Flower Power

On Saturday I begun the most wonderful Easter weekend: starting with a day trip to Keukenhof gardens with the girls: Emma, Cameron, Kaia, and Sigrite, who I met for the first time that morning. Keukenhof is pretty much a massive garden which showcases Dutch flowers, bulbs and plants, which of course meant plenty of tulips!

Admittedly, I was a hesitant visitor at first. The prospect of paying €38 just for entrance and transport alone felt like a bit of a kick in the teeth, especially when the only incentive was tulip fields. But the girls were all very enthusiastic, and I had heard a lot of good things so I decided to take the plunge.

It turned out to be a wonderful experience. Like a fairytale, with something pretty round every corner. Simply beautiful. Well worth the money! Only 253 photographs later and I was done. 

But we didn't end our day there. Later that evening we reacquired Lindsey into the group then the six of us enjoyed a girls night out! Experimenting with what I thought was a rather sophisticated drink of gin and tonic, and attending Kill All Hipsters at Rotown. It was a pretty cool little place and we had a good night!

Midweek we celebrated with 'documentary day' at Emma's place. She made us avocado pasta for lunch, which was gorgeous! Then progressing to feed me Finnish candy. Salty liquorish? Interesting concept... After gleefully stuffing ourselves with food it was time for Blackfish: a documentary about the behaviour and treatment of killer whales in captivity at Sea World - pretty eye opening and well worth a watch! It was a nice way to spend the afternoon, but I was even more delighted to realise that I have a group of friends that would not only humour, but willingly suggest, such a nerdy activity. I couldn't ask for much more! =D

The rest of the week has consisted of a pretty full schedule of coursework, and attempting to avoid it by spending obscene amount of time, and pennies, in the food court...oops!

I have no idea who Anna is, but I really enjoyed her noodle soup! ;) Washing it down with some frozen yoghurt wasn't a bad plan either. Happy Nat!

Then last night, when I was supposed to be completing this post, I instead spent my time getting ready for a night out with the girls whilst munching on a King's Day themed doughnut... I'm sure he would have been honoured! =P

Later amigos! 

Competitive Spirit.

The weekend began with a social market venture. Which is a bit of a strange concept if you think of the market as a temporary grocery store. Back home I would, of course, never round up the troops to buy some veggies at Morrisons. But that's what we did: Emma, Jess, Cameron, Lindsey and I. It was quite fun but, after forgetting a few items, I realised that I am definitely a more productive shopper when I am on my lonesome. Socialising produces too many distractions. But, on the other hand, I was also inspired to branch out; purchasing myself some peanuts - forever learning new things.

After we were all stocked up on our food shopping we decided to buy ourself some churros for a treat. But first we debated how long it would take to walk there...I claimed a walk of 5-10 minutes, Emma asserted that it would in fact take between 15 and 20 minutes. And, I have no idea why, but I got more than a little competitive - setting off at quite a pace. Unfortunately the others were having none of it and I had to settle for a gentle stroll instead, which dramatically threw off my estimation time... Apparently it took grand total of 16 minutes to walk that short distance. Such a disappointment. *grumbles to oneself* 

But, with food fast approaching, I quickly cheered myself up and, as a churro first-timer, I choose myself a topping of cinnamon sugar. It was glorious - very similar to cinnamon bread!

On Wednesday Emma, Kaia and myself had a bit of a Primark haul. Which is a much more exciting experience when there isn't a Primark store round every other corner! I felt like it was a very successful shopping trip, especially since we finally managed to get Emma a pair of trainers that both fit her feet perfectly and passed the 'cool test'. Easier said than done!

After our shopping morning I decided to have an afternoon 'run' round the park. A rare occurrence. I don't normally venture into the real world to exercise for fear of falling, keeling over, or running out of water. No, the real world is a terrifying place. But I did it!! Granted, my first attempt at running was pretty pitiful, but we've all got to start somewhere! On the plus side, I was really feeling the burn in my legs that night and the following few days, which is always satisfying.

The following day I visited the park once more, but this time on my bike. It's funny, but I don't really think of biking as exercise any more. It's so normal now. Even when I have to cycle a really far distance, I only consider it as a means to get from A to B. Walking seems so tiresome... Anyway, at the park the ducks just strolled right up to me, bold as brass - it was adorable, and I couldn't help but do an impromptu photo shoot! =D

Today was rather eventful: visiting the Boijmans Van Beuningen museum, looking at art, watching movies whilst lying on a net which was suspended from the ceiling, taking selfies in a room filled with mirrors and stuffed animals, then eating ourselves into a pancake induced coma. Delightful! Although the pancake mix was incredibly difficult to conquer. Emma made the best of a bad bunch and I thus declared her head pancake chef...but it really shouldn't have been that difficult! *shrugs* 

Bad Idea.

I got lazy with my blog this week. Both in length and unmet deadlines.

Since I currently only have a two day week at university, and the rest of my time was hardly jam-packed with exciting events or drama, I do not even have a proper excuse for such laziness. Oops, my bad!

It really was quite a quiet week. Apart from Friday. Friday was definitely not my finest hour.

Life lesson: Cheap tequila is not our friend. And vodka doesn't help much either.

