Wednesday, September 19, 2007

the library! (and other adventures)

As promised, I will now tell you all a little bit about why I love the central public library in Amsterdam. Well, on Monday after my Dutch class I realized that I still had a whole lot of reading to do for my Tuesday classes, and I really don't enjoy reading in my room (I don't get that much done because I end up writing blog entries, etc.) so I decided to bike over to the library. It's actually only about a one minute bike ride from where all of my classes meet (which are only about a 5 minute bike ride from my dorm) so it's very close and convenient, and I'm planning on spending a lot more time there because I enjoyed studying there. People have been telling me for a few weeks now that the library has the best views in the city. Not only is it one of the tallest buildings in the entire city (it's probably about 6-5 stories) but it's right on the edge of the city in the harbor and so you can stand on the top floor and look out over all of Amsterdam. Although my main intention in going to the library was to get some work done, the first thing I had to do was go see the view. It was a rainy day, so I'm sure on a clear day I would have been able to see more, but even so, it was a wonderful view. Also, on the top floor there is a nice cafe (which is probably out of my price range, but it's nice nonetheless). The library also has a huge selection of DVDs and CDs, so I'm planning on opening up an account there so that I can start to take advantage of this collection. Another thing I found really cool is that the way all the lighting is set up, all the books sort of glow... Maybe I'll take a picture of it next time so you guys will know what I mean... It's pretty cool though. Oh yeah, and this last picture is of my bike with groceries... Yummy ice cream, don't worry though, that's not all I'm eating, I just happened to be bringing dessert over to Kellan's because she cooked me a wonderful dinner a few nights ago.

In other news, since I got back from Paris on Sunday night, life in Amsterdam has been quite lovely. Despite the rain, which is common and cold and annoying, but I'm getting used to it, life here is good. Last night Yitka and her friend Taryn came over to my dorm to hang out with me and some friends and then we all went out to a few bars and had a bunch of fun playing darts and such. In a little while actually I'm supposed to go over to Yitka's homestay for tea time! Then later we're getting dinner before our skype date with Adam and Seyeon. But now I must shower, I'll update again when there's more to say.

-Ruth

2 comments:

Mom said...

What a prolific blogger you are!

Yitka said...

contrary to your mom, i am not satisfied with the prolifity of your blog at the moment. where is your politie entry? i've been eagerly anticipating it. the sooner you post it, the sooner i'll quit taking breaks from writing my paper to check for it.
:P
just kidding.

maybe.

oh wait, but it's 7 now, so you're probably at the decemberists already. dang.