Second to Last

This may be my last entry. I know I have slacked off in the last week or so, and I'm sorry, but all of a sudden I was way too relaxed to much else but read, sleep and eat. Perfect vacation activities.
Our week in Munster was pretty fantastic. We went to Koln and saw the gigantic Gothic cathedral
http://pictures.wcunningham.com/germany2004files/DSC_4368s.jpg
Here's a picture for anyone who hasn't heard of it (I hadn't) and needs to be awed. I took a few pictures, but it was a smoggy cloudy day in Koln, and most of the photos I took aren't really impressive. It is hard to describe how enormous that building is, and how impressive and just a little bit scary it looks from across the city.
The day in Koln was a short one, we had some lunch and saw the cathedral, then jumped back on the train to make it home in time to watch the soccer game. I've never been much into watching sports, but soccer (foot ball) in Europe is an entirely different thing. Everyone gets into it... REALLY into it. There were flags everywhere, on cars, hanging out of windows, painted on people's faces. It was quite a European experience to watch a soccer game in a tiny little pub, full to capacity with screaming fans. Well, no one screamed the whole time, only when Germany scored a goal. Just an interesting bit of trivia: Poland has not scored a goal on Germany since 1980. So, and fun as it was to watch the two teams play, the out come was kind of predetermined.
We had a great relaxing dinner at Viviane's parent's place, where we played with their dog Sydney and longed on the deck sipping wine and eating chocolate. It was a perfect evening.
For the most part the trip to Munster included a whole lot of reading (Viviane and I) and backgammon (Ben and Adrian). I think that the guys played at least 40 games in the week that we were there. I read 2.5 books, which I haven't done since I lived at home in the Valley.
Ben filled our stomachs when we were done relaxing our minds. He and Viviane had just been in Thailand for 2 months, and Ben took some cooking classes there. It was great!
One last exciting thing about Munster: while we were there we had a wicked thunder and lightening storm, with hail the size of peas. It was pretty impressive, and unexpected. The day was hot and sunny, then all of a sudden it was hailing and POURING rain. The street flooded and the fire department was kept pretty busy pumping basements. It was really amazing though. The sky was phenomenal, with lightening shooting across it as thunder echoed off the buildings and filled the city with sound.
Global warming doing its thing.
Yesterday, after a fond farewell to Ben and Viviane and Munster, we got on the RIGHT train and came back to Amsterdam. We're staying with Alex, Laura and their 2 rats in a university dorm. It's cozy :)
The rats are a new addition to the family, we went and got them today actually. Alex, Laura and I carried the two rats and all their toys, shavings, cage etc etc home from the pet store this afternoon. They aren't allowed to have pets in the dorms, so we crept in Indian Jones style to avoid any RAs.
The rats names are Sniffy the Virtual Rat and Prof. Ratamus Rattington. I am proud to say that Ratamus was my suggestion :) Sniffy was the name of the rat program that Alex used in his Behavioral class at UBC. I don't think that Sniffy will ever actually get called by her full name though.
Tonight we all went out for dinner with Judith at the Indonesian place we have become addicted to. It was hard to say good bye to her. I hope that we see each other again. I am awful at saying goodbye to people, especially when we have spent so much time together, like Judith and I did. It was a really nice evening, which we wrapped up by watching the 2 rats play fight and swing on their little trapeze (not an actual trapeze... more like a nest on strings).
Perfect.
I am not sure if I will blog tomorrow, we have to be up at 4 am so that we can get Adrian to to train on time. This has been a wonderful trip, and thanks so much for reading along with us.
we will see you all soon
Much Love
Emma and Adrian

Oudewater and Munster

Well, we wrapped up our stay with my Dutch relatives on Wed morning. I guess I haven't told you about the rest of that visit. On the night of the second day (after the visit to the farms and the windmills) we went out to a fantastic dinner on the banks of the Rhine, where we watched the boats go by. Gert and Trees' son Ed came to dinner as well as to the windmills with us. He helped translate, and made communication generally easier on everyone. We really appreciated it. Actually, the whole family was very helpful with translating. Everyday one of the two brothers (Ed and Rene) were around to help us out. They were great tour guides and also great fun.
The day after the sight seeing tour and the dinner on the river Adrian and I went for a 50 km bike ride with Rene and his wife Irma. We went to Gouda and saw all kinds of cheese :) actually, no joke, the main street of Gouda is lined with cheese. There are hundreds of yellow cheese wheels hanging from lines over the shoppers wandering along below. Besides cheese Gouda has a very beautiful and famous town hall, with a clock that puts on a little show of dancing wooden people every hour. We also went to a beautiful church, with the biggest and most ornate stained glass windows I have ever seen. There were about 50 windows, all with names describing the bible scene they depicted. There was even a small window with Dutch family crests on it. I found the Van Rooyen crest, and took a forbidden photo of it.
From Gouda we kept on the Schroonhoven, the silver city. This is the only place in Holland where people can learn to be silver smiths... and also the most affordable place to buy beautiful silver jewelery. We wandered around admiring the beautiful sculptures, scissors, baby toys, antique rings and Rolex watches (made of gold, with diamonds around the face, yours for only 27,000 euros).
The bike ride to these towns was the best part of the trip (although the destinations were great too). We saw all kinds of animals and fantastically beautiful country side. We saw a few groups of baby swans, hares, all shapes and sizes of cows, sheep, horses and goats and more birds then I can count.
It was tiring, but wonderful.
When we got home dinner was waiting for us (at rene's house), and we ate with the family. It was a great day.
Yesterday we left Oudewater around 2:30, after going to the rope museum (the main industry in Oudewater for many years... and actually a really interesting museum) and going to the weigh house where supposed witches were weighed to see if they were guilty of practicing the dark arts. People blamed everything on witch craft. If it hailed, or a cow died, or a child got sick, it was blamed on witch craft. Around 50,000 people (men, women and children) were killed during the witch hunts. Oudewater was considered an honest town, so they were given the right to award certificates of "normal weight" to those accused of witch craft. Witches were supposed to be very light, because heavy people would break the broom stick.
Adrian, Rene and I all got weighted on the giant scales, and were given our certificates. It was really fun, the woman who runs the museum would cross examine us as we were being weighed, and ask us if we like walking in the woods, or ever use herbs in our cooking. Fun way to spend the morning.
Gert and Trees drove us back to Amsterdam (so generous!) where we got the train to Musnter... we thought. First we got there and were told our train had been bumped up, and would now leave in 5 min. So we ran to the platform... and it didn't come. An announcement was made in Dutch, and everyone else on our platform moved off. We followed, and asked a man if he was taking our train. He said yes, so on we got, none the wiser. It WAS the right train, for about 3 stops. Then were were supposed to get off and transfer, but no one had ever told us that. So, we went 1/2 hour in the wrong direction, and ended up missing our connection to Rhine, and then to Munster. We finally did make it, 3 hours late. We got going just fine, once we figured out our route, but then our train to Munster was canceled, because some students here were protesting Nuclear Waste, which I guess the trains transport. They had tied themselves to the tracks, so everything going in that direction was diverted.
So, we are here. Ben had a wonderful dinner and wine ready for us when we finally got in, it was exactly what we needed.
Today we went on a little walking tour of Munster with Ben and Vivian. We saw some beautiful cathedrals, and saw the city. Adrian found another dream guitar, so we will see how that pans out.
Munster is about the size of Halifax. It's a university town, so there are tonnes of students, thus, lots of protests. We saw one today, about tuition. The students were pissed that tuition is 500 euro/semester. I have no sympathy.
Right now Adrian and Ben are playing backgammon, and I'm about to go take a nap.
Love to All
Emma

