A guest post by Chiara Tammaro who is currently studying in Groningen in the north of the Netherlands.

Never visited the north of the Netherlands? You’re not alone. Not many people traveling to the Netherlands ever take the time to pop up to the north to visit the quieter side of life. The best way for me to describe its layout, its culture and its people would be to compare Groningen to the north of England and Friesland to Scotland.

In the city of Groningen, we have a red light district with a variety of pretty ladies, and a selection of high quality coffee shops (the Dutch kind) in particular the Tavern Oasis, and an endless amount of bars, ranging from typical dutch pubs to the underground clubs and alternative bars. It’s also known to have the biggest student population within the whole of the Netherlands, with students accounting for over 25 per cent of the population. The city of Groningen holds a couple of festivals a year including Noorderzon, a performing arts festival at the end of August.

There’s so many ways to introduce yourself to a city like Groningen, but I think the best one is to get on your bike.

Alternative Groningen Tour shows you round all the weird and wonderful places of Groningen. Fiona (the founder and guide) takes you on a journey of discovery to see street art, squats, interesting communities, local history, cheap places to eat, cool venues and, best of all, shows you how the people of Groningen took matters into their own hands to improve the city.

This tour shows you how it’s possible to rethink your way of living where creativity, community, cooperation and freedom are more important than money. The tours are offered in both Dutch and English and can be tailored to your needs and interest.

I’ve been living in the Netherlands for almost four years now and coming into my final year of studying (FINALLY!). It wasn’t until entering my third year that I finally found a place to settle permanently, the Oude RKZ. This huge former Roman Catholic Hospital in the south of Groningen was built in 1925 and has more than 250 residents. Home to artists, families, musician, the elderly, couples, you name it; it’s been a community living space for over 39 years now.

Before it became an official place of residence it was squated in September 1979 with more than 100 people, making it the largest squat in the whole Netherlands. Two years later, in 1981, the municipality purchased the build protecting it from being demolished. This still had its problems until, in 1985, State Secretary Brokx declared the building legally inhabited and after consultation with the residents gave permission for a self-management experiment for a period of five years.

The once squatted hospital has since then, grown into a successful and autonomously managed residential building, with its own board, a maintenance committee and its own technical department.

I live in the basement of the hospital, which once was the bath house. It’s pretty cold and can be a little scary at times but it’s definitely homely. Thankfully right next to my room there is a hot tub that opens every last Sunday of the month. It’s the best way to relax after a 10 hour plus shift in a kitchen.

The ORKZ also offers a cinema, day cafe, bar/music venue, a organic shop and a swap shop. You almost never have to ever leave the grounds. If you join the Alternative Groningen Tour, The ORKZ is usually one of the stops.

The one and only food you need to know about in Groningen is the eierbal, a meatless scotch egg. I promise you, they’re addictive and the perfect way to finish a night out or cure your hangover from all the Dropshot (liquorice liqueur) and jenever (Dutch gin) from the night before. It’s’ a giant ball of ragout, with a golden breadcrumb layer on the outside, and a hard boiled egg sitting perfectly in the centre.

Of course you can be cheap and get one from the nationally famous Febo, but the only good part about that experience is taking food out of the wall. The best organic Eierbal can be found in Oosterpoort, at Friet Van Piet . And they even serve the Fierbal, that has the slightest kick to it (one thing the Dutch suck at is spicy food). Sorry to say but this only exists in Groningen and can’t be found anywhere else in the Netherlands. More reason to visit the north! If all else false in life, I will open my own Eierbal street food van, that’s how passionate I am about these beautiful balls of goodness.

Obviously, every city has its downsides and there’s no point in hiding them. If we do then we never get the chance to change them. Some of you may already know that Groningen is home to one of the largest natural gas fields in Europe. The mining has gone on for so long and so far that now the north of the provence is being destroyed by earthquakes. You would have thought that after the extreme negative effects on the environment that NAM might have got the sign that it’s probably better to stop mining gas. Yet gas is still being extracted while we speak, outraging the citizens of Groningen and highlighting major environmental problems all over the world. If you want to read more about what is happening visit the Code Rood website.

Here’s some extra little links should you give Groningen a visit! I’d highly recommend you do.

Bars to visit:
Kult, ORKZbar, Oost, Mr Mofongo

Restaurants:
Land Van Kokanje, De Kleine Heerlijkheid, Eetcafe Michel, Gustatio

Venues:
Vera, Paradigm, De Oosterpoort, Simplon, EM2, DOT, Zuhause

Galleries and museums:
Sign Galerie, Noorderlicht, NP3, Galerie Noord, Groningen Museum