A typical night out in Utrecht has the same fundamental goals of a night out back in Michigan. Everyone involved is looking to have a good time with good people and to enjoy life. The only difference is the path one takes to get there.
The night usually starts around 7:30pm with a short walk to the local store to pick up supplies. Before I came to Utrecht, I under appreciated how convenient a “convenience” store really is. Back home, we can go to the store anytime before 1:45am to pick up supplies but here it’s another story. The reason we have to make our short jaunt at 7:30pm is because all stores (with the exception of restaurants and bars) close at 8:00pm or earlier.
Once we have our beverage of choice, we come back to the apartment building and go our separate ways for a few hours. I usually head to my room and respond to a few emails or Skype with someone. Others will sleep for a few hours, work on assignments or roam the halls of Beneluxlaan.
Around 9:30 or 10:00pm we usually head up to the 6th floor of our building to pre-party and chat with friends. The 6th floor of Beneluxlann is predominately Spanish with a few exceptions. The few exceptions have adopted some of the Spanish culture; mainly the community atmosphere and dinner time.
A typical dinner on the 6th floor starts around 9:30 or 10:00pm (which could be the reason why we congregate there). I usually sit and chat because I have already eaten dinner. It is amazing to listen to three or four different conversations in three or four different dialects. Some conversations will switch between English, Spanish and French while the participants tap their feet to a Dutch DJ, never missing a beat.
When finished with dinner, we will head down to the ground floor (aka the former entrance to a hospital) to play music on a single loudspeaker and hang out. There are usually between 40 and 70 people on the ground floor during a pre-party. Looking around the room, one would think it is a typical college party; people talking in groups, games, and dancing but it is much more than that.
This party is filled with people from all walks of life. People talk about current political issues while their hometowns are 5,000 miles. Others will be learning new party games to play. (For example; take a standard cup coaster, place it on the edge of a table with 3/8 of it hanging over the edge, use the backs of finger tips to flip the coaster in the air and catch it before it hits the table. Do this, then stack one on top of the other and repeat. My record is 8 coaster stacked on top of eacher, but I have heard tall tales of people flipping 16 coasters. This may or may not be a so called “drinking game” but I would never do such a thing.)
All the while, the dance floor will be filled with people performing dances from their native countries. Some perform a salsa, some flamenco; others will do dances I have never seen before. I, on the other hand, stick to the classic sprinkler and running man which is loved by everyone.
The pre-party on the ground floor lasts until 12:30 or 1:00am (mind you, the bars and clubs here are open to 5:00am or later). At this time, it is off to the races. We all hop on our Euro bikes and head towards to center (again, the center is what everyone refers to as the “downtown” district of the city). The bike ride lasts about 20 minutes and is filled with thrills, spills and general debauchery.
It is quite a sight to see 15 to 20 international students coming from a pre-party riding down a bike path. It is comparable to the walk form a tailgate back home, but on bikes in a city that dates back to the first century; people laughing and giving a friendly nudge, others singing off tune and way too loud. It is a spectacle.
In Utrecht there are many small pubs similar to the small bars you see in Michigan. There are also very large clubs which everyone calls a “Discotech”. Every time I hear the term Discotech I silently recite the line from You Don’t Mess with the Zohan – “Disco! Disco!” then giggle a little. We usually go to the discotechs because we have a large group of people and most want to dance.
Walking into a standard discotech is like walking into a very large club that only plays house, techno and the occasional pop hit from 1998 mixed with the DJ’s personal beats. It is pretty awesome if you like that kind of music. Personally I love all of it, so I feel like a kid in a candy store when I walk in. The discotechs are filled with hundreds of people and the first thing you hear is the DJ sending a loud UH! Then a smoother TISSS!
Once used to the thumb of the bass, it is time to get acclimated to the styles of dancing. Finding a dance partner is as simple as tapping someone on the shoulder or whispering in someone’s ear but dancing isn’t as simple as 1-2-3.
I am familiar with three styles of dance. Those being; 1. The casual and appropriate face to face three step that you would find at a wedding or other formal occasion 2. The air guitar that accompanies Foreigner’s “Jukebox Hero” or Def Leppard’s “Photograph”, and 3. The standard bump and grind that everyone learned to love in high school.
Here, none of these are acceptable. Instead people dance to their own beat which involves a lot of head bobbing, foot shuffling and, of course, fist pumping. Dancing with a partner is very common but not what you would expect. Dancing with someone involves feeding off one another’s "beat" and reacting to something as simple as a glance or a faint hand movement. Obviously, I haven’t got the whole dancing thing down yet… But, I’m working on it.
DJ’s are usually rotated throughout the night, so the mood changed two or three times. Some DJ’s have a very smooth flow and keep the crowd in a euphoric rhythm while others are more into the high energy beat that gets people to jumping. Regardless of what the DJ plays, we have always had a great time.
After three or four hours of dancing and having our eardrums ruptured, it is time to head home. By the time we get our coats and find our bikes it is around 5:00 or 6:00 in the morning. As I said earlier, nearly everything closes in the evening. Everything except a few small eateries which they call “cafeterias” but it isn’t anything like a school cafeteria. It is a small building or stand that served deep friend and other unhealthy foods.
A good night out isn’t complete without a late night snack and since there isn’t a local Taco Bell or Menna’s Joint in town, we have to rely on the small cafeterias to fulfill our hunger. I recently discovered what may be the greatest “late night snack” of all time. It is a Turkish dish called the Kebab which consists of lamb, onions, peppers, and a delicious garlic sauce wrapped up in a thick pita. It is the perfect ending to a night out on the town.
Once satisfied with our delicious Kebab, we start our journey home. At this time it is nearly 6:30 in the morning and the sky is getting light. Our ride home is filled with the sound of birds chirping and ducks landing on one of many canals in Utrecht. It is hard to believe that this is just the beginning of our 5 month adventure in the Netherlands.
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