Oudewater

SO much to tell you about!
We arrived in Oudewater at Gert and Trees' house on June 1, after madly packing and cleaning up our room at Berite's. We bought Bertie a nice plant friend as a thank you for all that she had done for us, but really thank you is never enough, especially after a whole month of kindness.
When we arrived in Oudewater the whole family was waiting at the house for us (aunts, uncles, grandchildren, cousins, brothers and sisters etc.) It was a little over whelming when we realized that they had all come specifically to meet us! (they said that family doesn't come from Canada every day, so they had to have a big to do). The whole family is very friendly and warm, and most of them speak english, so the first night was fine on the language front. We had a tasty BBQ, took a quick boat ride with Sebastien (one of the grand kids) and then went for a tour around the town of Oudewater with Ed (one of Gert and Trees' sons) and his wife (who I am sorry to say, has aname that I cannot even begin to think about spelling). She is an art teacher, and Ed is an engineer. They showed us the town centre, and the memorials from WWII. There were memorials for people as young as 14 years old, civillians who has died during the German occupation. One of the men on the list died on May 5, which is Liberation Day in Holland, the end of the war. The story goes that he had been listening to the radio, and heard that the peace treaty had been signed, and ran out into the street to celebrate, where he was shot by a German soldier who had not yet heard that the war had ended. Very sad story, it must have been terrible for his family.
Gert and Trees are the couple who we are staying with. They are both in their 70's (although you wouldn't know it, they are so full of energy and spunk). Gert, whos Mother was my Grandfather's cousin, does not speak english, but he is so excited to share stories with me that he makes himself understood through gestures and the occaional word in English or French (He and his wife have a house in France, so they have picked up some of the language on their vacations). For the past two days they have treated us like royalty, they took us to Kinderdijk to see the windmills (I think there are about 18-20) where we got to go inside a mill and see how it works, and where the family that ran it would have lived and slept. The Dijk (dike) is lined with mills, and looks just like every postcard of Holland I have ever seen, but still it is extremely impressive to see in person. A lot of the mills are privately owned, and we even saw one family bringing home their groceries, while the tourists on the path tried to stare in their windows. It was surreal. Yesterday we also met one of Gert's cousins, Hank Van Rooijen (that's how it's spelled here, by the way) and saw his farm, and met his cows. He is a Van Rooyen through anf through. HE has redish hair, and the SAME skin as my Dad, with all the freckles. He was very kind, and showed us around under the roof of his house, because Adrian was courious about the thatching (which is made from reeds that grow along the edges of the canals). Hank did not speak english either, and so through a lot of gesturing and smiling, we made ourselves understood. Actually, I was quite impressed that we were able to spend a whole day with 2 people who speak MINIMAL english, and make ourselves understood. Adrian is very good at the actual learning of languages, he catches on to what the signs say, and he can usually figure out the ingrdients on food packages, but I am very good at imterpreting people's intentions, and their mood. So between the two of us, we're getting along quite well.
Yesterday we also went to the Van Rooijen family farm, where my grandfather was born. I was a little dissapointed tha tthe only original building was the front wall of the old summer house. I guess that there was a fire in 1939, when all of the barns and the house burned to the ground. Adrian and I took photos of the remining wall, and got a shovelfull of dirt for mum and dad's garden, and talked with the current owner. He is the grandson of the man who bought the farm from my great grandfather in 1925, and he lives there with his family, and his mother who lived on the farm for most of her life. It was really amazing to see the same trees and walk on the same ground that my grandfather did more than 100 years ago (he was born in 1906). The sense of history that we felt was really touching, and enhanced by the video of my Grampa that Gert showed me this morning. It was made in 1987, one year after I was born, during the family reunion on the Van Rooyen family farm in Ontario. It was amazing to see Grampa laughing with his brothers... they all looked so similar. I know what my dad will look like when he's 80. :)
Every one here is so interested in my story, and our reason for being here. They think that Adrian and I are quite brave for coming to a town full of strangers in a place on the other side of the world. It makes me feel quite heroic really. Gert has the same family tree book that we have at home, except in Dutch, he was very happy to know that a version of it exists in english.
I realize that this is getting quite long... and I haven't even gotten to describe Oudewater yet. It is the most beautiful town! Small, but not too small, and full of history.
We are having such a wonderful time here, but I don't want to over load you. We will write again either tomorrow morning, or when we get to Munster tomorrow. There is all of today to tell you about!
But we need sleep (we bike 50 km today)
with love
Emma and Adrian

I'm the Worst

So, the co-op is over. I saw Judith for the last time as student and teacher and now the vacation begins :)
I think that you all may find me a little changed when I come back. This co-op has been a real challenge for me, and I'm hoping I come out the other end with a little more assertion and openness.
This is going to just be a quick recap of the last couple of days, because tomorrow Adrian and I have to go buy our train tickets to go to Oudewater on Sunday, clean up this room we've stayed in for the past month, get a gift for Bertie, pick up food, put stuff in storage, get fries (YUM!) and a whole bunch of other things to wrap up our stay here.
In the last couple days we have: Had Ben (Adrian's friend from school, who lives in Germany) come down to hang, eaten fries, explored around the area of town where Ben's hostel was, ate at the boat restaurant, ate delicious Indonesian food, looked fro ATMs (Ben's debit card didn't work here), played guitar and sang, sat on benches, I edited photos, Adrian practiced a bit of guitar... well this is turning into a list.
Today Ben went back to Germany. While we were waiting for his train we saw a couple that was getting married. Adrian was playing guitar, and the bride's maids motioned us over. When we got up the courage to go over they had to move on to the next photo op, but the parents of the bride were really friendly, and asked Adrian all about his business playing music.
It's little interactions like that that make my day.
I am sorry that I haven't been writing often in the last week or so. There have been a lot of annoying and tiring things that have cropped up. My bike blew out its front tire, so I had to pay a pretty penny to get it fixed, and that also meant that for a couple of days we had to pay for transit. There have been a few unexpected expenses... like the Hasselblad Camera I bought (YAY!) and the price of processing and buying film that I didn't factor in before I left. SO I am feeling pretty squeezed for cash. Thank goodness we are staying for the next two weeks for free.
I am starting to get a little home sick, as amazing as it is here, Nova Scotia still has it beat in my books (well... not for architecture, or infrastructure, or government common sense about things like education, legalizing etc... but for its people and the hills and the cliffs and the SPACE, it wins out hands down).
This photo is from the bike trip that Alex, Adrian and I took a week ago. I love the quality of film. I'm a film junkie now.
I miss you all
With love (from us both!)
Adrian and Emma

Not Much To Report

It's been a rainy last couple of days, so we've spent a lot of time in the house. Yesterday we tried to make a break for it, and get out to a museum between down pours... but then my bike tire exploded so we kind of just puttered around a neat little neighbourhood we hadn't seen before, and searched for cheesecake. It was a great afternoon for a walk after the rain pushed off a bit, and we saw lots of little twisty alleys and beautiful gardens spilling out of people's windows.
Other than making dinner, that was about all for our day yesterday. OH! except that we went to a Roots Party on a Bar Boat. It was fantastic. A live funk and reggae band. The woman who fronted the band had to be in her mid to late 40's, and she was in amazing shape. You should have seen her dance!
That was a nice little highlight for sure, but it was too short (only an hour)!
Today it poured most of the day. We made it out to grocery shop, but that was about all. We watched a whole bunch of National Geographic channel and hung out with Bertie. Tonight we went went for a long walk around in that same neighbourhood as yesterday, and I took some pictures and we got a snack and walked home. We just got in, and it started to rain like the dickens again. It's supposed to rain tomorrow too, and Wed... So much for the perfect weather I bragged about.
Ben is coming to visit on Wed. It'll be nice to have him here to finish up our last few days in Amsterdam with us.
That's about it from this side of the Atlantic.
What exciting is happening on your side?
Love to all
Emma and Adrian

The Zoo!

Today's Highlight: Marauding monkeys and Swimming seals (Sea lions, really)
We went to the Artis Zoo today! It was fantastic, seeing all the animals, but also a little depressing. The Zebras had the most space of all the animals, but the huge lions had no space at all! There were vultures and a whole slew of other characters from the Jungle Book and the Lion King (including Bagira the Black Panther, Mufasa the Lion, Whoopie Goldberg the Hyena and Timon the Meerkat!) There weren't any Pumbas though. I think the saddest was the polar bear... because it was 25 degrees today, and the poor guy looked so hot and he was all alone. I know they Polar bears are solitary animals, but this guy was on display, and he just looked miserable and mangy. I took a whole card full of photos, of most of the animals we saw. I didn't get any of the Beaverrat though, sorry, because they were the weirdest of the almost normal animals. They looked JUST like beavers, except that they had tails just like rats. They were very cute though, and there were a bunch of babies. Spring is the perfect time to visit the Zoo, because all the new babies are just being born. There was a giraffe that was only a week old, and baby gorillas, chimps, regular old monkeys, and a baby elephant.
The older elephants were dancing... It seemed a little weird, but Zanna said that most elephants in captivity do it. I guess it's from boredom.
The Zoo, even though it was a little depressing, was an afternoon well spent. As a result I'm about ready to turn in, so I'm going to wrap this up.
We have finally decided on when and where we are going We are going to go visit the Dutch Relatives until the 4 of June, then to Munster until the 10. We are coming back to Amsterdam for 2 days before we leave, and staying with Alex and Laura (many thanks to them!) We really wanted to come back to our starting point before we left. I think it's important to say a real good bye.
Anyway, the rest of the day. After the Zoo we went to an art show at a friend of Bertie's. I had been telling Bert that I wanted to see a house boat, and it just so happened that her friend who was hosting the art show lived on one. The boat was beautiful, but I still don;t understand hwo hoses like that wouldn't have mold problems. Maybe they do and i just haven't heard anything about it. The man showing paintings was the son in law of them woman who owned the house boat. He does a lot of beautiful landscape shots, mostly of Amsterdam. I think they suited that walls of the boat very well.
Adrian and I spent about 10 min sitting in a chair in the corner, trying to feel the movement on the boat. The canals are fairly still, so we couldn't feel anything unless as big boat went by and disturbed the calm.
I was really glad to get to look at a houseboat up close and personal.
After a delish dinner that we threw together we went to Alex and Laura's, had a few drinks, looked at photos from Uganda and just had a generally wonderful time. We just got home and Adrian is already snoring away on the bed.
Love to all
Emma and Adrian

Boats, Fries and Dragon Flies

Today's Highlight: all of it
We had an action packed day today (well, not high speed action). First we went and picked up Laura's bike from the fix it shop and took it back to her, then we went and signed up for a boat ride on a historic (around 65 years old) boat with the St Nicholas boat club. The club runs tours by donation. The boats are small and open, and the tours last about an hour. It was really neat to see the city from the water. We got to look in house boats as we passed (I would have thought living in a house boat would be more private, but I guess not what with all the tourists on the water) and we saw all kinds of birds and trash floating in the water. Actually, we saw a seagull eating another bird; not really the highlight of the trip, but well worth mentioning. There were 10 other people on the boat with Adrian, Zanna and I. Most of them were from the UK, but there were also a few from the states. There were tons of other tours on the water. Most of them in huge glass topped boats spewing out black exhaust smoke. Those boats were really funny, because they are all too big to turn the tight corners in the canals. It would take them about a min to shimy back and forth to make the turn, and all the other little boats would have to wait to pass. We went under a bridge so low that we all had to duck. I guess that it was a kind of secret passage, for small boats only.
We had a great time in the sun, and only got a little splashed by the stinky water.
Afterward we went to get fries (I know, how many times can we do that in one week?) and then biked back to Zanna and Hidde's where we had a little wine and played with the cat.
Zanna out did herself again when she made dinner. It was all delish, and there was more than enough. Hidde showed us some music that his punk band recorded (pretty good for punk music :) and then we biked home in the dark.
It was a great day, and tomorrow we are going to the Zoo to see the baby giraffes (and hippos, and lions, and elephants and the polar bear... etc) so I have to get to sleep so that I can oh and awe all day tomorrow.
Oh, and Adrian was the photographer today, so everyone should complement him on this photo he worked so hard on. He's a budding genius.
Love to all
Emma and Adrian

All Tuckered Out

Today's Highlight: The chocolate Dog
I got up early today, I had a shoot with Judith at 10, and we had to drive a ways out of the city. I am getting to see bits and pieces many towns all over Holland through the window of Judith's Alfa Romeo. We have really great chats as we weave in and out of traffic (she is a good driver... but not a slow one). A lot of Dutch drivers use GPS systems to give them directions. Judith has named hers Els, after a woman who used to work at the lab where we both take our film. Els (both the electronic and the actual) is very direct and to the point. Not bossy, but sure that she knows what is best. It's great to hear Judith talk to Els as we drive cross country. I will really miss our commutes.
Today we had two shoots, one in Den Haag and the other in Leiden (where Bertie's sister Ans lives). The first portrait went smoothly and was done in a flash. After a quick bite we went to meet the second client, but he wasn't there. I guess he has completely forgotten and gone home for the day. Judith had a deadline, and the shot had to be done today. The man invited us to his house to do his portrait, which was better in the end, because the office where he worked was fairly sterile. It was a bit of a pain at first, that our morning had extended to a full day shoot, but the man was so sweet and genuinely sorry (and gave me a chocolate bar) that it was all fine in the end.
I am really enjoying the shoots we do in people's homes. I think that the best results come from portraits shot where the person is most comfortable and at ease. For example when we arrived at the man's house today we went into the garden, played fetch with his wiggley dog (named after a dutch brand of chocolate) and met his wife who was very sweet. A lot of the people here are very interested to hear about why I decided to come to Holland, and everyone has a different perspective on Dutch life and the things worth noticing.
We drove by De Hoek (the Hook, or the Bend in English) on the way to Den Haag today. That is the same name as the area where Grampa's farm is, but this place was an industrial park! I really hope that that isn't the same place. There were farms on the outskirts of the box stores.
Adrian spent the day at home today, out on the lawn in the sun with his guitar. We were going to go to dinner at Zanna's tonight, but he was so tired from laying in the sun all day we rescheduled for tomorrow :) He has spent the last 10 min doing a running monologue of "interesting" dutch words with his shiny new dictionary. He just found out what shell fish is in Dutch. That could be helpful when we go out to eat. Among the other worth while Dutch phrases are "let it snow, Let is snow let is snow" (just in case we stay till Christmas) OH and "Sorry" (very important).
We ended up having a really relaxed night at home with Bertie. She started working on a new painting a few days ago, and it is really fun to watch her paint. She decides on the colours for one corner, paints it then goes and sits down to look and see how she feels about it. Then maybe 20 min later she will get up and paint another patch, then sit down to let it sink in. We are a house full of artists!
We booked (well... Ben did, because I couldn't figure out the website) our train tickets to Munster today. The trip is a little over 3 hours, so we''ll have to get a deck of cards before we leave.
Well, im tuckered out
love to all
Emma and Adrian
PS- this photo is one I made of a little boy at the fry stand we go to so often. The person with the bottle is his older brother. This little guy was being hilarious! I think he may have been doing a impression of his parents, because he kept walking around with his hands on his hips wagging his finger at people, then laughing his head off. I snuck a picture while he was harassing his older brother.

Sorry we missed a few days

Today's Highlight: Mark and Julie Wall
Do you know how much it costs to go see Feist in Amsterdam? 135 Euro! That is insane. I just thought I'd share that.
Sorry we've been incognito, but Amsterdam is a busy place. Last night we got lost in the red light district until almost 1 in the morning, so when we got back I was too shell shocked to write anything. Most of yesterday was spent in different music stores around the city. We finally got a hold of a bike for Adrian to use, so we've been speeding around from place to place oggling the beautiful Spanish (and a whole bunch of other) made guitars. We went to 4 different shops, and Adrian has realized that he can get a beautiful guitar here for half the price of ones at home. So, hopefully the income tax refund is enough to buy him a graduation present. After all that shopping we needed energy, so we got fries and then came home to eat supper and relax in front of the National Geographic Channel (don't judge, there was a very cool show on about a bear mauling a woman on a Polish TV show...) Then we went and got lost in the Red Light district, got offered coke, pills, E and everything else you can imagine and like the sheltered Nova Scotianers that we are, turned tail and ran away. Adrian is (by the way) very polite to shady people, and I think that it got us out of some sticky situations (not too sticky though, there are lots of cops around there at night).
I over heard one guy say (just to prove we aren't the only ones who feel like this) "I want to go back to the states and never see anything like this again" HAHA! Poor Guy.
Today, Adrian and I had a slow morning, cleaned up and did dishes so that the hosue would be clean for Bertie when she came home from Belgium (3 days late!) Apparently she got stuck because her car got hit by a garbage truck, but don't worry, she wasn't in it at the time.
Speaking of garbage- we saw the garbage truck take out the trash today. The underground dumpsters actually get pulled out of the ground by a crane attached to a truck, which empties them into the back then shoves them back into the ground. Sanitation engineers here have to have some pretty slick training I think.
We also went to a book store (after fries again...) and got a Dutch English dictionary. Adrian plans to be trilingual by the time we get home.
Tonight was the highlight of the last couple days. We went to dinner with Alex and Laura on an old boat, that has been squatted (taken over) by a restaurant! very cool. The whole hull is a dinning room with a stage at one end, and a bar at the other, where locals go on Wed and Fri nights for CHEAP homemade food and good conversation. There was a dog going from table to table, begging for scraps, and the owner was sitting in the corner drinking, eating and getting redder in the face and better in humour. We had hearty meals and cheap drinks and a great time eating in the ship's "mess".
The canal boats are deceptively big on the inside, the ones we watch from our window look almost flat on the water, but really they are the size of a small cafeteria, but with way more character, including port holes with red red gels (for ambiance?) looking out onto the canal.
On our way back in to Bertie's Adrian took me up on a dare I made him, and went to ask a neighbour if he could borrow their basketball (he's been eyeing it on their patio for the last week). It turned out that the ball was flat, but a very good opener to start a conversation with the couple on the terrace. It turned out that they didn't even live there, but were just watering the plants of a friend. Julie and Mark were from Minnesota, and moved to the Netherlands 10 years ago. We ended up chatting with them for a solid hour, and they gave us their phone number so we can go out for dinner/ go to a museum together. It was pretty amazing how easily we clicked, and how naturally the flow of conversation came. They shared a lot of our political and community views, and we could really understand each other as far as our feelings about Dutch culture. They are just packing their house to move back to the states, to a small town of 1000, where they bought a mid 19th century house, on the St. Croix river. It was a really unexpectedly enjoyable way to end the night, and I am sure we will give them a call soon.
Anyway, I have to meet up with Judith early tomorrow, so I'm off to bed.
Love to all
Adrian and Emma

