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“Utrecht Finally in Good Light” |
Again we were up early, this time for our introduction to the DLC. It was our first sunny morning! During the walk to the UCU Campus from De Uithof (I realize these names mean very little) I took many pictures in the first good light we have had.
When we reached campus we were sat down and introduced to a number of professors who would be responsible for the lectures, seminars and language sessions. They all seemed very jolly and excited to have us. The director was on particularly good form, so I thought, as he gave a wonderfully sarcastic speech about how we ought to conduct ourselves in order to lose our laptops and bicycles. He really never broke character--I enjoyed it. Brittany, of course reading between the lines, pegged him as simply too nervous to act normally.
After the short intro, we were conned into accepting our first 'Dutch treat.' Now I should be fair, considering this blog has been discovered by some other EAPers and may leak further---I clearly mean no disrespect in calling the following circumstance a 'Dutch treat' and do not aim to perpetuate negative stereotypes of Dutchness. **For those of who will worship Talladega Nights (Mum), I have amounted to saying "With all due respect...."** So anyway, what happened was this: the introduction leader concluded by saying that the kitchen staff had prepared an extra batch of a particular Dutch treat for our pleasure on our first day.
Hungry and uplifted by what seemed to be a lunch invitation, we all pranced downstairs and were funneled into a line leading to the small cafeteria. The kicker was that the line snaked around a corner, so that those at the back couldn't see their dismayed peers pulling out their wallets---as we all did in turn. Furthermore, the pickings of Dutch treats was horribly slim by the time I got up there. But no prob; I got my paws on something filled with cheese and deep fried.
Following this small snack we had about 2 hours until our next obligation, a Utrecht walking tour which met downtown. In the meantime we headed for downtown by foot and took more pictures in the light, which had held throughout the morning. In particular, our route took us through the beautiful Wilhelmina Park, named for the loved Dutch Queen who reigned through both World Wars.
A while later we headed to the Domplein, the small and gusty square under the Dom Tower, to meet for our walking tour. Our tour guide showed up punctually and we waited for a few minutes for everyone to show. From the Domplein we headed out on a long, though interesting walk through Utrecht. Quite an old town! There are many subtle remnants of Utrecht's history around town which we were excited to see---we have become much more sensitive to the details of Utrecht's architecture and layout which refer to its history, details which don't really exist in LA.
Nonetheless, the pain in our backs meant that were happy to be released from the tour. Of course, we had to immediately head back to campus for our next engagement, a welcome drink hosted by the Boswell Institute, the separate on-campus school which was handling our DLC program. In short, the drink was fun because Brittany and I had the chance to meet other EAPers. Further, our empty stomachs welcomed the drinks wholeheartedly. We headed back to De Uithof in due time to fill up on pasta, which set us straight again.
Relax, some school reading and then bed.
previous travel blog entry
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