a pointless rant

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samlovesprilly

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I lost my mare almost two months ago and am still missing her massively.
I decided to take up the offer of studying abroad for a semester after she was PTS, firstly to keep me occupied and also as I thought the change of scenery would do me good - I thought being back in brighton would be difficult because of the links to April, and so being somewhere new would make it easier.

Gosh, I didn't realise what a huge part horses play in our lives until now; I am not only missing April, but the whole lifestyle aswell. You take for granted that doing to horses gets you out and active every day ... awake at 6am to sort her before uni and back in the evening before work/more studying, being out and active in the fresh air every day without fail and being constantly busy.
Sometimes I found it hard to juggle everything, but I took for granted the amazing lifestyle and social aspects owning a horse come with.

Since being in Amsterdam to study for the past month, I feel a bit lost. Nothing to plan my day around, lots of free time on my hands, no reason to get up in the morning (apart from classes lol), its even easy to not leave the house on the weekend as I have little to fill my time apart from my studies.
I miss being outside, I miss the rolling hills of the South Downs, mucking out, general horsey chit-chat, coming back from a long day of uni and work and looking after April exhausted but fulfilled and falling asleep instantly!

Just a general rant really, I miss a lot of things and want the passion of horse owner-ship back. I want to find something to help me stop being bored and to be my break from studying while I'm here. I'm doing some sightseeing and general touristy stuff, and running lots in preparation of my half-marathon in feb, but still feel like something to really make me content and happy is missing from my life!

Rant over, am going to try and find somewhere to ride nearby (finances permitting) or just hold on until I'm back in Brighton after xmas and can beg or borrow a horsey to play around with!
don't know what i was aiming to achieve with this post, just think I had to get something down in words and hope someone can associate with me! Would take the drudgery of pitch-black cold mornings and tons of mud over winter any day over my situation!!;)
 
did u say u are in amsterdam? try http://www.dehollandschemanege.nl/
its the oldest riding school in amsterdam. i used to ride there a lot. are u in amsterdam uni? if so, there are 2 riding clubs. one of them ride in de hollandsche manege one evening every week. i can't remember if it's thurs or fri. the stables are by vondelpark a very central location. try turning up after 5pm. otherwise they will try to charge u 5-10 euros. also, try going on a sunday morning to see the Carrousel - some forms of formation rides - some even got dressed up!!! let me know if u need any more info. u can pm me...
:)
:)
:)
 
Fabulous thank you so much!
Have just had a look at their website and sent them an email asking a few questions as I cannot understand any of the dutch! Hopefully they will get back in touch :-)
and yes, I do go to UvA, and had no idea about their riding clubs ... we didnt get told about any clubs or societies during induction which was a shame so I will try and find out a bit more about that somehow. I actually live about a 10 min cycle from Vondelpark so could very easily get there!
Thank you so much for your help, more than I could have hoped for, and will get in touch if I have any more questions! :-D
 
The Dutch are well in to their horses. I was an au pair there a couple of years ago and had a few lessons to get my horsy fix while I was there. So hopefully you'll get sorted with something quickly! My instructor didn't really speak great English, and my Dutch wasn't great either, but between us we managed. Just remember that if you are asked to 'galop' that is the Dutch word for canter..... ;) also funnily enough I studied in Brighton when I did my degree, went to Sussex and I can understand missing the hills after a while in the immense flatness of the Netherlands!
 
Sheep said:
The Dutch are well in to their horses. I was an au pair there a couple of years ago and had a few lessons to get my horsy fix while I was there. So hopefully you'll get sorted with something quickly! My instructor didn't really speak great English, and my Dutch wasn't great either, but between us we managed. Just remember that if you are asked to 'galop' that is the Dutch word for canter..... ;) also funnily enough I studied in Brighton when I did my degree, went to Sussex and I can understand missing the hills after a while in the immense flatness of the Netherlands!
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yeah, I thought there was a massive horsey scene in the netherlands ... remember all the riders with the bright orange jackets at olympia and hickstead whenever I've been! Will be nice to get some lessons in and interesting to get a different perspective on things!

And wierd, I go to Sussex aswell, really miss it back there at the minute. Only thing I'm not missing is the massive hill leading to my house - like you said, its not a problem in Amsterdam!
 
its_noodles said:
u can't book with the stables directly or they will charge u the full rate (i think its 50 euros).

go to the club's website at

http://www.asrhors.nl/contact-paardrijden-in-amsterdam-voor-studenten/

send an email to: info@asrhors.nl

u have to buy a pack of 5 or 10 lessons at only 16-17 euros each. its a bargain!!! they only take bank transfer.

hope this helps
:)
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Aah thanks for telling me!
I was worried lessons would be outrageously expensive as everything here seems to be! But thats really reasonable (esp for a student budget!)
Did you study in Amsterdam? Interested to know how you got all your knowledge of the area!
 
i used to ride in hollandsche manege a lot. in actual fact, i shall be back in late nov the week before the dutch xmas...
a couple of other things:
first, if u get bored, u can always bring ur laptop and coursework and make yourself comfortable in the first floor lounge of the manege. u can get some fresh orange juice and even some chips there, secondly, i think the riding club only takes direct bank transfer. u need to have a dutch bank account...
as i said, pm me if u need anything else...
:)
 
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