ADRIAN

Passed all his classes! yay!

Day 19

Today's Highlight: Using the trams and not getting lost.
Hey everyone, sorry this is a day late, I was just so tired last night I couldn't blog.
We went on a long car ride with Judith today, all the way to the south end of the country, to a town called Masstricht where she had a shoot. Adrian come along for the drive so that he could see the country side and chit chat with us.
We got up early, since we still had Laura's bike from the day before and she needed it for 9:30... trouble was that when we were on our way to her place the front brakes snapped. I gave her my bike for the day and we decided to take a tram. I didn't realize it was so easy to navigate around the city on them. They come at LEAST every 10 min, but usually more frequently.
Adrian has found his dream guitar at a steal in a shop at Muntplein (a square that kind of mars the end of the shopping district) so we went there to try and exchange his old one before going on the drive. I guess Mondays here are kind of a second Sunday, and the place didn't open until noon. Dejected we went for coffee, then met Judith. The shoot was of a man who collects free give aways from the bank he works for. I guess the bank puts out a magazine for employees, and they thought this guy would be an interesting addition. As usual Judith worked very quickly and efficiently and we were done the shoot in under 45 min and back on the road. The drive was interesting, there is a change of architecture as you move further south. There are more ornate churches, because I guess that traditionally the south end of the country was more Catholic than the north. There were also large stretches of forest, which surprised me in such a densely populated country. In the forested areas there were tunnels under the road so that the wildlife could avoid the highway. Another worth while European innovation, like the transport trucks here (there are far fewer than at home) that all have a maximum speed sticker on their backs. Their motors are geared to reach maximum speeds to save fuel and to avoid accidents. Genius.
When we got home we went for a walk to stretch our legs, got groceries and come home to snack. Long car rides can be exhausting somehow.
We went out to our new favorite restaurant here, a relatively cheap Indonesian place that Alex showed us, and had a great meal. then walked around the city for a few hours. We haven't been out after dark much, so we figured we should walk through the red light district just for kicks. I couldn't believe how busy it was at midnight on a Monday! Adrian said he felt like a piece of meat, getting gestured to every time we walked by a window... kind of an exchange of roles that we found kind of unsettling. But really, it was something we had to do as tourists.
The city is beautiful at night, all of the canals are lit with lanterns that reflect in the water. It was so still last night that it would have been a perfect time to shoot with a tripod, but I hadn't thought to bring my camera with me to dinner.
It was a long day, but a really satisfying one. We are going to go back to the guitar shops, and maybe go to the zoo today, depending on how long it takes us to get all guitared up. We have decided we need to jam touristy things in to the next 2 weeks, because we aren't sure how exciting Munster is :) We're going to Germany around the 5 of June, after we get back from the Dutch relatives. They live in Oudewater, by the way. I finally figured that out. It looks like (from what I can tell) the place where the family farm is is only a bike ride away. But I'm not sure . Oudewater is a small town, very beautiful and well preserved.
Anyway, more tonight
love to all
Emma and Adrian

Oh So Tired

Today's highlight: bunnies, blue herons, windmills, canals, cows, sheep, goats, sail boats... everything.
This has been an amazing day, and I am just dead tired from the wonderfulness of it all. Alex, Adrian and I went on another bike tour, a little like the one I did with Alex, Laura and their friends from France. Poor Laura had to stay home and do thesis stuff this time, but we brought her with us in spirit. We biked to a small town an an island off the coast called Marken. The town was separated from the main land until the 1960's, when they built a causeway, at roughly the same time that the North Sea was dammed, creating an inland freshwater sea (kind of like a massive lake :) This is the same lake that they use to flush out the canals in Amsterdam when they get stagnant, which is all the time now that it's warmish.
On the way there we were against the wind... and in Holland the wind is no joke. It blows constantly, and since we were biking along the dikes of the lake, it was always in our faces. But everything was so BEAUTIFUL it was hard to care that much (well, maybe a little). We went throught a few tiny towns along the bike path, and every house was perfectly Dutch. There were animals running around all over (rabbits, huge pig, and many kinds of chicken), and every house had its own boat tied up in the backyard (there are little canals running either behind or all the side of most houses.)
To get onto the path we first biked through North Amsterdam (Dartmouth side of Amsterdam) which I now feel guilty for calling Dartmouth. We biked through a community entirely made up of houseboats, in all shapes, sizes and styles. The best part though was that each had a boat, instead of a car, in the side yard. There were art deco style houses, "ov'r the mountain" style houses and everything in between. There were some great little places along the way though, like I was saying before I interrupted myself. I took a photo of someone's christmas ball tree (red balls only) and a tree with clogs nailed to it (just like Stan's tree at home Mum and Dad!) It was a beautiful ride along the coast, but it was hard going in the wind, and a relief when we finally made it across the causeway to Marken. We brought a picnic with us, and took a load of to relax on the dock. After we ate we explored to awhile before we started on the trip home. I can't imagine a more picturesque place. There were tiny little streets too narrow for cars, beautiful churches, gardens, boats, animals, little bridges that raise to allow boats to pass, and just about everything typically Dutch. There was even an old woman wearing traditional Dutch dress, and a very sweet old man on a Sunday stroll with his walker. People there were all very friendly. The day was just so that it was chilly enough that most of the throngs of tourists that would normally be there were absent, and the town was quiet. It was kind of strange, because there was a disproportionate number of cafes, bars and restaurants for the size; it was really obvious that the whole place catered to tourists. I know that silence isn't great for business in a place where tourism is the only source of income, but I (maybe selfishly) was very glad we were the only ones there.
The ride back was nice, we saw lots of birds, and all the same cows and things. It was through the inland this time, so the wind died down and we were able to just enjoy the ride. Beautiful.
I took lots of pictures which I will try to put up on flikr soon, but I have a whole day with Judith tomorrow, so I can't promise anything.
When we got back we went and got a drink at a bar on a boat on the canal outside the apartment, and listened to some jazz. A great way to end the night
Love to all
Adrian and Emma

Rainy Saturday

Today's Highlight- Salsa Music and Wii bowling
Today was a rainy one. Not a whole lot happened, but I think that was mostly because we're wimps and didn't want to get wet. Instead I edited photos, Adrian played guitar and when the rain finally let up around 7 we went grocery shopping and made stir fry. I know that might sound not so exciting for being on the other side of the world, but it was a much needed day of relaxation and some time to get some work done.
There are new images up on flikr (http://flickr.com/photos/23036073@N03/) if people would like to take a look. I am very happy with shooting film. I feel now more than ever that I can show my audience the way that I myself see the world. These photos are gritty and surreal and beautiful, but not conventionally speaking. I think a lot of them are much more so illustrations or almost paintings than they are photos of someTHING. I guess a photo really is just a painting made with light, and I feel like these images have more of me in them than some I have made previously. I hope you like them.
After supper Alex came over with his nintendo and we played a bit of bowling, and some weird thing that was Duck Hunt but without the dog, who I always thought provided the only real motivation to play Duck Hunt, so that was kind of disappointing, but the conversation was good and we've decided on a destination for our bike trip tomorrow. We are going to go to Marken. It used to be a fishing village, and is on an island connected to the rest of the Netherlands by a bridge. It is (hopefully) less touristy than the town we visited last time. I'm looking forward to it, even if it will be another 50km on my bike.
I'd better get to bed and be rested up for that tomorrow.
Love to all
from Emma and Adrian

Spelling mistakes!

