lots of bars, and the city\u2019s very green. I was living in Abu Dhabi the past few years, which obviously is very different. It\u2019s out in the desert. And the city is a lot smaller too: there are only a few places where you can grab a drink or go out.\u201d<\/p>\n

After lunch, we walk down to the lower floor. By now, Oropeza is on to his second bag, which is gradually filling up \u2013 particularly after we hit the kitchen section. From a Vispad<\/em> colander to the Proppm\u00e4tt<\/em> cutting board: all sorts of new items will be finding their way to the Hatta Building. \u201cI\u2019m actually stocking up for our shared kitchen too \u2013 splitting the costs with my housemates.\u201d But the high point of the day is yet to come. After grabbing his new mattress topper from one of the warehouse racks, Oropeza\u2019s face lights up with a smile that stays with him for the rest of the afternoon. He even sends a picture of his cart full of loot to family and friends via Snapchat.<\/p>\n

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What's a visit to the yellow-blue store without the Swedish meatballs?<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFabienne Hoogendoorn<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Huge drying rack<\/h2>

As our group walks back to the coach, it\u2019s clear that the excursion has been a success all round. Chinese student Tian is carrying a drying rack (which seems huge compared to her modest frame), and two other friends also have their hands full. \u201cGood value for money \u2013 we\u2019re happy.\u201d On the drive home, the passengers share tips about other inexpensive shops (\u2018You really need to check out Action\u2019). But Oropeza has bigger fish to fry. \u201cI\u2019m apping my housemates to ask if they can help carry. There\u2019s no way I can get all this stuff up on my own.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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De redactie<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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