SAMUDRAKI

Samudraki's Saturdays As a student in the Netherlands, you're most likely going to be on your bike ALOT! It's very rare to see students use public transport to commute in and around the city. However, as international students you are new to the city or country and biking here for the first time can be a bit overwhelming with all the biking rules. Don't fret, because this is your guide to the Dutch biking rules. They're actually very simple and easy to follow once you get the hang of it. Trust me, I managed to have 3 accidents in the first week because I was unaware of the rules and was on the wrong side of the road!  1. Bike on the red biking paths   Next to all streets are red strips painted on the road which are the biking paths which are marked with a painted bicycle. Google maps cannot differentiate what is the biking road from the main road, so don't make the mistake of biking directly on the street. The city center has alot of pedestrian zones, so don...

Samudraki's Saturdays King's Day (which was earlier celebrated as Queen's Day) is celebrated on the 27th of April and marks the birthday of King Willem-Alexander. This day is recognised as a bank holiday in the Netherlands. However, the reality is that it's just another excuse for Dutchies to have an all-day city-wide party on the streets LEGALLY! Yes, you heard me right. Infact, the Dutch celebrate the eve of King's Day, - known as King's Night - with much more energy and dancing in the city center and clubs. Each city celebrates this day but for some reason Amsterdam is chosen by the public to be the ultimate party spot for this special weekend. I visited Amsterdam for King's Day last year and I wanted to share a few tips for this year's celebrations if you plan on heading towards Amsterdam. The timing of this blog cannot be more apt as we're just a few days from the biggest birthday party of the Netherlands!!! Be prepared to see the whole...

Samudraki's Saturdays The weekend is finally here and Christmas is only 4 days away. That means it's time for Christmas Holidays , yayyy!!! As a student living in Europe with family in India there's no way i'm going to just lay around in my apartment in a completely dead city for 2 weeks. All my Christmas breaks have been spent in travelling and exploring Europe (to be honest, it's the only time I get to travel due to a tough course structure) and it's been a blast! I'm a travel enthusiast and I seize ANY opportunity I get to travel around and I think it's a family habit, thanks mom and dad. Not to brag, but I've been to almost 9 countries since I've moved to college (in a span of 2.5 years).   Over these past few years, I've gone on student trips as well as solo trips which were alot of fun and filled with crazy activities, but at the same time I still remember how I was so terrified of what can happen on my first trip. Having ...

Day Trip To Bremen (Diwali Edition) This Diwali, my mother and brother flew in all the way from the homeland India to celebrate the festival. We decided to go to Bremen, the small German town 3 hours away by Bus from Groningen. The day started at 5 AM where we got ready and took the Flixbus at 7 AM to Bremen. We saw the sunrise through the bus window as we drove passed windmills, cows, open green fields and trees changing colors to welcome the autumn season. Upon reaching we followed signs near the main station to lead us to the tourist information desk only to be walking around the same block thrice without realising the office was right there. We got our maps and magnets as souvenirs and the German journey began. We made several pitstops to eat crepes and specialty coffee and swirled potatoes that were essentially fries, and of course the infamous Ginger Cookies. We walked around the town square, went inside the St. Petri Dom church, did a little shopping in the medie...