Today's Highlight: Pad Thai on the couch
Hi everyone. Sorry about the post yesterday! we got home late and I was obviously not the best typist. I am writing you from Judith's, where I am doing scans of the last few rolls of film I have gotten developed. They are are expired rolls that Ingram gave to me before I left, so there is some funky stuff going on with the colours, and light leaks. I think you will like them, at least from what I have seen.
The past couple of days (since Adrian got here) have been moving a lot faster then the first half of the trip, I guess it's because when I am not with Judith, I am being a tourist with Adrian.
I have been here so long (I know it isn't that long, but it is long enough to feel at home here) that I have a bit of a dislike for tourists, just like the locals. Now I am touring around, and I feel slightly conflicted :) Today was a really rainy day (the very first!) and I was one of only a hand full of people on my bike. I guess the Dutch don't like to get wet. I got up early to get to the lap and pickup negatives, then booked it to meet Judith and her sister to do a shoot for a brochure. I got to be on the other side of the lens today. Judith's sister and I were models for a social work company. It was the same place we did the shoot for 2 days ago. It was the best learning experience so far. Judith had scouted out the room the day before, and wasn't too sure about some aspects of it. It was a cluttered board room, with lots of ugly tables and fake plants, but lots of natural light. Judith tried three different angles before she was satisfied with what she had. We moved furniture, props and ourselves until everything was perfect. It was also nice to be on the other side of a camera that was so different than mine. I really do feel that the hasselblad is a more personal tool, because the photographer can focus and shoot without actually having the camera obscure their face. Could be an excellent Christmas present, you can get them used on ebay (hint!).
Adrian and I are thinking about changing our plans a bit. We were originally going to go to Germany at the end of May, but we are thinking about staying in Amsterdam, going to visit the Dutch relatives and traveling around from here by bike. We are planning on a trip to Harleem tomorrow (it's about 20 km each way) as long as we can get Laura's old bike fixed today. We are going to give Ben and Vivian a call and see if they would be able to come here, just because Amsterdam is a bit more of a FUN city than Munster. But that could just be my bias.
Adrian has already found "his new guitar!" in a little shop near on of the squares downtown. I don't really know anything about guitar manufacturing, but I guess this one is a steal at 135 Euro. He has an old beater with him here, and he wants to leave it with Alex. Laura doesn't seem to keen on more STUFF in their little dorm room, but who can argue with those two about music? :)
Adrian spent most of today (yesterday right now, sorry that I didn't finish this post last night) with Beartie, talking about art and music, and he went out for a few walks between the rain showers. But I feel guilty, like I hogged all of the nice weather before he got here. The sun is coming back tomorrow, but it isn't going to be nearly as warm.
We are just about to go out into the rain for eggs and other brunch kinds of food. We are going to try to get to a museum today, but we figure that they will be PACKED because of the rain and the weekend. I'm sure we will find something interesting to do though.
Everything on our end is going well, we think we might move into one of Alex's friend's dorm rooms in a week or so, so that we have a place for Ben and Vivan to stay if they come (these are plans in the very beginning stages) and also a place to stay until the end of our trip.
Love to all
From Both Of us

sorry...

Hi everyone
sorry I haven't written in the past couple days. I have been bust with a few things, including Adran getting here and showing him around. The first day we went for a walk (after he had fallen asleep for two hours, and I tried to wake him up :) all around China Town and the Red light district. We didn't mean to go that far, it just kind of happened. Anyway, the res light district at night is a lot stranger than the red light district at 3 in the afternoon. Adrian and I were walking along holding hands, but still all the girls were were calling him in. It was funny, but kind of weird.
Yesterday I went to see judith, and went on a shoot with her to a town about half an hour out side of amsterdam. Actually I will get to go out of the city with her a few times. it's a great way to see the country side. I went on a shoot for a magazine, which I guess was doing a special article on this company that does skill building for other companies (kind of like NSSSA, for those of you who were in it).
After that we did some discussion about my personal project. I went back home afterward, because i guess Adrian had been locking in the house all day, because Bertie was out. Poor guy. I let him out and we went for another long walk around the city, and out to dinner at an Indonesian restaurant. it was fantastic, and pretty cheap!
I guess this is kind of why I didn't write the blog for the last couple of days; there isn't much to tell.
today we had a very relaxed morning. We had french toast, then went to get fries with Alex and Laura and Zanna. We spent most of the afternoon with Alex and Laura, discussing the pros and cons of studying in Europe ( we are thinking about it seriously) and then we went out for dinner at a tepas restaurant.
I am going on another job with Judith tomorrow, where I will be the model. so it will be a very good way to get perspective on how to direct models when i am photographing. Then I will scan some more negatives. So expect some more photos tomorrow.
Right now, I am going to bed. Adrian is already there.
Good night!
Love to all
Emma and Adrian

Adrian Today, Right now...

Sorry guys, too busy making supper and cleaning and grocery shopping and putting up with Adrian after 40 hours no sleep to write much today :)
Yay!
love you all
Emma

Adrian Tomorrow!

Today's Highlight: getting my film scanned! I love the results (not everything is fantastic of course, but I think I can get the hang of it)
I really love the collage effect that I have been getting, and I plan to make more of them. Not just here, but as a series of different places, people etc.
This is one of my favorites, but if you check flikr in a little bit I will put up a few more (not many, I need to get to sleep soon) and I will be putting up more in the next couple of days. I wish I had access to a scanner independent of Judith's gear. I really appreciate her letting me use hers, but it is at her house, and i don't like to intrude, so I won't be scanning film too often.
I spent my morning and afternoon at Judith's scanning and talking photography. She is explaining the ins and outs of film to me and the mantra that she always give me to "just stop thinking about it!". Digital has made me like to feel in control of my images, and I have learned not to trust my eye. But the combinations of shots I have gotten from these films gives me confidence in my eye, and my ability to harmonize my ideas WITHOUT thinking about it. Today we talked about flash, scanners and scratches and dust (the ONLY thing that Judith admits the digital has over film is that you don't have to remove dust specs). Judith and I get along well, and I find her very helpful, and I find her lifestyle very promising. if she can make it, live comfortably etc (all the dreams of a regular person) then so can I! The cost of shooting film (especially here with the exchange rate) is much more than digital, but if I weren't doing it I don't think that I would be learning very much. It's a challenge, a much needed challenge.
After I left Judith I cycled around the Vondelpark (I need my daily dose of green) and then met with Zanna and Hidde (his name is pronounced Hid-a... but much more European) and we went for a mid afternoon snack to the frites (fries) stand I was talking about in my earlier blog. I wish I had a matter transporter, because if I did I would send every one of you a packet of fries with your choice of sauce. It doesn't get more satisfying than that.
Zanna and Hidde are great, I am really glad I met them. I think it is important to make friends native to the place you are visiting. As totally Awesome as you are Alex, you're still a Nova Scotian, and in Holland I want branch out from the Atlantic Canada tree a bit.
It is a Holiday here (again!) so only a few of the grocery stores were open, but I needed to buy some food. So I spent about a half hour waiting in line to pay for what I could scavenge from what was left on the shelves, but I think I can make a good breakfast from it. Sorry, I don't mean to yammer on about food like an senile old lady, but I don't understand how we Canadians are descended from Europeans, but we only REALLY have 2 kinds of cheese to chose from. I won't say anymore about it, but it is something that I think has been terribly overlooked.
Anyway, there isn't much more to tell about my day. I had dinner with Hidde and Zanna (Zanna is a fantastic cook by the way) and then biked home. I missed out on watching Indian Jones, but I wanted to be home before dark ;)
Love to all, always
Emma

