A DVD evening was planned for at Gorken's place, last night, but we ended up not watching the DVD. Vincent's computer developed a problem and we were unable to fix it in time. Instead, we sat on couches, eating movie snacks and just talked.
It was also Moise's last night in The Netherlands. All of us trainees decided to go home at the same time and we walked with Moise to the train station. His train wasn't due to depart for another 50 minutes but we all stayed there and continued our conversation.
I was reading a few jokes from a funny book called "I think, therefore I laugh". One of my favourites is a story about a man who is good at telling parables. You learn that he really only introduces subjects in conversation, for which he has an appropriate parable. I'm not sure if Moise does this, but he always seems to have an interesting story when you talk with him. That is what I will remember about him most.
posted by James 8:00 pm
I feel like I am a few steps closer to realising my plan to visit Russia and Portugal after my traineeship finishes. However, these steps are more in the form of me being relaxed about whether I can afford it, than anything real like purchasing tickets.
Lia found out that the rental contract for my room expires on February 9 and that my rent for February is only EUR 89. This is earlier and less than expected. I’m not too concerned about having to move out of my room on this date because I will probably be able to stay with one of the AIESECers. Of course, I am happy to learn that my rent is less than I thought.
I spoke with Paul too confirm an approximate figure for my February salary and whether I might be able to have some of it paid in advance. I calculated that I would otherwise have a huge cash deficit next week, with the need to purchase airline tickets. Paul confirmed that my estimate for February’s salary was more or less correct, so I have more confidence in my budget. He also suggested that I could buy my airline tickets with the business credit card and repay the amount owing during my last week of work. I am very pleased with this outcome. So long as I follow my budget, my cashflow situation will be comfortable and I won’t need to ask for any more money from home.
posted by James 9:17 am
The office renovations continue. This week, it is the front meeting room which is being sanded and painted. All of the big pot plants from the meeting room have been moved to the main office which is now taking on the appearance of a small forest.
Last night, Agnieszka and I organised dinner, at our place, with the other trainees. It was partly motivated by Moise leaving at the end of the week. He has finished his traineeship and he is going to the US, on Friday, to start a university course.
We all went to the supermarket, on the way home to our place, to choose the ingredients for dinner. I get frustrated by such group decision-making. Each person is scared of making a decision because they don’t want to be seen to be imposing their opinion on the others. If everyone does this, then nothing gets done. These days, I make a point of being decisive with my opinion, to make sure that something is decided.
It all worked out in the end and we had a nice evening. We enjoyed spaghetti with cheesy sauce and funny conversation.
posted by James 9:07 am
Last Tuesday, I saw the original version of Finding Nemo. Notwithstanding the simple story, you can find many worthwhile themes if you look for them. There are also lots of funny moments.
Despite me actually making an effort to plan what I would be doing for New Year’s Eve, it all turned out to be somewhat last minute. I had a tentative plan to meet Sabine (a trainee from Austria) and her friends at her place in Amsterdam. But, I didn’t have her address or phone number, so the plan was still up in the air. I went to work on Tuesday just to check my e-mail and I finally got a reply from Sabine with her address and phone number. The plan to meet her in Amsterdam was still on. In the meantime, Moise, Maja and her student friends were also thinking about going to Amsterdam. I gave them the update about the “meet Sabine” plan and we decided to discuss it further after watching Finding Nemo.
We came to a resolution within one minute. Agnieszka and I would go to Amsterdam on Wednesday morning to make the most of our day there. Maja and Moise were working, so they would get a ride with Amaar and Mohammad (her student friends) later and meet up with us in Amsterdam. At least we had a plan (of sorts) in place.
Agnieszka and I made a big breakfast for ourselves before we went to Amsterdam. I think we are both concerned about how much money we spend, so we wanted to limit the amount of food we bought in Amsterdam.
We arrived at Amsterdam Centraal Station just after 12pm. As we were walking down the Damrak, I realised that it was already 2004 in New Zealand, so I resolved to call my Mum. I took out my phone and noticed that there was a missed phone call and a voice mail – both from my Mum! My puffy jacket was so puffy that I hadn’t heard the phone ring when it was in my pocket. I listened to the nice message (left at 12:08am New Zealand time), then left a voice mail of my own.
We both wanted to visit the Van Gogh museum, so we walked to the Museumplein first. The reflecting pool outside the Rijksmuseum was frozen over and people who had their own skates were making use of the ice.
The Van Gogh museum was nearby and was easy to find. It has more than 200 paintings by Van Gogh - the largest collection in the world.
Van Gogh lived from 1853 until 1890. His paintings were done in the last ten years of his life and the museum has organised them in a loose chronological order.
His earlier paintings were done with dark, sombre colours and usually portrayed Dutch peasants in their daily life. After moving to France, he became influenced by the impressionist painters and experimented with brighter colours and unique brush strokes. He often painted Parisian city scenes. He also made at least twenty self-portraits.
