On arrival in Amsterdam, I have to catch a train from the airport to The Hague. After some time figuring out the exchange rates I exchange enough USD's into Euro's to pay for the first month's rent and deposit to my landlord (no small amount let me assure you!). You might be wondering why I don't just withdraw some cash from the ATM, especially because of the large amount I will be drawing out, but thanks to the fact that student loan refunds don't come in to my bank account till the start of the Spring semester I have to carry what little cash I have with me and make it work.
So with Euro's in hand, and after being done dirty on exchange rates and transaction fees, I purchase a 2nd class ticket and drag my enormously large suit case to the platform. Of course the train is completely packed and I drag my 50 lb body bag sized suit case awkwardly through the crowded train cars, while making my apologies as my tired self and suit case bump into and over people. After 10 minutes of not finding 2 seats (one for my burden and one for the beast carrying it) I sneak, about as stealthily as an oxen and cart into a library, into first class and duck into the first open seats in the back of the car. After a long 16 hour day of travelling I collapse into my purloined soft seat and fall into a short, but less then guiltless, sleep.
I wake up as everyone is piling out at the last stop which is thankfully mine, The Hague central station. My landlord was kind enough to pick me up, so as I wait for him I finally have a chance to just sit down and let it sink in that I'm in the Netherlands. The first thing I notice is how clean everything is, if you're from the US like me and have ever been to a train station you are rarely surprised by how run down and dirty they can be. Next I notice a snack vendor which specializes in serving their patrons with hot fresh fries in a paper cone covered completely in mayonnaise, which considering how I have had little to eat in the last 24 hours started to sound appealing (glade I didn't partake though, my stomach may have rebelled against my dark side appetite).
My land lord arrives and I some how fit my large suit case into his small car and myself into the even smaller seat. As we make our way to my new home, my land lord is cheerfully chatty about the history of the Hague. According to him, the Hague was set up by the Dutch government to be the Netherlands' international city, before which was barely a city in its own right. Many of the foreign embassies are located in the city, as well as many if the international organizations such as major UN bodies (including of course the UN tribunal I will be working for). Because of this almost everyone speaks English as well as a few other languages. Most people get around in the Hague by bike or by foot. The weather is cold but not stormy during the winter, so at least I don't have to worry about too many snow storms. We arrive at my little corner of the Hague down a side street a short distance from a large catholic church (which I have come to realize has really loud bells in the morning and evening).
My room is located on the fourth floor (top floor in most of the Hague as it isn't a very tall city) and is very clean. I will be sharing the apartment with three girls who also work at the UN tribunal. I met two of the three roommates both of them are very sweet. One of my roommates, lets call her Navi, is from Australia and her deep accent very clearly marks her as an Aussie. My other roomie is of a former soviet union descendant and has another iconic accent, to me it sounds Russian, lets call her Nit. Both my roomies do their best to make me feel at ease and I settle in quite quickly. I end the evening hanging out with Navi getting to know each other before I take a shower and hit bed. My room looks like page 34 of the IKEA showroom book, it's nice, a little cheap looking, but clean and comfortable. The long day finally ends with me in bed falling asleep recounting my travels and thinking about all the things I need to do tomorrow. As if to top off my day or clear my mind of whatever was troubling me, the support peg in the middle of my bed snaps and I fall through into something like an August taco. I lay there and just decide to laugh for about five minutes then wrap my blanket over the August taco and fall carelessly to sleep.
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