I swear it doesn't feel like April, can we go back and repeat March again?

Ok, I've been called out (thanks Katie O'Brien). I have once again left this blog untouched for months. And seeing as this blog is Dutch-focused, and I have very little time left in The Netherlands, it's time to start writing more. I'll probably just change the title but keep the same blog once I move to the next place (Keep reading to find out where...)

Well, seeing where I left off on the last blog post, I guess I should start with my trip to Spain. What can I say, it was SO interesting. We as history majors spend years learning about facts and concepts from our professor's mouths and our books. Then, when you start getting into theory during the masters, it's more like "What the heck!? When am I going to use all this abstract stuff?"And then they send you out in the world, and now I get it. What we've been learning, trying to wrap our heads around in the classroom, it's quite incredible to see historical and sociological theories in practice with your own eyes. And yes, I realize that maybe all history majors don't get to experience this, but I am lucky that my study is rather contemporary, and my particular topic focuses on subjects from today. For instance, before I left I read some articles on immigrant organizations, and the motivations and characteristics of them. Then, when I got to Spain, I got to see the author's argument's proven, by interviewing Dutch expats who were active members of immigrant organizations, and were confirming the theories that had been argued in the classroom. Very cool. Okay, nerd moment over.

So for almost three weeks, I drove all over Spain for various interviews that I had arranged before arriving. I also found some Dutch bars and restaurants and just went in and started talking to people in there. Actually, the general theme of the trip was that I could not get away from The Dutch, and the Northern European immigrants in general. After having an interview in the morning, I would go to a small cafe that I had found so I could use the wifi before going to my next interview... only to find myself surrounded by tanned Dutchmen watching "Waar is de Mol?" and the owner of the cafe asking me if I wanted a kroket ... I really don't understand how there is no study done on the Dutch in the Costa del Sol.

A Dutch bar owner with a portie of Dutch bitterballen in Torremolinos

Oh, and this is Felipe. He was my trusty steed, and brought me all over the Costa del Sol. Okay, so there may have been some times that he was almost blown off the highway by a gust of wind. But hey, he was cheap, and I'm still here. Mission accomplished.

As a side note, yes I understand that thesis research in the south of Spain sounds like a vacation to some people. And while I do admit I was lucky, it really wasn't a vacation. Yes, there is a winter in Spain. There can be sun, but it will still be 50 degrees. And then there's the rain. My days consisted of waking up early, checking my scheduled interviews for the day, driving to the town the interviews were in (which was sometimes two hours away) extra early, preparing, conducting the interviews, and driving back to my large empty apartment to cook dinner for myself. I did this for almost three weeks. So no, it was not a vacation. My last few days in Cadiz were wonderful, only because of my family. The weather was pretty bad, so no beach for me unfortunately. But it was so wonderful to see my family again, and I spent almost the whole time eating Pepa's amazing cooking, and sitting on the couch with Alba watching TV. I needed a bit of downtime with family, so it was really nice.

Alba and I in our favorite tapas bar, Balandro. 

I got back March 5, about a month ago. Since then, I've just been working at the cafe, working on the Humanities Career Event, and working on my thesis. But of course I've been balancing that with some fun. I made some great new friends this semester, always good after being so sad that half my friends left last semester. So we'll take little adventures like St. Patrick's Day in Den Haag, or a bike trip to the beach at Noordwijk. It's starting to dawn on me that I only have two months left in Holland, and there's still so much I want to do. So while I know I have to buckle down on my thesis, I don't want to sacrifice springtime in Holland, and the wonderful things it brings with it, like the tulip park at Keukenhof, Queen's Day (which this year will be King's Day) and general springtime merriment in the small boats that go around the canals.

Now, for the future. As I have previously said, my master's program is one year long. After I turn in my thesis, I'm done. I technically have until September to write my thesis. But I'm sorry, I didn't think I needed eight months to write my thesis when I wrote my undergraduate thesis in two months, and they were the same length. I have to write about 30,000 words, which will probably end up being about 50 pages. Sounds bad, but it's doable. The hardest part of this all is it's all independently done, with very little input from the advisor. I have no other due dates, and he just trusts that you're doing well. Last semester I had fixed classes, so I had to go and had to keep on top of things. This semester, I have to be disciplined with myself because it is so unstructured. But I know if I give myself until September, it's just going to be too much time, and I'll leave it until the last minute. So I came up with a new plan.


