Friday I received a knock on the door from a potential new roommate. Ron from Germany. I had been wanting to switch rooms, because mine isn't in the best shape and I really wanted an Internet connection. I told him that I'd like to move in, so I walked down to the reception to notify the Guesthouse. It is on this walk that I realize my reasons for moving are ridicolous. If I had free time, instead of seeing Maastricht, I'd be on the web. I decided that the view from my room is more than enough to have me stay put. Also its cheaper, and compared to the other students attending here I fill that void of broke college student. Also Matche, my Polish roommate is just too good of a guy to leave.

So this weekend I made it to Amsterdam. I wish I could say it was a much needed break, but it actually turned out to almost be the opposite. I took the train with several friends to meet up with several more who had arrived earlier. Who were the loudest people on the train? My friends. I feel like we need to respect their culture, and I wondered if my friends feel the same. At the same time, it seems like all anyone wants to do is talk about partying or talk about the parties back home. Don't'get me wrong, by no means have I never been drunk or have gone out or shared stories of such occurances. I'm 22, it's happened and will happen in the future. It's just for me I feel there is more you can talk about. I want to get to know these people I've met. I want them to tell me a story of their past. I want to know what they crave and dream for. Not like this one time I was so wasted.....

I'm in Europe to see the culture. I want to experience a place different from where I come from. The group I was with had a hard time deciding what to do that night. I was perfectly content walking around and just taking it all in. After much bickering(spelling???) the group finally split up. On this trip I've now taken the role of the decisive one for standing in one spot has grown old. Anyways I told the group that everything will be ok if we split up. Go do what you want, but I'm going to check out the sights. Some decided to join me and luckily they did. We stumbled across this little hole in the wall jazz joint. It was perfect and dídn't back to the pot smelling hostel till 4 in the morning.

The next morning we made it to than Van Gogh museum and the Heinken brewery museum. Both interesting, one I appreciated a little bit more than the other. At the Heinken place they have two bars on the tour, where you get a free drink. Everyone was wondering if there was something wrong when I didn't drink. I wondered the same thing. Is someone so insecure with themself that they have to drink when they are at a bar. I know I can say this outright when several have told me they don't like beer. I also met some people from Syracuse who were studying in London at the time. One of them was eating a brownie and couldn't stop laughing. I think the "coffee shops"' make more off American tourists than the Dutch.

That night a small group of us decided to go back to Maastricht so we could study today.