Tips & Tricks: How to find cheap furniture
At some point everyone has to face the challenge called find the perfect accommodation in Groningen but even if you manage to do that there is the additional trial to buy some furniture because most of the rooms in Groningen are not furnished and it is up to you how comfortable and pretty your home is going to be. Even when you are international student, living in some of Housing office’s student houses keep in mind that they are providing only the basic furniture like a bed and a table and in most cases students prefer to add some personal touch to this almost empty picture, so let me give you some tips and tricks how to deal with the matter.
The first solution and most expensive one is going to the good old IKEA, which is situated at Sontweg 9, a little bit far from all major sights of the city but can be reached with busses 9, 22, 73 and 76. The IKEA in Groningen is one of the biggest in the Netherlands and offers a great variety of products, in other words the possibility not to find what you are looking for is very little, the price is a different question.
The opening hours are:
Monday –Frida: 10am–9pm
Saturday: 9am–8pm
On Sunday it is closed.
Even if you don’t have what to buy there, still it is interesting to just visit since it can definitely you’re your boredom at least for one full day.
Moving on our next and cheaper option is buying second hand furniture. I will recommend Mamamini, which is a shop for secondhand stuff; you can find everything from junk and clothes to reasonable furniture. Keep in mind checking if some kind of bugs hasn’t decide to claim your new sofa for theirs. In Groningen there are three Mamamini stores for you to choose. Be sure that all of them have completely different furniture compare to the previous, so if you don’t find something that you like in the first who knows maybe you will be lucky in the second. Here is a map to check the locations or you can just Google it for yourself.
Last but not least, is to buy your furniture from other students; normally this is the cheapest solution.
First you can have a look at the different student houses, typically there are sell-advertisements on the ground floor but I don’t really believe that anyone will really start going from house to house just search for someone’s old chair, so let’s go to the more convenient option.
You can join the Facebook group “For sale in Groningen”, where people offer you their old stuff on quite reasonable prices. The variety is not limited to furniture only but you can buy a bike or something else. The group is all in English and all the items offered are shown on photos for you to know what exactly you are buying. In addition, you can negotiate the price if the seller is willing to do so.
With this my little lecture is over, I wish you good luck in decorating your perfect room!
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Incredible India
One of the best things of being an international student is the opportunity to make friends all over the world which comes with several bonuses, such as free accommodation in a foreign country, getting to know a new culture and taste delicious exotic dishes.
If you are even luckier then you can get invited to some of the special events, organized by the different communities in Groningen. After the unforgettable Indonesian dinner several months ago (see: http://www.feb-international.com/experience-indonesia), The “Groningen Indian Students Association” didn’t let to be left behind and kicked in with Bollywood Dance Night.
Everything started with amazing home cooked Indian dishes, thank goodness adjusted in spiciness for us weak Europeans but still strong enough to appreciate the power of curry and then after some socialization and making new Indian friends, you get the chance to worked out some good sweat , dancing to the rhythm of Bhangra and Pop. The dynamic movements and the lessons of native dancers definitely can let experience the world of Bollywood for one night only.
This kind of event is organized by “Groningen Indian Students Association” at least once a year, so if you get the chance to feel as if you are part of old Indian movie , don’t miss it at any cost, it’s totally worth it!
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Night of Arts & Science
If you are seeing strange creatures approaching you, doctors hugging you while singing and bands playing at every corner, no do not think that Groningen celebrates Halloween in June; just the Night of Arts and Science has begun.
Every year in June for one night the center of Groningen turns into a strange place, where you can find a giant model of human heart or just enjoy the performance on the stage next to it. On the Night of Arts and Science, talents from the different faculties of RUG get the chance to show that they are not all about studying but much more. Of course, there are some professional performance as well like musicians and artists.
You can move to various locations and on each and every something different is going on. This year you could have played with a robot in front of the UB, bumped into all kinds of creepy creatures in the city center or be amazed by the acrobats near the Central Station. There is so much to see that you cannot catch your breath running from place to place and still fail to see everything.
Normally, you should pay a certain sum to visit some places like museums and exhibitions but if you are a student in the red, you still can have a lot of fun because most of the activities in the city center are for free.
Every year the program differs but remains very exciting. One thing is sure though, for the past two years even putting my best efforts I still couldn’t say I manage to see everything, my hope remains to shine for my third year
One of the many performance during the Night of Arts and Science in Groningen:
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International Movie Night
To the attention of fans of good movies! On 23rd of May in Zernike the International Activity Workgroup is organizing a movie night and everyone is invited to join for free.
The movie is “Margin call” which follows the key people at an investment bank, over a 24-hour period, during the early stages of the financial crisis.
Before the start Professor Boudewijn de Bruin will give a short introduction on the topic. After the movie there will be a discussion where everyone can take part and give his opinion about the movie and the crucial topics in it.
The activity is in English and to make it a delicious experience, free snacks and drinks are provided, so grab some friends and be there!
When? 17.00 23rd of May
Where? Duisenberg building room 5412.0031, Zernike
Why? Why not
Liberation day
After Queen’s day at the end of April, there is no time to relax and catch your breath because the Liberation day is just around the corner. It is celebrated on 5th of May all over the country to mark the end of the occupation of the Netherlands during World War II.
Of course, as a national celebration it is a day free of lecturers and classes. Most students in Groningen head to the Stadspark, where various events are held each year during the whole day. There are several stages, where artists are playing different types of music to match everyone’s taste. You have the choice to a look at famous bands on the main stage or check out the local heroes and get to know some traditional Dutch songs on some of the smaller stages.
The event brings together people from different generations, so you can see families having picnics on the grass, children running around the place and in the kids area their a lot of interesting activities, some of them suited even for a little bit grown children. This year there were people cosplaying as Stone-age villagers, except that it was fascinating for the children, I had the chance to bake my own bread on fire and appreciate the hard work of the one who invented the oven.
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