Strong Personality

I've been enjoying the slower pace of this first part of my trip. I've been to Den Haag (The Hague), experienced a little taste of Belgium in Brugge (Belgian waffles are truly amazing), checked out a sliver of Utrecht, and most memorably...met some of the most interesting people. You know the phrase "strong personality"? I now know that the phrase is used way too loosely. The people I've met in the last few days have the strongest personalities I've ever encountered, by far. Very intelligent, funny, honest, expressive, raw people.

Perhaps my perceptions are amplified by the stark contrast between my environment at home and the environment here. It's pretty much the opposite. I mean, a few things carry over, but for the most part it's entirely different. For one thing, here the men far outnumber the women. That's something I'm not used to at all. It's an odd experience going from the majority to the minority-or, in some cases, the token, the only. It's kept me on my toes. As different as these people are from my usual crowd, they are most definitely good people.

For me, personally, this experience thus far has just shown me how vastly different people's mindsets can be and how suitable to me the one I already have is. Some say this place changes people; I think that's only true if one is looking to change, itching to redefine aspects of their lives. Well, here's where I stand: where I've always stood, just with the added knowledge of where others stand and why and precisely where I stand and why.