I had my first assignment of the semester due this Thursday for my Medieval Castles class – a 15 minute presentation

Intense Korfball

on Ayyubid Castles, exhilarating I know. I’m just pumped because I hate public speaking, even if it’s only in front of 20 people.  Not to mention, I’m pretty sure I aced that bad boy. I had the same professor and the same assignment last semester, and I completely tanked it and still got a decent grade, so due to the fact that this one was infinitely better, I’m assuming I got a pretty good grade. No more assignments for another month.

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Like the commercial says, Amsterdam is a “dam” good city. But there’s a few mistakes you can make that will ruin your trip. Now I’m no expert on the Dutch penal code, but I’ve picked up a few tips while I was there that will make your trip a lot more memorable. Here they are:

1. Don’t buy drugs from anyone in the streets, especially in the Red-light district at night. There are a few reasons for this, the first of which is really common sense. You have no idea who’s selling it to you, and you have no idea what it’s laced with. Second, while smoking marijuana is “tolerated” in coffee shops, sale of it on the streets is illegal. Cops are pretty lax, but they do have the power to arrest you if they feel like it.

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I’ve gotten a few visits to the site lately from people who are looking for info on using Skype while abroad.  First off, I just want to stress how great Skype is. It’s easy to set up and free to use. All you need is a web cam and you’re good to go.

Never heard of Skype before? Here’s a description that I ripped right off the website:

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Token sign that everyone takes a picture with

Brace yourselves, this is going to be a long one – I just got back from my two day excursion to Amsterdam.  It’s a crazy city, and even though we were only there for two days, I’m pretty sure I experienced everything Amsterdam had to offer and then some.  Two days was more than enough and I don’t think my body could take any more. It’s the most tired I’ve been after a weekend trip.

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I’ve been receiving emails over the course of the year from people asking how to set up their own blogs for study abroad and other purposes as well. And why not? If you’re studying abroad, blogs are a great way to keep in touch with people while you’re overseas, share all of your experiences and memories, and develop your writing skills.  If you’re writing a blog for say business purposes, it will help you become a better thinker, salesman, and networker.  Any way you use it, a blog is a valuable tool.

So let’s get right into it. Here’s creating a blog 101.

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