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Fireworks in Amsterdam during New Years Eve. 

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Last week in Amsterdam

I was not looking forward to this moment, but my internship in Amsterdam was coming to an end. The last week of December was my last week at TravelBird and in Amsterdam. I did not want to think about this moment and suddenly it was there. It is incredible how time flied in Amsterdam. I remembered my first day at TravelBird as if it was yesterday. I couldn’t believe that those five months were already gone...

In the beginning I was quite scared to do this adventure, to do the unknown. Now I am really proud that I made a leap in the dark. I never thought that those 5 months in Amsterdam would be so much fun. This city is truly amazing and surprised me in many different ways. There are so many nice bars and restaurants in Amsterdam. People here really know how to create a cosy and creative place. There is also always something going on in the city. Amsterdam is really vibrant and I will miss that. Furthermore, I made a lot of new international friends coming from Germany, Austria, Spain, France and of course the Netherlands. Because of meeting people from around the world, I have a more open mind now. I have a better insight in other cultures. This adventure made me more independent, because I lived by myself for the very first time. I needed to do my own laundry, do the dishes, cook myself... On top of that, I think I became more self-assured. 

Of course I also gained more working experience thanks to TravelBird. I couldn’t have imagined a better internship and I mean that. I learned so much during my internship. I learned how to build a good relationship with partners, to sell something to someone, to structure and to plan... As a Sales Support intern I managed to improve my communicative skills, especially by phone and by mail. So I am really grateful to TravelBird. I really advise everyone to study a semester or to do an internship abroad. This kind of experience teaches you a lot. It makes you grow as a person. 

It felt really weird to have my last day at TravelBird. It was a strange thought that I wouldn’t need to come to the office anymore next Monday. I had brought two brownie cakes to thank my colleagues. They all really liked it. As a goodbye present I received a huge travel map on which I can scratch off the countries I’ve already been to. I also got a candle holder with the Amsterdam buildings printed on it. I was really happy and surprised by the presents. Afterwards, I needed to hand in my token and my laptop. This was a difficult moment for me, because it was very official. This was the end. I would miss TravelBird and my colleagues so much. To end the day, we had some gin tonics and we went to a bar close to TravelBird. 

Fortunately, I didn’t need to go back to Belgium immediately after my internship was done. I decided to celebrate New Years Eve in Amsterdam, because now was the chance to do it. My best friend that lives in New York City would also visit me in Amsterdam to celebrate the end of 2016. I must say that it was a unique experience to celebrate New Years Eve in Amsterdam. People all over the city were setting off fireworks. They already started doing that the day before New Years Eve. It went on and on during the day of New Years Eve. People also set off firecrackers. It felt like Amsterdam was a war zone. We constantly heard explosions. In the evening I had dinner at a friend’s place. First we drank some champagne and had some appetizers. Then we had gourmet and we ended with a delicious chocolate cake. It was one of those typical holiday evenings where you have too much nice food. After the dinner, we decided to go to the city centre to check out the fireworks. It was incredibly busy in the city centre, there were people everywhere. Unfortunately we could not see a lot of the fireworks because it was very foggy that evening. We ended the night at a techno party called Loveland. 

On the 2nd of January, the time had come to leave Amsterdam. My parents were here to help me move out. I was very moody; I was definitely not the best person to be around that day. I did not want to leave Amsterdam. Luckily, Amsterdam is not that far away from Belgium. I will definitely come back very often. The first week I was back in Belgium, I felt very sad. I didn’t know what to do and I felt empty. Suddenly my home wasn’t really my home anymore. It was hard for me to blend in with my old friends again, because I missed half a year of their lives. I didn’t really know what their plans were and what was going on. They were getting used to make plans without me since I was living in Amsterdam. However, the longer I will be here, the more I will feel like home again. It just needs more time than I thought it would take. Or maybe I will move to Amsterdam, who knows? 

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Do you want to know more about the amazing city of Amsterdam? Have a look at this website. 

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December: a month filled with christmas vibes, but also with frustrations

We are at the end of December, which means... winter and christmas are here! First, I want to write about the christmas vibes in Amsterdam before I get to the frustrations part. The past few weeks several christmas lights have been put on in the city streets of Amsterdam. I really love this time of the year with all the lights and coziness. I secretly hope that it will snow while I am still in Amsterdam. I am pretty sure that Amsterdam in snow would be amazing.   I especially love the christmas decoration at the shopping center De Bijenkorf. The whole building is dressed in christmas lights and when you walk by the windows you can see some great christmas accessories. It reminds me of the window christmas decoration at Harrods in London. There is also a giant christmas tree at the Dam square, which I really like.