My best friend from America, Hannah, has been wanting to visit me in Europe. So I told her, you buy your ticket somewhere at the end of March, and I will make the day before you come my due date. That way there is no way I can push it back. So that's what we've done. We've hatched an evil plan. She bought her ticket and is coming May 27. Before she comes, I will have to finish my thesis, get rid or store all my furniture, pack up all my stuff, and be ready to go! We'll spend a few days in Holland, and then with her Eurail pass and my InterRail pass, we're taking the train down to France. We're going to spend some time in Annecy, down to the Riviera to Cap d'Ail, through the Provence, down to Barcelona, to Granada, a few days in Morocco, to Cadiz, and then on to Portugal. That's where I'll be staying.

Lac d'Annecy, Annecy Lake, on the eastern border of France

Cap D'ail, southern France next to Monaco.

The Algarve, Portugal

Ta-da! I'm moving to Portugal! Slightly irresponsible? Maybe. When I tell people I'm moving to Portugal, one of the poorest countries in the EU to work, they usually look quite bewildered. Not that I feel the need to try and convince people that what I'm doing makes sense, but I'll try and explain my reasoning.

Let's work backwards. I would love LOVE to work at the International Organization of Migration (IOM) in Geneva. That is my goal. I realize that is quite specific, so I would be happy working at a similar international organization in Geneva. The IOM usually hires internally to fill their positions, so the best option for me would be to apply for an internship with the IOM. They are quite competitive, but open many doors. Unfortunately, because it is an internship, they pay you beans, barely anything. And we're talking about Geneva here, one of the most, if not the most, expensive cities in Europe. Once you get a permanent position in Geneva, it's not that bad because the salary in Geneva is proportionate to the cost of living and thus quite high. But unfortunately a intern's salary.... doesn't quite cut it.

My parents have always supported me in my dreams, and think my goal is wonderful. They have been extremely supportive of my masters in Holland, and while I do work, living and studying here would be impossible without their help. But there comes a point in which I have to set out in the world on my own. So although my parents want to support me achieve my dream, I put my foot down and said I wanted to make my own way. Which meant working full-time and just saving up money.

Ok, so I have a job here, I could just stay here and work full-time for a few months and save money and move. But most of you guys know me pretty well. I have ants in my pants. So instead, I'm moving to Portugal to work. I have a few friends that live there, so at least I'm not moving there without knowing a soul. My friend from Spain is also considering joining me and working. Furthermore, I will be moving to Albufeira, which is a town in the Algarve in which the majority of the tourists are either Dutch or British. Therefore, my unique language skills of Dutch, Spanish and English comes in handy. Because I have been playing with the idea of moving to Portugal since January, I've been slowly learning Portuguese, so hopefully I won't be completely lost when I get there.


Meanwhile, I am waiting for warm spring weather to arrive, but as you can tell by the blog title... it hasn't quite got here yet. Apparently this is the coldest spring since 1964. Just my luck. But the end is in sight for my cold and cough that has lasted for nine months... just have to hold out until May 27! Almost there!

I realize that many people may think I'm crazy. To be honest, I don't really care. That's the wonderful part of this all, this is my life, and I can live it however I want. And yes, I'm in early 20's, and I don't think I have much more time to make such spontaneous life decisions, so I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity now. And while I have to deal with all the disapproving looks from people, I know inside, they're secretly seething with jealousy. É isso! Adeus, I'm going to Portugal!! Hope you all come to visit!

More than halfway finished with my Masters!!

Hoi hoi! Back again, and feeling chatty.

So I thought I'd do a little update on my life. Let's see the month of December.... what did I do... ah yes, I was locked in my room like some dungeon troll writing endless essays. I sorely lacked human interaction, consumed a ridiculous amount of tea, and I'm pretty sure my pallor turned a strange color from the glare of the computer screen. So when my parents came to pick me up from the airport in DC for Christmas, they found a ghost-white, over-stressed, underweight, and overly-emotional basket case who burst into the tears they moment she saw them. Wow, rereading that sentence... kinda makes me seem like a highly unstable person. But as you can tell, I really needed a few days home with my family, to cargar las pilas.

Time went by too fast unfortunately. The first couple days I did absolutely nothing. It was delicious. Just hung out at home, fostered an unhealthy connection to my family's new dog, Pisco, and let myself be fed and fattened up by my mother's cooking.

 I saw my beautiful, wonderful friends again, as well as all my family. But unfortunately, twelve days later the time came to say goodbye again. It's always difficult to say goodbye at the airport, when there is no return ticket purchased. No date set for the next meeting. Of course I will always see them, they are my family. But I am in a very transient stage of life right now where I couldn't tell you where I'll be living in six months. So the farewell was hard.

So because of some miscalculation (my fault, of course: helpful tip to all you out there, look at the time of arrival on your plane ticket, not the time of departure) I ended up working a shift at the cafe three hours after I landed. I was fine in the beginning, running on adrenaline and free cappuccinos. And then I crashed, and poured karnemelk (a nasty Dutch milk that tastes like they purposefully let it go bad and sour) into someone's latte and the person almost vomited.

