Experience on the Streets of Utrecht by a German Marketing Student

By Sandy Ritter

After a few weeks of study in Utrecht, I have gained some experience with the dynamics on the streets. While there are some cars and a few pedestrians around, cyclists are making the rules and no one takes care about laws. Although I knew that bikes are very common in the Netherlands, I didn’t expect such a tremendous amount of bicycles. Most of them seem to be very old, but they have a great value for everyone. That’s why people use one or two giant bike locks to secure them. For me as a German, it is amazing how such an obviously chaotic system can work. Well, at least I have to assume that it is actually working since I haven’t seen any accident yet. In my opinion two things are really important to live here. First of all, you need a bike. It is necessary to become a member of the authority of the streets. Furthermore parking costs are unaffordable. Secondly, you need a Dutch cellular phone to call the school on your first day, if you get lost in the beautiful and narrow alleys downtown. In conclusion the best word to describe Utrecht is lovely. I am sure, if you come to Utrecht, you will see what I mean. TiasNimbas helps foreign students with finding accommodations in Utrecht.