The only thing I miss here in Amsterdam are the christmas markets. In the Netherlands they rarely have christmas markets. In Amsterdam you have a tiny christmas market for two days, and that’s it. That disappointed me a little bit. I did not know that before. It’s strange that they don’t have it in the Netherlands, since their neighbouring countries Belgium and especially Germany love to have the christmas markets. It is really nice to wander around at christmas markets and to drink a glühwein to warm up. However, after the terrorist attacks in Berlin I actually feel more safe without the christmas markets. 

TravelBird also celebrated christmas with an ugly christmas sweater party. The concept of the party was obvious: everyone needed to wear an ugly christmas sweater. I decided to wear a green sweater with a reindeer on it. Everyone already wore the sweater before the party, so all the TravelBird employees were working with their ugly christmas sweater on that day. That was funny to see. The party itself was really nice. There was glühwein, warm apple pie, hotdogs and deep-fried doughnuts. Of course there was also christmas music to get the christmas vibes going. We all sang ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You!’ and trust me, it was definitely out of tune...

December was also a month during which I was frustrated from time to time. This was because of my bachelor thesis. My first version needed to be ready on December 22, so the past month was a month full of hard work. It was really difficult for me to combine full time working at TravelBird with writing my bachelor thesis. Writing a thesis obviously takes a lot of effort and after a workday I am usually tired. Then there was not a lot of motivation left to work on my bachelor thesis. 

That is why I couldn’t really enjoy my last weekends in Amsterdam, since I needed that time to write. Because of this I got frustrated. I had a lot of stress and I was scared that I would not have enough time to finish my bachelor thesis. I was sad that I needed to work for school and that I couldn’t join my international friends for drinks. I wanted to make the most out of my last weeks here, but that was not really the case. I had the feeling that the only thing I did, was working. I hadn’t a life anymore. I comforted myself by telling myself that this was the last semester of school. That I would graduate soon. That I should be glad that I had the chance to be in Amsterdam for 5 months. That writing my bachelor thesis is not that bad after all since my subject ‘tourism after terrorism’ is interesting. Eventually, I managed to finish my bachelor thesis in time. I was really relieved. Luckily there was still one week left to enjoy Amsterdam as much as possible. 

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What is life like inside of TravelBird? 

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Workspace at TravelBird 

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Bruges is the second most inspiring city of the world according to TravelBird

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Splendid view from the office - could be worse 

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We want to inspire people

Symen Jansma, CEO TravelBird

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Homesickness

The past weekend my family visited me. My sister and 5 cousins stayed for two days in Amsterdam. I was their guide in the city. I always like to show people around in Amsterdam to show them the local restaurants and bars, but of course we also did some touristic stuff. 

First of all, we decided to go to the Anne Frank house. Anne Frank was a German Jewish girl that was a victim of the Holocaust during World War II. She was hiding with her family in an outhouse where Anne’s father worked. Unfortunately, she got caught by the Nazis and she was transported to a concentration camp. It was quite emotional to walk around in the house where Anne Frank was hiding and to read her diaries. It makes me sad to know that she lived in concealed rooms for two years to eventually find her death in a concentration camp. Life can be very tough. 

We also went to Madame Tussauds. I had never been to a Madame Tussauds before, so I couldn’t wait to finally check it out for my very first time. Like all people do, we took several crazy pictures with the celebrities that were put up there. There were waxworks from Obama, Jennifer Lopez, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Adele... 

After Madame Tussauds, we went to the Amsterdam Dungeon. This tourist attraction disappointed me. I expected the Amsterdam Dungeon to be scary, but that was not the case. Actually the Amsterdam Dungeon consisted out of 9 plays and during each play they chose one person out of the crowd. I hated that part, because I didn’t want to be picked out. I don’t like being the center of attention, so because of that I couldn’t really enjoy the Amsterdam Dungeon. 