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Today's highlight: My Mum, who most likely spent her day puttering around her garden chit chatting with the plants. Mum, I wanted to send you flowers, but it's hard from so far away, and I know how sad it makes you when flowers die. So here, I'm sending you a live rose. Just to say to everyone, that I blessed to have such a wonderful Mum, who supports me whole heartedly, and makes the world's best pancakes (which I miss dearly by the way). Happy Mother's Day Mum, I miss you and I love you, even from afar.
Today was a mix of people and conversation. The first half of the day I spent with Alex, Laura, Simon and Claire, in Flavo Park. I don't know why I haven't found this park already. It is beautiful! It has more wild growth than Vondelpark, with way fewer people. Since today was Mother's day here as well there were quite a few families in the park, having picnics and playing soccer. We had some lunch, and laid in the sun debating the politics of protest. It was great to her Simon's view, being that he is a French student activist who has been involved in protests that clashed with police. He and Alex have both been getting involved with the squatting movement that seems to becoming more and more popular across Europe. There are organizations in many cities that have whole databases of abandoned buildings throughout the city. In Amsterdam squatting used to be fairly well tolerated, as long as the building you were squatting had been empty for one year. All you need to establish a residence is a bed, a table and a chair. The owner of the building can get you evicted, but it takes a long time, sometimes 6 or 7 months to get through all of the court proceedings. There is also a cellphone hot line, for when a squat is about to get evicted. A text message is sent along this phone tree and hundreds of people will come to the squat to try to stop the eviction. So, unless you are caught in the actual act of breaking into the building, you can have a free place to live for months at a time. I guess the idea behind squatting is to protest housing shortages, when there is space readily available for people to live. At least this is how I understand it. It is a pretty interesting idea, Alex wants to live in a squat, I think if you didn't have many needs, or much stuff it could be an exciting way to live. After the picnic with that crew Bertie and I went to diner at Bertie's sister Ans' house. We ate with Bertie's two sister's and Ans' husband. It was a very nice night, out in Lieden. The town is 50 km outside of Amsterdam, and Ans' house in in the suburbs. Beautiful tree lined streets and cute brick houses. All of the houses have the same clay tile roofs and sweet little gardens. It would be a nice place to live, close enough to Amsterdam to get there easily by train but far away from all the tourists and the speed of the centre. I am very thankful to have such a wonderful family who have taken me in, it helps me not to feel lonely.
It was a very easy going day. Tomorrow I am going to work with Judith and scan all the negatives I have gotten processed so far. So there will be some interesting shots up tomorrow.
All my love
Emma

Today's Highlight: Beatles style singing
Sorry Guys, this is going to be short. I biked 50 Km today, and I am wiped. Alex, Laura (his girlfriend for those who haven't met her), their French friends Simon and Cliare and I biked to this little Loiusberg-esque village about 25 km outside of Amsterdam. There were 8 windmills, tonnes of baby ducks, lambs and some big 'ol cows lowing in the pastures.
The ride there was fantastic. We cycled through a few small villages, where there wasn't North American styled house to be seen. And most yards were bordered by a canal.
We cycled past beautiful traditional windmills and new hightech looking ones that are the same build as the "noisy'' ones in Cape Breton (their no louder than traffic really.) I got to see well outside th city today, and it was wonderful, I saw towns that are the type that come to mind when us ignorant Westerns think of Holland, as well as some beautiful modern architecture and some stinky landfills (that's right Dad, I got to smell the landfill :)
Anyway, I am dead tired, and I think I will call it and early night, I have to got up to pack a picnic tomorrow, the same group of us are going to go busk in the park. We practiced quite a few songs tonight, and I think we have great chemistry as far as our vocals go. It should be quite fun.
I took some shots of the bike ride with my Holga (sorry Dan, it was a bit to far to carry 2 cameras) and I got a very nasty sunburn on my back, 2 signs of a great summer day. I think it may actually be time to go swimming in the ocean.

Oh! on a side note, today I started writing the family postcards I am writing for my self directed project. I also began picking photos to go with each story on the postcards. I also made an important decision, I am going to send these postcards when they are done, I hope they are well received. I am wondering where to send Grampa's, but I think that will come to me.
I have to get some sleep now
All my love
Emma

Day 9- it's almost time!

Today's Highlight: 2 shoots with Judith!
My blog just got magically deleted... and I was almost done! So let's see if I can remember all the nice things I said before it went haywire.
First, let me say that I was not imagining the bug conspiracy, there are two dead ones on my keyboard right now... damn things are sneaky.
I spent my morning cycling around the Vondelpark (again!) and it always amazes me how many people are there. Very rarely is there any room on the grass to sit and cycling there is like playing dodge ball at high speed, with people and bikes instead of nice stingy rubber balls. But it's an amazing hub of activity. There were a few buskers out today, including a tiny old many playing a huge accordion (like the one you have Dad). I cycled past him about 3 times before I got the nerve to stop and give him some change, then snap a photo with my holga. I have been shooting only holga for the past few days, so sorry about the lack of new photos going up. I will be scanning the 3 rolls I have had processed already on Monday, so look forward to some funky looking experiments then.
Back to today, I met Judith just outside of the park for our first portrait session with a wonderful woman who has just started her own e-business (something to do with the internet and money?). She came racing up on her bike, looking flustered and excited, all made up with a new hair cut and her makeup professionally done. I guess she doesn't wear make up very often, so I think she felt a bit funny about looking so glamorous, but I think the photos will look great. She was very enthusiastic, and wanted to know all about me, and what I thought of Amsterdam/Holland/Dutch people. She has also just gotten an Olympus SLR given to her by a friend, and she asked me to make a few photos with it, so she could show her fried that she had been using it.
(Side note, everyone here has "make" a picture, and I've decided that that turn of phrase much better describes the process I go through when I shoot. Also "making" a picture sounds much more friendly than "taking" a picture. I like to think that I make photos of people, instead of taking them)
We (well Judith) shot portraits of this lady in 2 locations. One in her home and the other in the North of Amsterdam. Now I know I told you the other day that I had gone to the north, but it seems that was just as far north as you could go without crossing the water. Amsterdam has a bit of a Halifax Dartmouth thing going on. On one side (the side I live on) is the centre, and all of the tourists, but also a lot of the most beautiful architecture. In north Amsterdam ("Dartmouth") a lot of the buildings are new, and much more industrial than the "Halifax" side. There is also a ferry connecting the two ( I think a lot of people commute to this side for work). The ferry is free (hear that Metro Transit?!) and stops at Central Station, right in the heart of the city. It was neat to get out of the city where I have spent all of my time for the past week, and see a bit of the outside world.
The second portrait that we made was of a book publisher. The Magazine that asked for it is a regular client of Judith's, and she shoots for them every month. The name of the book was "Happier" ( a kind of self help thing about maximizing happiness and minimizing stress... but I am just paraphrasing). The idea was to shoot the publisher doing something that made him happy, so we went out to his garden. The little oasis was in the centre of the apartment building, and all of the terraces opened up into it. Beautiful sunlight filtered through the trees and made for perfect portrait lighting.
Judith is wonderful to watch when she works. She goes into a location, looks for about a half instant and knows exactly what she wants. She is very quick at making the subject at ease and finishes the shoot quite quickly. It is a very efficient way of working, and best for everyone involved, because she doesn't drag things out and make the client (or herself) tired.
I learned a lot from watching the interaction between Judith and the subject, and I found it very helpful not to get distracted by conversation. I was actually surprised to find that I still understood most of what was being said, just by people's reactions.
Judith shoots with a Hasselblad, and I have a confession to make: I want one very badly. They have so much character, and the most satisfying CLICK when the shutter releases. I also love the viewfinder that allows the photographer to shoot from waist level. I believe that I am learning quickly that my eye sees images as film would see them. I do not have a digital mind.
There is also something a lot more personal about shooting with a Hasselblad, because the camera does not go in front of the photographer's face. Can you tell that I am in love?
Well, it looks like I have yammered on enough for one day.
I went out especially for you folks and did some digital shots just before sunset, in the golden hour.
much love to all
Emma

