Mari Sihvonen

Hi! I am 21 years-old country girl from Finland who loves nature and hates traffic!

Even though partying is the thing what young people and students do for relaxing, I am not so into going to club etc. Instead of that, in free-time I enjoy walking in parks and exploring good book stores. Also biking outside of the centrum and traveling around the Netherlands are my way to enjoy my time here!

In Finland I have lived smaller towns than Amsterdam, so my first impression of this city was that is it very big and hectic. Now when I have been here a several weeks I have got used to all the bikes and people, and really enjoying the city!

Studying abroad has been my dream for about five years and it has been a good experience. Teachers and fellow Dutch students in Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences are very friendly and they gladly help you to with anything you have in your mind. Atmosphere in AUAS is very pleasant and every time I enter my campus, I have great feeling that I am welcomed.

Studying in AUAS is the first time I am studying in English and sometimes it has been little bit difficult for me, but “you can’t have a rainbow before a little bit rain!” So struggle is only good thing, because when you get over it, you can enjoy it even more! And you if you have any kind of problems you can always ask help to your teachers, fellow students or us – ambassadors!