The next day, my family and I took it more easily. We went for shopping and we had a great lunch at Metropolitain. Then it was already time for them to leave Amsterdam. It was really hard to say goodbye again. As soon as my family was gone, I felt homesick for the very first time. When my sister and cousins visited me, it reminded me of how nice it is to do things together with my family and to have them close to you. Suddenly I felt a bit lonely. The family visit made me remember that I really miss my parents, my sisters, my cousins and my friends. Because of this, I realized that it is actually better to not have friends and family coming over during your erasmus adventure. It remembers you of your home and then it is hard to let go again. Luckily I felt better again on Monday when I saw my TravelBird colleagues. 

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Dinner at Mario (renowned Italian restaurant) with the Dutch, French and Belgian team as a teambuilding event. 

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Beautiful library at Rijksmuseum 

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ADE week

Last week there was the ADE week in Amsterdam. ADE stands for Amsterdam Dance Event. During ADE there are several electronic music parties all over Amsterdam. More than 450 events are organized during ADE with over 375 000 visitors. There are 2200 dj’s coming from all around the world to play at several clubs in Amsterdam. It is clear that ADE is a pretty big deal here in Amsterdam. I was really looking forward to this week, because I’ve always been a huge fan of electronic music. I dj as a hobby, so I know a lot about the electronic music industry. 

My first party was on Tuesday at Amsterdam Air. A Romanian friend of mine, Andrei, won tickets to the birthday party of Laidback Luke. Laidback Luke is a well known deejay in the EDM (Electronic Dance Music) scene. Andrei asked me if I wanted to join him. Of course I said yes, because I’ve always liked Laidback Luke’s dj sets. He has amazing scratch skills for which I have a lot of respect. I was really excited for this party and we arrived early at the doors, because we didn’t want to miss anything. In the beginning there were not a lot of people and we just talked a bit. Suddenly I saw the dj Hardwell standing in the VIP area. This VIP area was actually right in front of the dancefloor. Because of this, it was quite easy to have a chat with the people standing in the VIP area. I really wanted to have a picture with Hardwell, because he’s a very famous dj. Two years ago, Hardwell was the number one dj listed on the DJ magazine top 100. In the beginning I was a bit afraid to ask Hardwell for a picture, but eventually I found the courage to talk to him. I knew I would not have a second chance to meet him. Hardwell was really kind to me and I managed to get a picture with him. This night was already perfect, and it was just the beginning. After the meeting with Hardwell, the party got really started. The club was full and Laidback Luke came up on the stage. Before he started his set, everyone sang ‘happy birthday’ because he turned 40 on that day. Surprisingly Laidback Luke announced that all drinks were for free. I couldn’t believe what I heard. I decided to go to the bar and ask for a Wodka Redbull. And yes, it was true. I didn’t need to pay for my drink. Could this night get any better? Yes it could. After Laidback Luke’s set, Hardwell went on stage together with Armin van Buuren, Dyro and Dannic. This turned into an epic back to back set. There were also a lot of other surprise acts such as Timmy Trumpet, Don Diablo and Bingo Players. This was definitely a night to not forget. 

The second party was on Friday evening. First I had a predrink at Niels’ place (a German friend). He insisted to drink the whole bottle of wodka, so he was already pretty drunk before we even got to the party. We went by bike, but Niels had some difficulties to ride his bike after all the wodka. I think it took us one hour to get to the city centre, while normally it would only take us 10 minutes. Eventually we arrived at the party venue, which was sort of a basement. It was quite underground, which was very cool. The party was named ‘Young Gunz’. The purpose of the party was to let several young, up and coming dj’s play during the event. At home I always look for new, talented artists. During the party Kura, Firebeatz and Julian Jordan would play. I already followed those artists through the music platform SoundCloud, so I was excited to see them performing live. Luckily they didn’t disappoint me and I had a great time once again. 

The third party was on Saturday, the day right after the previous party. I did not have a lot of time to recover. It didn’t really bother me, because Saturday was also the day that my friends from Ghent would visit me. I was really happy to see them again. I showed my friends around in Amsterdam and we had really nice food at the Foodhallen. You could compare the Foodhallen to a permanent indoor foodtruck festival. Afterwards, we were ready to go to the third party which was at Melkweg. Melkweg is a really nice party venue since it is an old historical building. My TravelBird colleagues were also there and my friends from Ghent quickly got along pretty well with them. Normally my friends wanted to see Netsky live. Netsky is a famous Belgian drum and bass artist. Unfortunately, that party was already sold out so that’s why we went to the party at Melkweg instead. This turned out to be a great decision. During that party, Lost Frequencies and The Magician played really nice sets. After Lost Frequencies’ set, the dj made an announcement. Netsky would play as a surprise act. We were so glad with this announcement since we originally wanted to go to the Netsky live concert. This was another perfect night. 

