My First Year in Amsterdam (2010) – A Visual Retrospective

I like to say that I moved to the Netherlands by chance, driven by curiosity, and with high expectations (longer version in this interview).

Little did I know about the Dutch, their country, and their culture. I simply imagined life in Amsterdam was going to be more interesting than everything I had previously experienced in my home country and I was looking forward to new beginnings.

We, Romanians, have a saying, a sort of attempt of managing the expectations of those who praise places where life seems better than in Romania: “Do you think the dogs there are walking the streets with bagels around their tails?” Let`s just say it`s the Romanian way of saying that grass is never greener on the other side.

I did not feel discouraged, and , in Summer 2010, I moved to Amsterdam nevertheless.

My first year in the Netherlands was intense. It was a year of discovery and assimilation, and I was trying to take it all in: the new reality, the language, the culture. On top of this, I was looking for jobs and friends.

The new life was making me happy. I started taking photos as a way to document my experience: moving into my  first home in Amsterdam, studying Dutch, reading, painting, cooking, shopping (as a way of getting out of the house), buying flowers, enjoying the sunny days and getting cozy on rainy ones, Summer moving on, Autumn making room for Winter, my first Christmas in the Netherlands…

It`s all captured in the photos I selected below, most of them taken at home, as a way to describe my mood. Enjoy!

On the way to Amsterdam and the new apartment on August 1st, 2010:

1 moving out, 2 moving in:

The basics for the new house, ready to be brought in:

3 Romanian people celebrating the move, at the end of an exhausting yet happy day:

Waking up to this new view:

One of my first breakfasts in the new place:

While on the couch to drink my morning coffee, this was (part of) my view:

Enjoying a dinner at home on a warm day at the end of the Summer:

Rainy days settling in:

Comfort food to take the blues away:

Rain drops on the chairs left outside, on the terrace:

And… more rain:

Not exactly inviting on a cold and wet day, but still the loveliest terrace I`ve seen in Amsterdam so far:

Having all the time in the world and spending it reading:

Waking up to a sunny day in Amsterdam = pure happiness:

A walk in the neighbourhood, most probably on my way to the local supermarket:

Chocolate cake (from the supermarket) on the terrace:

… followed by red wine, also on the terrace. That must have been a warm evening! 

There is something comforting about foggy mornings, but I loved to look out of this window no matter the weather:

Another lazy breakfast at home:

My Dutch language book and notebook:

Actually having the time to notice such things:

Another sample of cosiness at home:

Not exactly the weather to spend time on the terrace, but still a nice view!:

Days at home, feeling creative and probably bored at the same time: 

Painting:

Planning:

Buying flowers always makes me happy. Photo taken on a very familiar street – Overtoom:

Another day, more reading. This was actually a Dutch novel for children, suggested by our teacher:

Nights on Antillenstraat:

Evenings at home: more wine, more candles:

Autumn comfort food and black coffee – most probably a belated breakfast for me:

Winterish sky from my window:

Weekend breakfast at home:

The first snow of the year = pure happiness:

Dutch Winter stories as part of my course:

This image makes me happy!

Tea and baked chestnuts:

Too cold to open:

My first Christmas tree in Amsterdam:

Watching a movie by Ingmar Bergman, recommended by a former classmate from Romania:

In future posts, you will see bites and pieces of the following years, because it`s always nice to see the dynamic of life and how this is also reflected – unconsciously – in the space around you.