Apartment Tour 2/2

The first picture is the view of the room coming in. Probably the most noticeable part of the room is how high the ceilings are. Since I am much smaller than the average height of a Dutch male, 5' 8" vs ~6'. (see link at the end). This is in pretty serious contrast to the room in the basement, which has ceilings at 2/3 the height. A nice plant (the small green thing in the center of the first picture) from IKEA makes me feel as if I have decorated the place. The second picture shows the incredible closet space. This room would suit a couple comfortably.

In the third picture, take a look at the size of the bed. It's big; it's low; and it is comfortable. The lowness of the bed (compared to American standards) further accentuates the openness. Behind the bed is my computer desk. Thanks to my parents, we were able to get this desk and chair from IKEA. The desk is a mere 45 euro and the chair is about 25 euro. This is where my outlet converter does quadruple-plus duty hooked into my surge protector. The desk lamp and the bed lamp are not necessary since the room is very well lit, but they have proved useful nonetheless. (Training is much faster / harder than I anticipated, but more on that in the next post)

The truly amazing part is how my room is connected to my own patio outside. Take a look at the double curtains opening to the double doors. For those that don't mind people in there room, this is a great place to host a small get-together. When the weather is nice, it's also incredibly relaxing to have your desk open to the outside.

For Prospective Optiver Traders: A note about living conditions
If you are an recruit for the offices not in Amsterdam, you get the three months of living provided. If you are working for the Amsterdam office, you get two months provided. So what happens if you do not like the place in which you are living? Ans: Optiver will pay for your living expenses if you choose to live someplace else. They will also help you relocate with the relocation allowance you are given. This policy usually carries over the two months a trader gets in his city of assignment, but you should check with each office. As of September 2007, the Chicago office allows it. Even if you love your apartment, you may be able to get an apartment leased with a friend and not lose the two months of free living.

References:
Dutch height: (http://www.channels.nl/knowledge/25041.html), (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_height)