Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (and bikes)!

**Most posts will not be this long

Yesterday I arrived at my apartment in Utrecht after 18 hours and two planes, two busses, a train, and taxi ride. 

One of my greatest complaints about the public transit system in Eugene, OR (the city in which I spent my undergrad years) is that you cannot take public transportation to the airport. Things could not be more different here in The Netherlands. I was able to buy a train ticket to the exact station I needed on an intercity train (train that goes between different cities) in the airport, walk to the train (which was in the airport), board, and be at my destination in a different city, within 30 minutes, all without understanding a word of Dutch (I'm working on it). If I wanted to take public transportation from my apartment in Eugene to the airport which is also in Eugene, I would have to walk for over three miles after getting off the bus in order to reach the airport. In my opinion, the airport should be one of the better connected stops in a transit system. Hardly anyone has access to a vehicle upon arriving by plane to a city so it seems like an obvious choice to provide an alternative way to get to and from the airport. For reference, google maps estimates that it would take over two hours to travel the 10 miles from my apartment to the Eugene airport (a 20 minute drive) as opposed to my 30 minute, 27 mile train ride from Schiphol airport to Utrecht Centraal station. Now, I'm not suggesting that Eugene should be trying to install a heavy passenger rail system to the network, but a single bus line with a stop at the airport increase the options for getting to the airport by at least 33% (I am including driving, rideshare, and university shuttle as options here). Last year I remarked on how the airport in Copenhagen had a bike highway that went directly into the airport. I didn't see biek infrastructure like this at Schiphol, but I would bet the life of everyone I know (that includes you!) that you can get to and from there by bike very easily. 

That was a long complaint about transit in Eugene, but you should know that this is kind of content you are signing up for with this blog. Moving on to better things now. 

My taxi driver was probably annoyed to have to clean my face prints off the window (for those of you who are new here, that was a joke) but I couldn't tear my eyes off the passing scenery. Every single street presents a scene that any artist would be inspired by. Cobbled streets and sidewalks are surrounded by four or five story brick buildings, many of which are older than the US government, and greenspaces and canals generously pepper the urban fabric. I honestly felt out of place riding through town in a car. Everywhere I looked there were people walking, biking, and enjoying the many many public spaces that are so ubiquitous here. Within the first few minutes of the ride I saw one of my favorite things: a girl driving a cargo bike with her friend riding in the front. This is such a common practice here that even last year when I was only here for a month, I became immune to the rush of serotonin that witnessing this provides (oh to participate would be another thing for sure). 

At one point we passed a park overlooking a canal and it was positively bursting with people who were all just out enjoying a pleasant Wednesday evening. The fact that my diver was unfazed by this tells me that it is not an uncommon thing. The enthusiastic use of public space here is something that is unmatched in the US. This is due in large part to the fact that far fewer people are enclosed in steel boxes while they're out and about (more freedom).

Before we reached my new home, I spotted a yellow hot air balloon hovering in the distance. That's something I've never seen in the States. I'll leave it at that. 

The place I am living in this year was described to me as a small attic space above the residence of my housemate, Joke. When I arrived, and saw the place in person I could not have been more surprised. With spacious and cozy living spaces, huge windows, and tasteful decor, it surpassed anything I had expected, Joke herself is a delight. She welcomed me with a coffee and chat as we sat in the airy kitchen, looking out at her incredibly lush and fairy-like backyard. Already the place has started to feel like home. 

When I asked Joke (65) if she usually bikes from place to place, she seemed confused at first. "Of course," she said, "driving in the city is practically impossible!" I had noticed on my taxi ride that my driver was taking weird turns and often we would have to take a roundabout way to get where we wanted to go. This is because like other cities I have been to in The Netherlands, planners have made it extremely inefficient to drive your car in dense urban areas. My favorite sign to see in the US is a "DO NOT ENTER" sign with a smaller "except bikes" sign posted underneath. This is possibly the most common sign to see here in The Netherlands, (except it says "uitgezonderd" with a picture of a bike) which is why it is so hard to drive, and so easy to bike. If you look up directions to a place on google maps, most likely the bike option is the fastest one. 

A lot of people think that the reason biking is so popular in The Netherlands is just because Dutch people love to bike. This is incorrect. Dutch people are just like everyone else and simply want to get from A to B in the easiest way possible. City policies have been very deliberately planned to make biking the most convenient way to get around. With things like the uitgezonderd sign, bike parking at every destination, and safe and comfortable bikeways, The Netherlands has simultaneously made it incredibly easy to bike, while making it more difficult to drive. The US is extremely hesitant to implement any policies that make it harder to drive. When we put in bike infrastructure (if we do at all), it is almost at the expense of car infrastructure. This is why we don't see any shifts in the way people travel in our cities. Cars have been and continue to be the priority on the street. It is possible to have walkable and bikeable cities in the US, but we have to commit to a desire to see less people driving, and this has to be done with actual limitations on driving. More on this in a later post. 

Anyways. As I write this very long and tangent-filled post I am coming up on my first 24 hours in Utrecht. I have already been through so many emotions during my time here and I miss everyone from back home, but I am excited at what more this year will bring. Voor nu tot ziens!

P.S. As I remember, Utrecht is full of cats! In the 24 hours of my being here I have met 7 cats! Here's a picture of the most recent: