Today was a really nice way to wrap up our trip–we toured the Floating Farm, which was the company I presented on during our pre-departure meetings, so I was excited to see it in person, and we also toured RDM Rotterdam. These visits were both very informational and inspiring to see the plethora of ways…

Today was a more low-key day–we first were guided through Rotterdam to see some of Rotterdam’s sustainability initiatives, including an elevated train station converted into a green space, a rooftop farm, and some of the smart water management infrastructure in the city. Then, our trip-long guide, Brian, took us on a tour of the city…

Today, we spent the day at TU Delft, the largest (and I believe oldest) technical university in the Netherlands and one of the most prestigious in the world. TU Delft was one a short train ride away from our hotel in Rotterdam, located between the cities of Rotterdam and The Hague. Upon arrival, I was…

Today, other than sleeping in for the first time since the start of the trip, the main event of significance was our visit to the Watersnoodmuseum located about an hour from Rotterdam in Ouwerkerk. The museum itself is housed within 4 WWII-era Phoenix Caissons that were designed to be portable breakwaters, but were used to…

Today was another culturally oriented day, in which we spent the day in The Hague–just a short train ride away from Rotterdam Centraal station. Although Amsterdam is the Netherlands’ official capital, The Hague is the seat of government and is also home to organizations such as Eurojust, the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal…

Today, we left Amsterdam. At around 9:00 AM, we checked out of our hotel in Amsterdam and boarded a bus for Deventer, about an hour and a half East. There, we toured Nouryon, a specialty chemical company that has roots dating to the early 19th century, when an earlier form of the company had a…

Today felt like one of the busiest days so far during the trip—between the two museums and the alumni dinner, I felt like I was on my feet all day. That being said, it also felt like one of the most rewarding days I have had. We started off our morning, after breakfast, by touring…

Today, we left Amsterdam to learn more about the traditional culture of Holland in the village of Zaanse Schans and to explore a forgotten way of life at the Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen–both North of Amsterdam. Zaanse Schans was a wonderfully preserved village full of craftsmen’s shops, farms for grazing cattle, goats, and sheep, windmills…

Today, we had an early start to get to Royal FloraHolland’s facilities in Aalsmeer, near Schiphol airport. The warehouse was absolutely colossal–its floor area is larger than 243 soccer fields, something you can only really appreciate when you see it in person. Royal FloraHolland is a grower’s cooperative dedicated to floriculture, and it is the…

Today, I had the chance to learn more about the city of Amsterdam and really appreciate its unique charm–especially thanks to a healthy night’s sleep. We started off our day after breakfast with a chocolate tasting and walking tour of the city led by Salomé and Ian Wagenhuis, who own a chocolate shop in the old…

The past twenty-four hours have been hectic, to say the least. After starting my Saturday morning at 5:00 AM ET and traveling through PIT, BOS, and AMS (Schiphol Airport), I arrived with the Plus3 group in Amsterdam at roughly 6:00 AM on Sunday morning local time. Thus began my lesson in jet lag. Back in…

About Me Hello everyone! I am Alec Fialkov, an electrical engineering undergraduate student at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering (SSOE) and Frederick Honors College (FHC). I am from Des Moines, Iowa, but I am very glad to call Pittsburgh home–at least for the next couple of years. Aside from majoring in electrical…