Nick 5 months

Just received some pictures from my mother of my nephew Nick.
He seems to have grown in all directions. Quite sure he will become a fighter like his uncle, haha.
Unfortunate I was unable to talk to them on Skype due to Christmas organisations which I will post some things about later on.

Goodbye America!

Two months have passed and its time to move on with my seven month journey. My stayin sweet home Alabama with my beloved mom, brother and sister has come to an end and even though over the years I have learned to part with them it still remains an unpleasant event. Just before we went up to the airport we took some family pictures and they turned out great! Im very happy we made these.

13:30 [GMT 5:00]
After saying goodbye I got on the plane which took me to Atlanta. The flight to Atlanta is a short one hour flight with a great view on the country side of the states. It sets my mind off of things and is a good preparation for the longer flights ahead of me.

15:40 [GMT 4:00]
After a pleasant flight it was time to wait for a total of 8 hours, before I could continue with my flight to the Netherlands. So what do you on an airport for 8 hours? I usually start killing time by just walking, try and avoid using the metro/train which takes you from terminal to terminal and use your legs just to get some movement. Another good reason for walking is the limited space Ill have once Im on the airplane and with plenty of time on my side there was no reason to rush. After walking around for 40 minutes, it was time to get some food. Enough places where I could eat, took the easy way out and went to the Food Court, grabbed a McChicken and a Dr. Pepper. Fortunate for me free Wifi was available around the food court, downside, none of the connections seemed to work. Thiswas quite a pinch since I still had a little less than 7 hours to burn. Luckily a friendly employee who was walking by was so nice to pass me a password to a secured fast connection. With my laptop connected to the internet and the power cable plugged in time was flying. Starbucks Coffee in between kept me up and going and before I knew it my flight was announced. 23:50

[GMT 4:00]
The long wait was finally over, it was time to board. Next stop Amsterdam!

The Great Journey

Exactly one month from now I'll be starting "The Great Journey".
The hardcore halo fans are bound to be familiar with that terminology, but before you grab your guns and start hunting me, hear me out. ;)

"The Great Journey" has nothing to do with the covenant religion in this case. Currently I'm studying hard for the last exams of the 2nd year of aeronautical engineering, meaning that my free days during summer are approaching. Which is a good thing, since I can't wait to get some time off and do all the other things I love without being distracted by college. This will mainly involve heading to the beach and have some fun with similar character to those from Baywatch. ( or so I hope :$)

Your probably wondering by now:
"Well that's nice and all Bas, but what does this have to do with this Great Journey you speak off".

Let me explain, exactly one month from now on July the 5th I'll be heading to the USA to spend 7 weeks of my summer days at my mom's place.
I hear you think: "Your mom lives in the USA, but I thought you were from the Netherlands?"

Yes I'm from the Netherlands and I'm Dutch my mom decided about a decade ago that she wanted to try her luck in the Wild West and moved there and is currently still living there happily which I support 100%. I try to visit her every year during summer, so for me it's a big break from college. Where I can enjoy a total relaxation and spend some quality time with my brother and sister. :)

So yeah, I'll be leaving for 7 weeks. Now your probably thinking: "Good for you, enjoy your 7 weeks of the Great Journey" There is a catch here....

The Great Journey doesn't stop there.
On August the 23rd I'll be back in the Netherlands, within 24 hours on arrival, I'll be getting on another flight and this time not for 7 weeks, but for a little over 5 months!!
Destination: China.

Your thinking: "Wow, China! What the hell are you going to do in China for a little over 5 months."

During my 3rd year of Aeronautical Engineering I have to do an internship at a company or university, aeronautical related, for a period of 5 months. There just so happens to be an exchange program being offered with a Chinese University, this is the Northwestern Polytechnical University at Xi'an.
So I figured why not go with the extreme and see what's it like to life in a world unknown to most people from the Western world. There is no better way to explore this by living and studying there.

So yeah, in exactly 1 month from now I'll be starting "The Great Journey".
Which will take me from the small nation called the Netherlands, to the biggest player of the West, the United Stats of America and from there to the biggest player of the East, China. The Great Journey has a total elapse time of 7 months!

So what does this mean for Bas?
Great life experience, big boost in knowledge lots of Hamburgers and Noodles, a great variety in girls. (or so I hope :P )
As for the internet,
Let's hope that the Chinese internet censor doesn't include, Halo and website like this one. Since I heard Youtube, Facebook and some other big websites are blocked. I'll be bringing my laptop with me, that's why I'm getting it repaired right now even though it's exam week.

So basically I'll be online a lot during "The Great Journey" but there is a major time difference, and possible censorship, which might effect some of the communication. Fortunate with my laptop around I'll be able to continue developing and be sure that GenHS will be done by Fall.

Phew, long post! But figured it would be nice to give you a guys and update on what I'm doing in life.
Reactions are more than welcome!

Yours truly,

- Bas