My experience in Maastricht has been wonderful. It is a beautiful city with a mix of both local and international students. There is always something going on within the city, but it is also centrally located in Europe so you can always catch a train to visit other major cities. The guesthouse is a great central location to live in. I have made a few friends within the guesthouse, but most of my friends have come from ESN (Erasmus Student Network). They run a bunch of events and trips to meet people and I joined their marketing committee as a board member. Because of this, most of my friends are permanent students (mostly German and Dutch) who study here for all three years.
The city of Maastricht was lovely from the start! Within a few days of arriving I was able to pick up my bike. I was able to spend the last days of summer and the beginning of the fall biking along the river Maas, and exploring the shops throughout the city.
At first, there is certainly an adjustment to Dutch culture, as they are far more direct than Americans. Despite this, I found that the city was very community based. Everyone looks out for each other and I never felt unsafe, even as a single female traveler. You see little kids biking alongside you (probably passing you because they have been biking since birth). You see families biking together. And you see groups of college students grabbing lunch, taking walks, and working in cafés around the city.
During the fall, the Netherlands does get pretty rainy. You quickly get used to it, especially biking in the rain with bags. You will want a pair of comfortable waterproof boots and a rain jacket that reaches to at least mid-thigh!
The housing arrangements were good. I would say coming from living here, they feel far less "updated", but by European standards they are pretty good. I lived in a single room (you could pick single or double). I shared a communal restroom and kitchen with the floor. I rarely ran into anyone else in the shower room, despite sharing it with 25 people. Within the kitchen you have your own cabinet that locks, and several shared fridges. Utensils, plates, cups, pans, etc. were pretty well stocked in the kitchen. The building has an elevator and stairs, and you need to unlock at least 3 doors to get into your room, so it felt very secured. Outside the guesthouse was a field, tennis courts, and a basketball court. The house was a 7 min bike ride to the business school, and a 5 min bike ride to a shopping mall that had everything from groceries, to hair strightners, to candles.
Engagement-wise, I befriended a lot more locals so I spent a split amount of time in my building, and at friends apartments throughout the cities. The building was all international students who are happy to make friends, and are from a variety of locations. My corridor had a large group of Americans who came with the same group and traveled a ton, so it was pretty quiet on weekends. In the opposite wing of the building, the Erasmus Student Network has their office. They host movie nights, pre-drinks, pub-crawls, trivia- nights, scavenger hunts, and more. I felt like I was always surrounded by students who would make small talk, even if I was not close with them.
