{"id":5573,"date":"2015-12-31T11:00:48","date_gmt":"2015-12-31T10:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=44389"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:22:19","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:22:19","slug":"afscheid-nemen-van-nederland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2015\/12\/31\/afscheid-nemen-van-nederland\/","title":{"rendered":"Saying goodbye to: the Netherlands"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLevien Willemse<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

\u201cDuring Eureka week, I joined up with my introduction\u00a0group and went to all the parties. At each society,\u00a0there was a machine in which you put coins\u00a0in return for tokens. Paying with tokens instead\u00a0of money was something I\u2019d never experienced in\u00a0Sydney.<\/p>\n

Coming to the Netherlands was a big step\u00a0for me. I\u2019d never been to Europe and had always\u00a0lived with my parents until then. So the first week\u00a0in the Netherlands was a huge shock. Suddenly\u00a0I had to all my own shopping, decide for myself\u00a0when I was going to bed and when to get up and\u00a0cook for myself. I felt lost; I didn\u2019t even know where\u00a0the supermarket was. Now I feel at home here.\u00a0In fact, I\u2019m even considering coming back to do\u00a0my master. In January I\u2019m returning to Sydney to\u00a0finish my bachelor.<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018The most important thing I learned in the Netherlands is to have an open mind\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

The great thing about my time\u00a0as an international student is that I planned every\u00a0moment with fun outings, holidays and activities\u00a0like visits to museums. Things which I ought to do\u00a0in Australia too. Crazy that you don\u2019t usually take \u00a0the time to explore your own country. It\u2019s something\u00a0you don\u2019t realise until you live somewhere\u00a0else. The most important thing I learned in the\u00a0Netherlands is to have an open mind. There\u2019s a\u00a0relaxed atmosphere in the Netherlands. Everyone\u00a0lets each other be themselves. If you want to do\u00a0something, you do it. I like that attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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