Today's highlight: things in the redlight district...
Zanna took me to the redlight district today, and I have to say it is the weirdest place I have ever been. It is right next to china town (the two overlap on a few streets) and mixed in with a whole bunch of high fashion design stores. So, there is an area of town with neon signs that make it look like Burbon street in New Orleans, advertising everything from hot sex to hot and sour soup mix. Like I said, it's very weird. I was shooting Holga again today, so sorry I don't have any photos to show you, but really a picture wouldn't get across the feeling nearly well enough. You would have to be here to see the awkward looking middle aged American tourists trying hard not to look up from their maps as they walk by a window where a 20 something woman is spreading her legs and making cat calls. It would also be hard to photograph the junkies crouched in sun drenched alley ways, shooting up while just around the corner a woman bikes along the canal with her two children. But I have to say the strangest thing was watching a 50 something man "shop" for a hooker at 3 in the afternoon. First he went and knocked on one woman's window, she opened her door and he proceeded to look her over like some kind of livestock. He pinched her legs and actually looked up her skirt... but stopped short at opening her mouth and checking her teeth. Then, he shook his head and walked away. The cherry on top of it all was that the girl in the window next door opened her door and flashed him her goods. I guess competition amongst the girls is steep.
China town has some good stores though, there is a great Asian food market, where you can buy woks, sauces, noodles and salted duck eggs (I thought about it, but I passed on those). The redlight China town is actually very close to the central station and the really tourists hub of the city, but just a little too far to the left to be fashionable. At least for the time being. There are prostitution houses being shut down for not following the laws, and newer, higher class stores are moving in. The hub of the city is a gross place, there are fast food store (McDicks and Burger King...) and all of the same clothing stores that we have in North America. And as strange as I think it is to have half naked girls flashing old men in front of impressionable young people at 3 in the afternoon, I hope that the North Americanized downtown core doesn't spread into this unique neighbourhood.
Bugs are coming out in Amsterdam, I know because they keep trying to make a home in my teeth. I've been hit in the face about ten times, and always just before intersections, or when I'm passing another cyclist. I believe there is a fly conspiracy... but I could be imagining it.
I've heard a great saying from Judith. When someone here is easily offended people say "well, don't they have long toes", in other words it's easy to step on their toes. I thought this was great, mainly because VanRooyen feet have very long toes (I use mine for pinching annoying people) and since I was a kid, I was told I have my grampa's Dutch toes :) Irony at it's best; my grampa was one of the most patient people I have ever known.
One last tidbit about today- there does exist a car smaller than a smart car. They are made to only go 45 km/h and they drive in the bike lanes. I guess they are classified liked a scooter, and people can drive them at 16 (you have to be 18 to drive a car here). I have to say, they are pretty cool, and are good for comic relief. They are the original clown car.
Anyway, I am now tanned, freckled and wiped out from too much sun (it was 26 here today) so I am going to bed. goodnight all
Sorry about there being no picture today, but the website is being finicky and won't let me upload for some reason. I'll show you something nice tomorrow.
with love
Emma

Day 7

Today's highlight: Parakeets in the Vondelpark!
I don't think there has been a single day since I discovered the Vondelpark that I haven't cycled around it at least once. There are all kinds of birds (parakeets! Magpies, ducks and Blue Herons) and enormous trees that grow half in and half out of the water. Their limbs are as thick as telephone poles, and since they are almost lying in the water they are great to climb. I spent about 45 min sitting in one today, taking pictures with my Holga. I felt mildly creepy, but I also felt a lot like a pixie, or and elf. Something from the Lord of the Rings.
I spent the morning with Judith, looking at all of the shooting I have been doing since I got here. I think that I will learn a lot from Judith, because she challenges me. I get kind of awkward and don't really know what to say, but I think that is a part of the learning process. I have been trying to restrict myself to shooting Holga, because I find it a lot more challenging. It is hard not to be in control AS I am shooting, and it is a lesson in patience to wait a day (or at least a few hours) to see how I caught (or didn't catch) the moment. I can hear all of you older types groaning, because OF COURSE that's how photography has always worked, and I have been brain washed by the digital age. And you know, before I would have contested that, but it's true. I have been lulled into a comfort I didn't even realize I felt until I thought to take it away.
I got lost a few more times today, but I honestly think it helps. Now I know where the zoo and the botanical gardens are, and I think I have seen more of the city than any other tourist in the amount of time I've been here.
The only downside (there had to be one :) Is that I can barely sit on my bike seat anymore, my body isn't used to so much gluteus exercise. But I think it makes me look cool and forward thinking to stand while I bike. No one else does, seeing as there aren't really any hills here.
I forgot to mention the best street stand food in Amsterdam. Hand cut fries (like Bud The Spud) in a conical paper bag with your choice of 15 toppings (not including all the onions and things). That may not sound all that impressive, but there are delicious sauces, and the grease soaks into the paper cone. AND you get a great little fry fork.
I was in heaven, and I smelled terrible because you KNOW I picked the garlic sauce.
I am going on 2 jobs with Judith on Friday, to shot portraits. I know that I have mentioned how most people here speak English, so I never thought about going with Judith, and that of course, she will speak Dutch to her clients. So this puts me in a very interesting position. I will get to learn by watching and reading body language, instead of listening to directions given to the model. I'm quite excited by this prospect, it will be a completely new experience, and way of learning.
I know this is a shortish entry, but today I spent most of me evening at home with Bertie. We made diner together, and then I did the dishes and took out the trash. It was very nice, but not the most exciting thing to go into great detail about.
I am missing you all
with love
Emma

Today’s highlight: coming home early!
This past week has been so non-stop, because I’ve been afraid to waste even an hour of daylight. It’s hard to keep up such a pace, and tonight I actually came back before dark (wow, I know) and made myself some pad thai (sorry Shay, no bean sprouts ☺).
Zanna showed me around the north end of the city today, the oldest part of the city where there are no tramlines, and most of the streets are narrow ones, lined with flowers. We spent a few hours wandering through the streets, stopping to eat ice cream and take a few photos. Well, I took quite a few photos, and Zanna was nice enough not to mind. She has been a great help, showing me tons of great places to eat, grocery stores where I can buy Emma friendly food and just generally being a good friend.
I took some good shots today, some that I am actually happy with, which I haven’t really since I got here. Now that I am getting a little better handle on where I am most of the time, it easier to relax and take a closer look at things, and to actually SEE things. I still get lost a lot, but only once today, which is an improvement.
I think one of my favorite things to do here is grocery shop. I realize that that sounds ridiculous, but I really like being in a place where almost everyone is Dutch. There is definitely a little bit of irritation with tourists here, and I don’t blame the natives for getting annoyed. A lot of tourists are blitzed, and wonder around without paying attention. They walk in the bike lanes, in front of trams or are just generally annoying. I mean, imagine hundreds of hippies wandering around Halifax on a Monday, Tuesday…. every morning, I think it would kind of annoying to us humble Haligonians. I don’t blame people here for not liking tourists. And that’s why I like to grocery shop, no one thinks I’m a tourist, I don’t need a map to shop, so as long as I keep my mouth shut, I am Dutch.
I think that this trip will be good for me in more ways than one. I’m pretty passive, unless I’m forced to get uppity, and it has always bothered me. Dutch people (again, a generalization, I’m sure this isn’t true for everyone I’m just relating my experience) are very straightforward. They are direct, and say what they mean without sweetening it. It shows in may ways, not all of which are very obvious. Biking is a good example (I know I talk about biking a lot, but I think it’s a very important difference between our two cultures) to bike in such a demanding environment requires a lot of confidence. And really, it’s hard to be assertive without a certain amount of confidence. I’m hoping that I pick up some assertiveness while I am here.
I have to get up early to meet Judith, so good night all
Love
Emma

Today’s Highlight: Dinner at Zarra’s (delish!)
I meant to mention this yesterday, because I think it is so genius. Almost all of the houses here have a giant iron hook fastened at the peak of their roofs, for moving! No one here struggles to get sofas up narrow staircases, instead the windows come out (or at least open completely) and a pully system is set up. All of the furniture/boxes and other fun moving junk is hoisted into the house. I think this is a much better than the “deal with it” style of moving we have in Halifax. Anyway, I guess the hooks aren’t the only means of moving, there are also special trucks you can hire, that have a kind of ladder, with a huge metal container attached that rolls up and down the ladder. This morning at 7:30 that exact big metal container smacked against the apartment building, directly bellow my bedroom window. The people who lived bellow Bertie were moving out, and as annoyed as I was to be awake, it was great to get a look at another bit of European ingenuity. I’m pretty sleepy now though, and I think I will make it an early night.
Today was another day of beautiful sun and lots of walking/cycling. It’s hard to just relax (not that exploring is stressful) when there is always so much to see. I am actually finding it hard to shoot, because I can’t concentrate on only one thing for very long. I think that my brain will settle down once I have my bearings, but besides being distracted by the city, I am also obsessed with direction. I get lost about five times a day, but never badly, and most people are pretty nice about straightening me out.
I met Zanna today (my gluten free Amsterdam connection, and yes I know I am a pathetic dork) and she and Alex and I spent the afternoon on her balcony with a bottle of wine and some snacks. She has an amazing apartment, with HIGH ceilings, fancy moldings, a loft bed for visitors, and a shower in the kitchen! Oh and she has a hairless cat that looks like a bat (in the cutest way possible). On our way to Zanna’s we walked through Museumplien (museum square) where there was a big fair happening. I swear, the Dutch have holidays and parties all the time ☺
We didn’t stop there for long, but we did catch some pretty awesome Dutch Hip Hop. It was hilarious. Hip Hop artists here don’t take themselves as seriously as a lot of the popular North American artists. They were dancing and clapping and jumping around and rapping, in Dutch. Funny thing is though, that they swear in English, and I laughed so hard I almost pooped my pants.
I stayed at Zanna’s for dinner, and chatted with her and her boyfriend (whose name I can’t pronounce, even though Zanna walked me around the grocery store making me say it over and over) about music and things Adrian and I need to do when he gets here.
The forecast for the next 5 days is sunny and 20 degrees, so if I don’t have a tan already I will soon enough.
Love to everybody,
Emma

Day 4, More More More!