He hoped to establish an artist’s colony in a yellow house in Arles, but the dream was never realised. I saw paintings that he made of the yellow house and his bedroom. Xin would be interested to learn that his bed was really yellow! His famous “Sunflowers” painting was made to decorate the room of his artist friend Gauguin who later moved into the house.
Over time, Van Gogh developed a mental illness which often lead to psychotic attacks. During one of these attacks, Van Gogh severed his left earlobe and Gauguin, understandably, abandonned the yellow house.
Van Gogh admitted himself into a mental hospital, yet he was still very productive, painting what he saw from the windows of his room. In the last year of his life, he lived in Auvers-sur-Oise, an artist’s village, near Paris. During this time, he painted my favourite works, “Wheatfield with crows” and “Wheatfield under thunderclouds”. I enjoyed the rich brush strokes and vibrant colours.
In 1890, Van Gogh shot himself in the chest and died two days later, with his brother at his bedside.
After leaving the museum, we walked slowly towards Sabine’s place. We passed the Westerkerk, the Anne Frank house and the Noorderkerk. The maps at the back of the Lonely Planet Guide were useful and Sabine’s building was easier to find than we had imagined.
I had never met Sabine before. She had invited some of her friends from Austria and Germany to visit. When we arrived, most of them were already there, sitting around a table in one of the common areas, drinking and smoking. I helped to bring another table up from a lower floor so as to create enough space for everyone. There were about 15 of us, all told. Different people helped to prepare the dinner – a grand array of different breads, sausages, vegetables and dips. The dishes were spread over the two tables and a “help yourself” policy was followed.
Sabine had organised tickets for Agnieszka and I to go to a New Year’s Eve party at a local bar. The tickets were EUR 5 for us as they had been bought in advance. If Maja and the others wanted to come later, they would have to pay EUR 10 at the door.
In the end, I only spent about 30 minutes at the party. I spent a lot of time either talking with Moise or Maja on the phone, or walking around the Amsterdam Centrum, trying to meet up with them.
At 10:50pm, I got an SMS from Maja, saying that they were still an hour away from Amsterdam. Yet, 15 minutes later, Moise called me to report that they were around the Centraal Station. Agnieszka and I walked from the party to the Centraal Station, with the help of Reg (an old trainee from Amsterdam), to see if we could find them. The Station was closer than we expected and an easy walk for the likes of me.
Of course, it is next to impossible to find a park in the Amsterdam Centrum on New Year’s Eve. So, with about 15 minutes remaining until midnight, we gave up waiting for the others and returned to the party.
By the time we got back, there were barely minutes left until the New Year’s countdown. I had time to go downstairs, deposit my puffy jacket at the coat check counter, then rush back upstairs. There were glasses of celebratory champagne for everyone, so we were each given one before we went outside for the countdown and fireworks display.
“Tien, negen, acht, zeven, zes, vijf, vier, drie, twee, een, gelukkig nieuw jaar!” We intermingled, wishing each other a happy new year, exchanging the customary three kisses on the cheeks.
I was wearing only a short-sleeve t-shirt, so I felt chilly. Luckily, the fireworks display distracted me from the cold. At first, I stood outside the club where the party was, but it soon became apparent that the view would be much better if I watched from the bridge which crossed the nearby Prinsengracht.
Fireworks were being ignited from everywhere – halfway across bridges, on street intersections and in the middle of squares. I’m not sure if the fireworks were paid for by the city and distributed, or whether these people had paid their own money for them. In any case, they were certainly better than the fireworks that the ordinary person can buy in New Zealand. There were cool skyrockets which were launched from simple softdrink bottles, and made impressive flower patterns. Other fireworks reminded me of the “double happy” type that we used to have in New Zealand, only much louder. Once, I saw a long string of at least 100 such fireworks being lit. The result was so loud and it lasted for over 30 seconds.
When I was on the bridge, I could see part of the way down the Prinsengracht and the fireworks above. Reg was also at the bridge, because he realised that it was a better place from which to take photographs. I wondered out loud what the fireworks were like elsewhere. Reg said “Well, why don’t we just run to where the other fireworks are?” I thought about it for a second and decided that it wasn’t such a stupid suggestion after all. In an act of random destruction, I threw my empty champagne flute over my shoulder and then we were off.
We ran from place to place, stopping from time to time to look up and watch the display. Each time we thought, “Alright, this is as far as we’re going to run”, but then we decided to go one block further. We ran as far as the block across the canal from the Westerkerk. I liked the image of the fireworks in the sky set off against the Westerkerk tower, which was itself illuminated, in the foreground.
It was at least 12:40am when we decided to head back to the party. I was feeling cold. I looked to the right and saw a bonfire being created on another bridge. I exclaimed “Bonfire! Let’s run to it!”. So we did. Some students were burning what looked like a couch and other furniture. I lingered around the fire for a few minutes, enjoying its warmth. But, when someone threw a firework into the blaze, I knew it was time for me to make my exit.
