Lebanese In Leeuwarden

I have recently moved to Leeuwarden for my masters in Environmental and Energy Management and I was pretty nervous before moving because it is my first time living abroad. However, the city exceeded my expectations on different levels.

Architecture and Landscape:

In general, the Netherlands is a beautiful country with beautiful landscapes and so much greenery. Furthermore, there is a conservation of architectural heritage which gives a special charm to its cities.
Leeuwarden, in particular, is such a beautiful city with its canals and beautiful old houses. Also, there are so many nice parks in the city where people can find a peace of mind and reconnect with nature; my personal favorite is the Prinsentuin park since it overlooks the canal where people go kayaking or do other water sports. 

Cultural and Customs

Dutch people are very honest and straight forward people. At first, one would think that they are being rude. However, once you get to know them, you will understand that their honesty is a great sign of respect. 
When walking in the city, you will notice that most houses on the ground floor have big windows with open curtains which reflect what people are doing inside the house. I found this a bit unusual and that those people had no privacy since people walking by can see everything inside. However, that portrays the transparency of Dutch people.

Gastronomy

Dutch cuisine is not quite diverse. The country is famous for making sandwiches or "Boterhams". However, they have the best cheese! 

Party Life

The party life in Leeuwarden is okay. There are many small pubs where you can listen to good music and have a couple of beers. There are also several clubs where you can party and dance till late at night. But coming from Beirut city, the capital of the nightlife in the middleast, I still think that the party life in my own country is better.

Entertainment

Dutch people are interested in art and music. When walking in the streets, especially on the weekend, you will hear some music, when you follow the sound, you will either see a band or a group of people singing. I personally love this! However, ever since I moved here I haven't heard about any theater performance happening in the city. Nevertheless, Leeuwarden is the cultural capital of europe for 2018, thus many entertainments and cultural events will happen around the city.

Transportation

Most people in Leeuwarden use bicycles as their primary mean of transportation. However, the city is really connected and everything is accessible by either bus or train. Also, leeuwarden is a small city and you can walk anywhere!

Prices

Living in Leeuwarden is quite affordable since its a small city, thus the rents are cheaper than other big cities in the Netherlands (Amsterdam, The hague or Rotterdam). Also, you can find alot of 2nd hand stores where you can find cheap deals!

Weather

The weather in the Netherlands is not the greatest. Leeuwarden is a cold city with foggy mornings and rainy days. However, I think the weather is part of the Dutch experience!!! Eventually you will get used to the weather and keep yourself warm. It is important to always keep a raincoat in your bag because the weather is not predictable: It could go from sunny to rainy in a matter of seconds. Also, weather forecasts are not reliable because really noone can predict a dutch weather!

In conclusion, I really found the Netherlands a great country to live in, people are really nice, their culture is very interesting, the country is beautiful and I really appreciate their conservation of architectural heritage. 
Leeuwarden in particular is a very charming city. I didn't at all expect that I would be very happy living in a new country and getting out of my comfort zone. Also, the best part of the Masters experience was meeting people from different countries and with different cultures and backgrounds. It is such an enriching one in a lifetime experience and I really advice everyone to go for it! It will not bring you back home with just a degree, but it will make you grow on a personal level as well. You will learn to be more independent and you will really appreciate other cultures and find beauty in everything!
It is true that we all live on the same planet, but really when you travel to another part of the world, a new continent or a new country, you will see that it is out of this world! They are something like you've never thought they would be, Every single city or country has its own charm!!