Today's Highlight: Being European.
All of the natives here think I am Dutch. Sometimes even when I speak to them in English they still think I am Dutch... Or British? I don't understand that, but I guess people don't recognize my accent? in the same vein, I did something completely un-European today, and fell of my bike in the middle of the road (it's ok Mum, I'm fine). Today, May the 4, is the day that the whole of Holland takes 2 min. of silence at 8pm, to remember the second world war. Tomorrow is a day of celebration, with music and food in the parks, mostly to celebrate when Holland was liberated from the German army. I asked a few people today what the general attitude here is toward German people. I guess I a lot of people in the older generation still feel quite hostile toward Germans. It kind of amazes me, since the two countries are so close. Bertie said that when she was little they would go to the beach, that was close to the boarder with Germany. Her parents would sit far away from any German people, because they disliked them so much. In the younger generations there aren't really any hard feelings, but I imagine that it would be hard to hate you neighbour (but that's just me).
Back to the 2 min of silence. It was amazing. Judith told me that it would be a good way for me to take place in something especially Dutch, so at 7:30 I went to Dam square. The square is right in the middle of the downtown (centrum) and in normally one of the busiest places in town, with all kinds of traffic, people and street performers. This evening the square (about 6 times the size of parade square in Halifax) was blocked off, and thousands of people were gathered there. For about 5 blocks in every direction there were bikes piled up on the sidewalk, where people had left them to make more space in the square. At about 2 min to 8 the queen and a few other members of the Dutch Royal family walked to the front of the crowd, and a woman with a trumpet began to play. And everyone went silent. The city was quiet (except for distant traffic) for a whole 2 min. At one point a little girl near me in the crowd coughed, and it sounded like a jack hammer. It was pretty powerful.
Of course, I fell off my bike right before I got into the square. Since the roads were closed, everyone was walking in the bike lanes. I tried to look all calm and cool, but I got my front tire caught in a tram line and went flying off my bike. Funny thing was that no one came over and asked "are you OK stupid tourist girl?" I don't know if people were just sparing me the embarrassment, or if they see that kind of thing so often that they ignore it unless there is blood. Either way, until that moment I feel supremely cool, but it's ok, I'll be cool again tomorrow.
The rest of my day I spent with Judith, doing some test shots for a job she is working on. It was fun being her model, and spending the day talking about photography and her experiences. She has talked me down from the digital ledge, and convinced me to try film again. Tomorrow I am going to leave my nikon at home ans shoot with my Holga. This city will be great for the Holga look, and I think these images will make great postcards for my project.
Remember that park I told you about yesterday? Vondelpark? Well, a neat little tidbit for anyone who wants to know, the city will be legalizing sex in the park after dark as of Sept. 2008. Talk about romantic, I hope they institute a one bush buffer zone :)
With Love
Emma
PS- here's a picture of me and my biking, hitting the town

Day 3

Today's highlight: this cat (ROAR!)
I realize that I said yesterday that I would be doing a lot of shooting today, and I'm sorry I lied about that one. Instead, I bought a bike! Now I am a true European. So, i did a sort of self guided tour (with my friend Alex) of a few areas in the city. We cycled through Vondelpark, which is one of the largest parks in the main park of the city. There were people everywhere. I mean there wasn't even a 4x4 piece of grass to sit down on. Where there weren't people there were people's bikes; like a limb or at least a dog. Bikes laid next to their people on the grass, or in some cases on them for lack of space. It was like a holiday atmosphere, which I guess makes sense, since Holland is in the middle of almost a week of holidays. On Monday is a celebration of the end of the war when Canadians (woo!) liberated the Dutch, and May 1st was Queen's Day (which judging based on the beer cans and garbage still lying around the city was one hell of a party). I hear that Queen's Day is a lot like Mardi Gras, except that everyone is wearing the national colour, Orange! Actually, when I met up with Alex today he still has orange polish on his nails, which was very becoming I must say. Biking in Amsterdam is a little bit scary, but not because of traffic. Bikers have the right of way here, over everyone else on the road. So the only real threat to cyclists is other cyclists. A lot of people ignore the rules and shoot out past me into the street while I wait for the signal to change. I'm sure I will be doing that soon enough (don't worry, it's ok Mum), but it will take some getting used to. I also got a cell phone, so as soon as I start smoking I really will fit right in here. OH that's the other thing, cyclists talk on their phones, smoke, eat or whatever else they feel like doing while they're biking. It's crazy! safety concerns aside, the Dutch have amazing balance.
Tomorrow I meet up with Judith to do some test shots for an advertising campaign, so I have to get up early and make sure I find my way there alright.
I think it will be hard to leave here... but I promise I will come back
with love
Emma

Day 2

Hi everyone,
I've just changed into my pj's, so this will seem less formal, I suggest you all do likewise.
Today's highlight: watching a golden lab swim through a fountain.
I almost think that it is cosmically unfair that any one place should be as beautiful as Amsterdam. There are so many things to tell you about. I'll start with the transit and road systems. Each for of transit has it's own traffic signals. There are bike signals, tram signals, car signals and people signals. This is fairly important, because it's impossible to follow the traffic that comes from all directions, and sometimes on the sidewalk. It's amazing though, how a place that seems so chaotic is really more organized than any other city I have been in. Everyone knows when it's their turn... or just takes their turn while no one else is taking advantage.
Everything about this city is laid back, even the crazy traffic. Everyone just sort of moves around each other, completely unconcerned about colliding (although I'm sure it has to happen sometimes). It's a great feeling to be a part of. I never really understood the "Canadians are so polite" stereotype, but I get it now. Dutch people (not to generalize of course, but this has been my experience so far) really do, as cliche as it may sound, go with the flow. They take life as it comes, and if someone runs into them, or steps on their foot, they just seem to ASSUME that it was a mistake. I, being the polite Nova Scotian girl that I am. have apologized to about 10 different people today, and all of them seemed quite surprised, and just told me not to worry about it. I find this attitude really refreshing; it reminds me how much time I spend worrying about offending or just generally bothering people, and how unnecessary it is. Or I should say Should Be. If people assumed the best of those around them, or didn't get personally attached to everything that happens, it would be much harder for people to get offended.
I started shooting in the city centre today, but just in passing as I explored. I am going to start in earnest tomorrow. I can't stop taking photos of the bikes, especially the Dutch bikes. They all have such personality, and are much more stationary than people.
I've posted a few bike pictures.... but there are so many more. I will put them on flikr soon. It's hard to keep up with editing and putting things online, because all I want to do is get outside. Tomorrow I think I will go and find an internet cafe and hangout with my photos for a bit.
I think I have finally solidified my self directed project for this month, with help from Judith. I am going to do a series of postcards, recording my experience of Amsterdam as a person from Dutch roots. It should turn out pretty interesting, I'm not actually sure what I will learn from this, but I have a feeling that it will be something very important.
Just a few other things about the bikes (I know...) I saw a couple today holding hands as they rode side by side. It was the other highlight of my day. Sorry to end on such a sappy note.
I hope Nova Scotia, Florida, BC, Ontario, Maine, New York or wherever you may be is treating you well.
I'll blog you tomorrow
With love
Emma

I Have Arrived

I cannot believe how beautiful it is here. Everything is a bright and healthy green. And I have never seen a city with so many different kinds of traffic. Out of my bedroom window I can watch scooters, cyclists, sailboats, barges, and airplanes landing a Schiphol (the airport).
When we were landing it was like looking at a patch work quilt. Fields are all so distinct from on another, and all bordered by mini canals. There is farm land RIGHT up until the city begins, and I am talking classic the-way-you-imagine-them farms. They are all picture perfect, with little black and white cows grazing about. It's fantastic.
I haven't been to the city centre yet, but it's my plan for first thing tomorrow, after a very long sleep.
More tomorrow
With Love
Emma