To Groningen And Beyond! @sarahsingroningen - Tumblr Blog

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uneventfulness

sarahsingroningen

I want a mini goldendoodle so badly. He could be best friends with the full size one we already have.

arcticbonobos

ive been sending this emoji to my friends with iphones for years and this is what theve been getting???????

sarahsingroningen

WHAT is happening with that Samsung one!?

kingcheddarxvii

Earlier today, on the evening of March 25th, 2016, for no discernible reason, my icon changed to a picture of this man. I have never seen this man before in my life. A few minutes later my icon was back to normal. I found myself asking these questions; “Where did he come from??” “Where did he go???” and in asking those questions I may have answered one of the oldest questions in the universe. Unlikely tho it may be I believe this man may in fact be Cotton Ey

Looking Back

It’s good to be back home in Charleston. The comforts and familiarity of home are so refreshing. At the same time I know I have grown from my travels and being back in my old life feels so stationary. I am ready to move forward. I have been thinking a lot about my life post-graduation, what I will do, where I will go. At the moment I have three main ideas: graduate school, volunteering, or getting a “real” job. Volunteering back in Europe is really seeming like my best option. I already miss Europe so much. My cozy home in Groningen feels like a dream that I am trying to hold onto. I am ready to get back on the road. Today I was looking through my travel journal and I found the following passage about my arrival in Europe.

“Waking up while flying over the ocean and seeing the sun rise. Landing in Iceland and realizing that the world is huge and crazy looking. Rushing through customs during a 1 hour layover. Landing in Brussels and realizing I don’t speak French or have any idea how to navigate trains. Realizing that people are usually helpful. Seeing the old man lose his footing and fall while getting off the train and having to jump over him with my giant backpack on. Staying with him until I realized I can’t do anything. Walking into the rain and being overwhelmed. Getting ripped off by the taxi. SLEEP. European buildings! Beauty! The best breakfast! Coffee! Walking everywhere. Sitting in the park and realizing this is my life for the next few months. Navigating the metro for the first time. Going to the Delirium brewery and getting a pink beer. Realizing Americans are everywhere. Chocolate. Getting lost and seeing new things. Loving life and the fact that I am really traveling. Walking to Central Station and with every step my bag getting heavier -> knowing each step is a step closer to being skinnier for Mal’s wedding. Figuring out the train to Groningen. My first switching of trains. Seeing Holland for the first time. Realizing it was love at first sight.”

I just can’t wait to feel that way again. I am so ready for my next adventure.

#travel #abroad #study abroad #exchange student #Adventure #Wanderlust

Leftover sparklers and Eurosonic

#eurosonic #groningen #travel #explore #friends #exchange student #study abroad #festival #party time #international

Gian and I on NYE

#nye2015 #groningen #exchange student #the netherlands #travel #explore #aruban

Midnight on New Years Eve

#Groningen #Study Abroad #new year #nye2015 #party photos #dutch party #balloon drop #best party ever #travel #explore #adventure #exchange student

Winding down

January has been a bittersweet month. Classes have ended and all I have left is a final essay (that I just finished YAY) and one last final exam. New Years eve was fantastic. My friends from Aruba threw a party at Aldrich's house on Polestraat (the bar district- literally the best apartment location I have seen in the city). They had the place decked out and it looked very classy. All the Aruban guys were wearing suits and looking very dapper. I made a lot of new friends that night at just before midnight they put a table in the middle of the room and people started chanting my name to get me up on the table to lead the countdown. It was so random but awesome. So at midnight there was a balloon and glitter drop and I was on the table, surrounded by awesome foreign friends, new and old. I hopped down from the table and Gian and I ran into the street where everyone was congregating. People were drinking in the streets and shooting off fireworks everywhere. The firework laws here are non existent apparently, and its honestly a miracle no one got seriously hurt. Ashes were raining down around us as people lit off the paper lanterns that you light the fire in and they fly up into the sky (the ones you always see in pictures of Thailand). We walked down to the canal and lit sparklers and it was one of the happiest moments of my life, watching the lanterns floating into the air as fireworks went off all over the city. I would not trade my new years for any other. The rest of the month so far has been a mix of saying goodbye to friends, working on my paper, and trying to enjoy the city as much as possible while I can. Eurosonic, a music festival, took place in the city last weekend. On Saturday a bunch of my friends got together and went to a free Kensington show in the Grote Markt which was fantastic. Today I met the girl who will be replacing me in my apartment when I leave. She is a sweet girl who will be working on her PhD here. I showed her the apartment and took her to my favorite cafe. I also got to help her figure out how to ride my bike through the city. It was bittersweet watching her ride through the park. I know her adventure is just about to begin and it means mine is really coming to an end. While I am so excited to see all of my family and friends in Charleston I have loved every second of being in Groningen and traveling through Europe. I have learned so much about myself and I feel like I am going to have to learn to fit my new self into my old life. I know this is how everyone feels after studying abroad but it is surreal to be at this stage myself. Anyways, to all my Charleston readers: SEE YOU FEBRUARY 1ST! GO PATS!

#saying goodbye #europe #groningen #bittersweet

sunandreign-deactivated20171022

There’s certain advantages to walking home from the train station at night.

virusmeadow

Dom church Utrecht by wilbert pot

exploringthenetherlands

Church Yard (by Trang /C-Cat/)

fairytale-europe

Utrecht, The Netherlands

sarahsingroningen

So I went to Utrecht last night with my friend Bridget. I met her friend Mike and his friends and they took us on a pub crawl/ city tour. They were wonderful people and the city was beautiful. However I have no picture of my own to post because I dropped my camera and Bridget kicked it into the canal before she realized what it was. So long little pink camera. We had some good times and you were well worth the few euros at the second hand shop. Anyhow I will reblog a few other pictures of Utrecht so y'all can see how beautiful it is.