I definitely can say that the ADE week was my best week so far in Amsterdam because of the three amazing parties and the visit of my friends from Ghent!

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Gotta love autumn in Amsterdam...

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TravelBird is part of the top 10 of the coolest offices in the Netherlands 

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Glow in the dark, shine like a star

Yesterday TravelBird organized a party for their employees. The theme of the party was ‘glow in the dark, shine like a star’. Everyone wore something that shined or that glowed in the dark. A good friend of mine, Niels, had put on christmas tree lights, which was really funny to see. I had glow sticks and I also wore a white shirt that came out nicely because of the black lights. On top of that, I wore some makeup that glowed in the dark. 

Before the party really started, we had a barbecue in the garden of TravelBird. I can assure you that it was delicious. There were hamburgers, salmon, sausages, chicken... Next to that, there were several salads and vegetables. TravelBird spoiled us once again. It was a great way to start the evening. After the barbecue, everyone started drinking and partying. There was a photo booth at the party where I took several crazy pictures with other interns and Sales Support colleagues.

The dangerous part of the party was that the drinks were for free. As it happens with free drinks, everyone became really drunk. If someone sober would enter the party, then I am pretty sure that this person would think we were all nuts. The party ended at 10PM. This might seem early, but we were already partying from 5PM. Afterwards, we went to our favorite pub ‘Wolfies’ in Wolvenstraat. Employees of TravelBird always go to that bar on Fridays, because it is right around the corner of TravelBird. 

The party at TravelBird showed me once again how much attention this company pays to their employees. TravelBird really tries to organize fun things for their employees in order for them to get to know one another. The company has its own weekly Friday drinks, offers free lunch, organizes boat trips and company parties... This all helps to get the team spirit going. It creates good vibes and good memories within the company, something that surely cannot be underestimated. TravelBird keeps employees motivated that way and this is really important to achieve good company results. In my opinion, a lot of enterprises don’t invest enough time in creating a nice environment for employees. TravelBird is a great example to other companies if it comes to valuing employees. 

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Lucky week

The past week was my lucky week, because I went on not one but two boat trips. I always wanted to go on a boat in Amsterdam to explore the beautiful canals of the city. Normally we would have gone on the TravelBird boat in the beginning of September, but then the boat was broken and the trip got cancelled. I was a bit sad and I hoped we would still manage to do the boat trip at a later date. And guess what, my prayers were heard. I already went on a boat in Amsterdam once, but then it was full of tourists. Now I had the chance to go on a private boat with TravelBird colleagues, which was going to be much more fun. 

The first boat trip I had this week was specifically for all the interns at TravelBird. We had beers, snacks and music, so everything was perfect. The boat trip lasted for 3 hours, so I saw a lot from the Amsterdam canals. During the boat trip, we were lucky enough to see a stunning sunset. Everyone really enjoyed that moment. This was the perfect end of the summer season. We also saw a lot of nice boat houses. One boat house had a car on top of the roof. Weird, but definitely creative and original. Creativity is what this city is all about and I love it.

The day after, I had my second boat trip. This one was for all the Sales Support employees. Fortunately, I am a Sales Support intern so I also got an invitation to the boat trip. I felt really spoiled. I realized how lucky I was to experience all of this. I could never imagine that this internship would be so much fun. The captain did the same tour as the day before, but that did not bother me. I could enjoy the same Amsterdam canals forever. The longer we were sailing, the louder the music got. Eventually, the boat trip turned into a party. We were all standing up and we were dancing. At the end of the boat trip, we could enjoy Amsterdam by night. The lights from the canal bridges were really nice to see. 

After the boat trip, we had a ‘Heineken’ at a local bar. Eventually it was 2AM before I got home, so it was quite painful to work the next day. However, I did not regret it. I honestly cannot wait for my next boat trip in Amsterdam. If I would permanently live in this city, then I would definitely buy a boat. I could invite friends to go on the boat whenever I want. How awesome would that be?