Lets just say that I had a bit of a bumpy start to Saturday morning. But, I can, at least, take refuge in the fact that the results for me weren't quite as bad compared to my two accomplices for the evening (who shall remain nameless).

Fortunately, the remainder of the weekend was much more presentable. Saturday was, obviously, market day. Then later me, and my friends from the previous night, simply spent the evening chatting and watching old television programmes. I overindulged once more, but this time cocktail nuts and popcorn took the place of alcoholic beverages. My kind of night!

On Monday term 4 began. The final term of the year. This time all of my classes are squeezed into the first two days of the week. Which sounds amazing on paper, but those two days are pretty challenging, and definitely took their tool on me. Maybe I was slightly under the weather, or perhaps it was just the effect of those two intense days, but I was struggling to do the most simple of tasks on the Wednesday and Thursday that followed.

But it's not all bad! After finishing up on Tuesday afternoon, myself and Emma treated ourselves to a meal at the Paviljoen on campus. At three in the afternoon, and after having only eaten a single banana during all that time, I was in desperate need of food: the veggie burger, chips, and hot chocolate definitely did the trick. Marvellous!

Once escaping from campus for the week, I had a lot of boring errands to run: post office, doctors office, pharmacy, grocery shopping...wild stuff.

Taking time to admire the beautiful park.

But Thursday evening was cinema night - my favourite of the week! Emma, Kaia, and myself went to see Divergent, which was pretty awesome. In some respects, it was very similar to The Hunger Games, not that children were forced to murder each other for entertainment, but the setting very was similar and the way in which society had been forced into a different social structure. It was interesting, and a decent watch, especially with the cheesy romance and male eye-candy. Yes, I'm easily pleased!

Then on Friday Emma volunteered to entertain me, Lindsey, and Cameron with a movie. Unfortunately her laptop decided to acquire some viruses just in time to disrupt our plans. Perfect. We still had a really nice evening though: we ended up ordering cinnamon bread, otherwise known as heaven-in-a-box, and chatting well into the early hours. It took some serious effort to detach myself from her sofa in anticipation of the chilly cycle home.

A pleasant week! =D

Spring Break!

...okay, that sounds more than a little American. And I'm pretty sure this week was more of a second exam week, but luckily for me, I wasn't taking part. Assignments handed in, and zero exams. Result!

After a long, long term, followed by a week entertaining my brother, I was more than ready to slow down. No need for outlandish day trips or holidays. A total detox from alcohol and coursework. Nothing complicated.

Just me. In the park. With a book. Bliss. 

And that's pretty much exactly what I did. Stepping back from the madness for a week. Of course, there have been a couple of deviations from that routine, but on the whole I have just taken some time to be Natalie and relax.

I know this sounds ridiculously cheesy, but the little forest area in the park legitimately smelt like home. That, combined with the glorious sunshine, reminded me of walking my dog on a rare summer evening in Scotland. Happy days.

The weather really has been outstanding. At 20+ degrees, it literally feels like the height of summer. My skin would agree; gradually turning shades of light pink from its usual milk-bottle white. No full on burn though. Not yet.

Pride of place...on the lamp...
next to the Christmas decoration!

Over the course of Saturday and Sunday I said my final goodbyes to Jinn. Spending a few hours with her at the market: gossiping, eating chips and purchasing groceries. Then again for another short stint on Sunday afternoon: chilling at mine, eating ice-lollies, and watching an episode of Girls. We also exchanged small gifts: a late birthday present for her, and some travel goodies for me. It's all very surreal. I'm not convinced that she's actually left - I'll be left expecting her to turn up to class in a couple of days. Such a bizarre situation!

I also spent Saturday evening over at a friend's house for movie night. We watched a French film called Amélie. How sophisticated! It was more than a little odd, but I would recommend it to anyone in a bit of a strange mood. Perhaps not the clearest of movie reviews, but it really was very...different. And I liked it! As a reward for watching a subtitled movie we, of course, treated ourselves to scrumptious chocolates and a few card games. All in all, it was a lovely evening.

Then on Wednesday me and Cameron decided to take a trip down to a photo museum (Netherlands Fotomuseum). We cycled there, which was quite a challenge in this heat, but the distance wasn't too far and, as always, the view of the river was spectacular! The museum itself was pretty good too, especially with a free ticket! I am truly growing very fond of this Rotterdampas - it does wonders! We both really enjoyed ourselves, and afterwards we indulged in toasties and ice cream...brilliant. 

Inspired by the sunshine, I spent Thursday morning writing in the park. Followed by an afternoon at a mini "beach" area with a friend. After a short cycle, we spent an hour or two just sitting on a picnic blanket near the water, enjoying the warm weather and chatting. It was really nice to share a chilled out day without being dragged along to an attraction of some kind. Sometimes I am content just to be. =D

Today has consisted of some retail therapy, which is definitely to be continued! I managed to purchase a skirt and two nice, but simple t-shirts for the warmer weather. I was caught slightly off guard this week in the clothing department, and had to throw a few questionable outfits together just to stay cool. But, as anyone could have predicted, the sun has disappeared now that I actually possess a few more weather-appropriate items. Not cool.