Anyway.... excitingly, this semester I have no classes! For the masters program we have to take three required courses and a thesis, and you can arrange them however you want. I took all three of my courses last semester (which now that I think about it, probably explains why I didn't see a human soul for a month), so this semester is just my scriptie, or my thesis.

So this is what I'm super excited about. As you may know, my study is called "Migration and Global Interdependence". When I first approached Professor Lucassen to be my thesis advisor, the idea I had in mind was to do something on Return Migration (migrants who emigrate to another country for a significant amount of time and then for whatever reason return to their home country). This meant that my thesis would have been very theoretical, because many historians have already written on this and formulated theories based on the phenomena. Which would consequentially mean I would spend my life in an archive here in Holland. Then Prof. Lucassen asked my about my language skills. No, I don't speak German, my French is laughable, but I do speak Spanish. Handy in America, considered a bar trick in Europe. "Well hey", he said, "why don't you do something with Spaniards. And you speak Dutch. So do something with Spain and Holland. You can either study Spaniards in Holland, or Dutch in Spain. Do you have family in Spain, do you mind going there?"

Uh, gee, let me think, do I mind going there? Umm... NO. So where do the Dutch gather? Benidorm.. okay yes, but kind of constricting in terms of geographical space. Where else? Oh yes, the Costa del Sol region. So poor, poor me, I will be writing my thesis on Dutch nationals who choose to emigrate to the Costa del Sol region of Spain. Many migration historians have called it "affluence migration", as in migration motivated by want not need, but I think that's too limiting. I'm still trying to find a term that I think better describes it, but for now I kind of like "lifestyle migration".

Because there is surprisingly little literature written on the Dutch in Spain (there's some on British and Germans) I don't have much primary literature to go off of. So I will be having to conduct interviews myself. My advisor recommends that I compile between 20 to 25 interviews. That's a lot considering some interviews can last up to 3 hours long. Because the people I want to talk to reside in Spain, I will be going to Malaga (the biggest city in the Costa del Sol) for three weeks in February to conduct my interviews. Rough life haha... but I will be very busy.

But of course, I couldn't go to Andalucia without passing by my favorite city. So yes, I admit it, I'm going to Cadiz for 5 days at the end of my trip to stay with Pepa and Alba.

SO. Until then (just three weeks left!) I am working a lot more, about 3-4 days a week. I'm also still organizing the humanities career event for the university, and also working as a mentor for the new students arriving. So I get to pick them all up at the station, take them to sign their housing contracts, and get all the important essentials done, like cell phones, bank, etc.

So once again, don't know how, I end up realllly busy again. I don't how I do it, but every time...

But I've found some time for fun in between. We've had a couple of really big snowstorms recently. Well actually what happens is it snows. And then it never goes above freezing, so it snows again on top of that, and etc. until we just have a thick layer of slippery compressed snow. I got a sled from my boss for Christmas (random, I know), so I called my friends, found the only hill in Leiden (ok, it's not a hill, it's an old fort with a 75 degree incline), and had a day of fun in the snow followed hot chocolate and whipped cream.

I also had to take some time out for my birthday! I turned 23 on January 26... and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. Sometimes I feel really old (especially when I talk to the 20-year-old Erasmus students) and then suddenly I feel really young when I realize I'm the youngest person in my entire History masters program. But regardless, I had to celebrate it right! So I went out to dinner with some friends, including some of the new arrivals. After that, we went to my friend's residence hall that has an awesome common room for parties. Here's where I got a little bit in trouble. So Oscar, my friend, told the caretaker the party would be for 15 people and we would go at 11. Well, what actually happened: Oscar got a little sidetracked (read: drunk) at a dinner party and didn't come to the residence hall until 10:15 when the party was already in full swing. And 15 people didn't show up, it was more like 35. News travels fast. So all of the sudden I get called outside to talk to a pissed off Greek caretaker. Well I put on my best angel face, and he loosened up and eventually came in and took a shot with us hehe. Ahh the magic of it being your birthday. I swear it can get you out of everything. We then took off at around 12:30 for the Next, one of the only clubs in Leiden, and danced our faces off until the wee hours of the morning. Overall a wonderful birthday. I felt so loved, and lucky to have such wonderful friends.

Maybe it was my birthday, or maybe the fact that my masters program is only a year long and I kind of need to decide what the next step is, but I've been thinking a lot about the future. I talked to my parents when I went home for Christmas, and have been talking to some connections I have here, and it looks like something exciting is in the works!! I'm going to leave you guys hanging until I have more figured out... but it's definitely a change of pace from the Dutch lifestyle.

Until the next check-in!