On the way back to the party, I got a phone call from Moise. They had unbelievably managed to find a park and they were in the Dam Square. I agreed to meet him at the War Monument at 1:15am. I got back to the party and found Agnieszka to tell her the news. There was a little confusion over whether we should take our bags with us, but we decided to leave them there to pick up later.
I walked at a faster than normal pace to the War Monument, with Agnieszka quite rightly warning me that she had trouble keeping up. Rubbish was strewn everywhere, and there was so much broken glass. I couldn’t understand one person, who kicked an empty champagne bottle like he was attempting a penalty kick in a soccer game.
We found the others at the agreed meeting place and heartily exchanged New Year’s greetings. We danced to one song (there was a DJ set up in the Dam Square), then Moise, Maja, Agnieszka and I headed back to the party to get our bags. Amaar and Mohammad stayed behind because they were worried about the car. Apparently, it had been illegally parked!
By the time we got to the party venue, there was only 45 minutes to go. Understandably, Moise and Maja didn’t want to pay the EUR 10 cover charge, so we decided to grab our gear and head back to meet the other two. Agnieszka and I said our thank yous to Sabine, Reg and the others who we had met at the party. Sabine and Reg generously gave us the option to stay at either of their places, should we have the need.
Maja had some sort of “frozen hand syndrome”, so we walked around the streets near the Dam Square looking for a place to enjoy a hot drink. By that time, it was almost 3am. The music had stopped and most people had moved to the bars. Everywhere was packed and we couldn’t find anywhere with enough room for us. Somewhat reluctantly, we decided that the best course of action was to pile into the car and drive home.
In retrospect, trying to fit six of us into that car was probably a mistake. I was the last to get into the back, with the other three trainees, and I had trouble closing the door. It was only after we playfully accused Moise of having eaten too much and to suck in his chest that we could squeeze in and be on our way. I could cope with, say, 15 minutes of sitting like that. But any longer, without being able to move, was quite uncomfortable.
As if that weren’t enough, the car broke down in between Utrecht and Breda! There was something wrong with the exhaust pipe. We called for a repair car to come and help us. When the car was again road-worthy, we learned that we could go to either Tilburg or Breda. Mohammad, who was driving the car, lives in Breda, so that was really the only available choice.
We arrived at his place at 6:30am, but the first train back to Tilburg wasn’t leaving until 8am. We were all so tired because we hadn’t slept much in the car. We talked about how we would sleep all day once we got back to our respective beds at home.
Back in Tilburg, Agnieszka and I learnt that the buses weren’t running until 10am, since January 1 was a public holiday. Awww! So, in our sleepy state, we walked home. I noticed such a lot of red paper on the ground – the remains of those popular “double happy” type firecrackers.
It was still reasonably dark by the time I got home. I tumbled into bed and fell into a deep sleep. By the time I woke up at 4pm, it was already dark again! So, I never actually saw the sun on January 1!
It snowed on Thursday night and Friday morning, so when I woke up I was excited to see the white rooftops from my window. It wasn’t a heavy snowfall, though. There was enough to coat the cars parked on the road with a centimetre of snow.
On Saturday, the snow was still there even though it had been over a day since the last depositing. It hasn’t been warm enough for the snow to thaw yet. The small puddles on Hasseltstraat are frozen!
On the road outside our kitchen window, there were snow outlined rectangles evincing where cars had been previously parked. It is like an oven tray where someone has generously coated freshly baked biscuits with icing sugar and then removed the biscuits for storage elsewhere.
The road must be warmer than the grass. There is no snow on the road (aside from those places where car-users have scraped it from their car roof), but wherever there was grass is now covered in snow.
This is all very amazing to me, so I had to go for a run to see what it was like elsewhere. It was the same. The difference between the areas of grass and the footpath was stark – one so white and the other so dark. Out of interest, I ran to the pond where the hapless boy reverse kicked his heel through the ice, in February. As I had expected, the pond was frozen over. I was wearing my typical running clothes (but with two t-shirts) so I didn’t stick around to do any more ice experiments.
On the way back home, my ears were starting to ache and I noticed that my legs and arms were quite red. It is too cold to go out running wearing what I did. And, it is only going to get colder during January. If I go running again, I will probably wear a sweatshirt and my trend-settingly cool red hat.
I returned an empty crate of 24 beer bottles to the supermarket. There is a machine nearby the entrance where you can deposit such crates and certain plastic bottles. When you are done, you push a green button and out comes a receipt which tells you how much “statiegeld” you will be rewarded with. You take the receipt to a counter inside the supermarket to exchange for the money. This time I “won” EUR 3,90 – a small amount to be sure, but a strong enough incentive for most people to return their crates and bottles to the supermarket for recycling. This is a good system.
posted by James 8:41 am