Day 22: Rembrandt House (Last day in Amsterdam!)

The group met at 11am this morning to visit the home of Rembrandt, the famous Dutch artist. Many of his works line the walls there, though not all of them are his. Rembrandt frequently collected works by other artists and would sell them to guests in his personal, in-home gallery. The rooms are large and the fixtures ornate, which tells me that Rembrandt was no "starving artist". The highlight of the visit was a young woman giving an informative demonstration on Rembrandt's style of painting along with a bit of a history lesson. From her discussion, I learned several things: female cactus lice secrete acid when threatened. This acid gets caught on their shells which were harvested and used to yield a gorgeous red color for paint. This is also the same red dye used in food coloring! The most expensive color, in Rembrandt's day, was an azure blue that had to be imported from Afghanistan. The color vermilion is yielded from the combination of mercury and sulfur. Dangerous!

A color referred to as "lead white" was not just for paint but for ladies' makeup as well! In those days, the lead was oxidized into white by placing a rolled coil of lead in a pot, pouring some acidic liquid in it (sometimes urine), placing horse droppings as a lid, and then heating the contents. Rembrandt himself was a teacher in addition to being a working artist. Students frequented the studios and galleries in his home. In fact, it was normal for Rembrandt to select exceptional works from his students, sign his name on them and then sell them as original Rembrandts!

Dead models could be used to study the human anatomy for more accurate artists' sketches. Linseed oil paints were Rembrandt's weapon of choice, so to speak. Some examples of tools he might've used to dry his paints were egg yolk, cobalt, or hardened tree sap.

After our visit, we adjourned to Saturnino for a final group lunch. I had a mixed green salad and lasagna bolognese. Delicious, but not quite like Mom's!

Since about 3 this afternoon, I've been packing, tidying up and getting prepared for an early morning departure tomorrow. I think most of the group, if not everyone, is meeting at Kriterion soon for one final hurrah, so I'm looking forward to that. It's been such an incredible, insightful three weeks that I practically feel like a local here! Goodbyes aren't easy, but I'm thrilled to return stateside tomorrow afternoon.

Day 21: Last Day of Class, Super Stroopwafels, and Spirit-Tasting at a 17th Century Distillery

Today was our last day of class. Dr. Myers decided to take us to Oosterpark to discuss final preparations for assignments; i.e. when he expects to have journals (or in my case, blogs) finished, when he wants our final reflection papers, surveys, etc. Colin and I suggested that, in the future, instead of doing the diamond factory or the Hash, Hemp & Marijuana Museum, take the tour at the Heineken Experience and consider the economic differences between a large commercial brewery like Heineken and local microbreweries like our favorite windmill spot, Brouwerij't Ij. No comment on pronunciation there. Just call it "The Windmill"

Later we went to visit another street market on the other side of the park that we hadn't been to yet. What set this market apart from others I've seen in town was that prices were posted for most goods. Dr. Myers was kind enough to buy everyone warm, fresh super-stroopwafels, which are almost 4 times bigger than normal stroopwafels.

Later in the afternoon, a handful of us went souvenir shopping near a flower market in town. Dr. Myers picked up tulip bulbs to take home for a new "International Garden" on campus while some students bought some to take home.
After that, we visited the famous Wynand Fockink distillery just off of Dam square. Since 1679, they've been known for their jenevers and flavored liqueurs. (Fun Fact: The barman told us that the distillery down the street had been functioning since 1679 and that the building we were sampling spirits in opened 10 years later in 1689.)

I had a glass of their "Superior" jenever, which just refers to the kind of distilling process it undergoes. What makes this jenever "Superior" is that it's aged in Jack Daniel's barrels, allowing for a strong kick and wonderfully smooth finish.

Since picking up Dad's souvenir at The Windmill earlier, I've been finishing some laundry and trying to get myself arranged for quick, easy packing later tomorrow. We will be home on Friday!

P.S. I've moved back into my single room on the 2nd floor to make way for Mrs. Doctor Wilson who will be arriving early tomorrow morning. I'd like to thank Dr. Dennis Wilson for being a wonderful mentor and roommate on this trip. The man's been like a father to me, and I can't thank him enough helping make this trip a success.

Day 20: Flower Auction & Our Lady in the Attic

It was an early morning for the group today as we met out front of our apartment building at 6am local time (that's midnight for those keeping tabs back home) to visit Flora Holland, the massive flower auction through which over 50% of all flowers sold in the world each day flow. The building is roughly 775,000 square meters, making it the world's largest commercial building. That's like the size of 200 football fields!

The bidding follows the rules of Dutch-style auctioning. The bidding starts high and works its way down. The winning bidder pays the lowest price.

The building itself, the seemingly impossible logistics at work, and the massive number of flowers were unlike anything I've seen or experienced before. A fascinating tour, and one of the signature highlights of the trip.

Later in the afternoon, we visited Our Lord in the Attic, a secret church built by the Catholics in the 17th century. It was a secret at the time because Catholicism was banned in Amsterdam after the Protestants took over the city in the late 16th century. The church and, as of 1888, the museum were built in a space that combined 3 houses in the city's Red Light District. Our Lord in the Attic is Amsterdam's 2nd oldest museum after the Rijksmuseum, which was founded in 1808.

The church's priest had living quarters which included a very short bed confined essentially to a cabinet space in the wall. The reason behind having a bed so short for a man of average height? The priests in those days slept upright for fear of being taken by the Devil if they lied flat!

As for the maids living downstairs, their bathroom was one of Amsterdam's first. In the 17th century, no one had a "room" dedicated specifically to bathing, washing and relieving oneself. Needless to say, these lucky ladies had it made.

Throughout the building, there are paintings and references to St. Nicholas, the Christian saint whom we've come to associate with the Christmas season. Turns out that the Dutch don't envision exactly the same "jolly, old St. Nick" that Americans do. According to Dutch tradition, St. Nicholas is slender and strict, and he won't think twice to put a bundle of sticks in your shoe if you've been a bad kid! December 5th is when St. Nicholas's feast day is celebrated in The Netherlands, and this is when all the big presents come. December 25th, Christmas Day, is only for minor gifts. So imagine our Christmastime traditions flip-flopped with about 20 days' difference. That's the Holidays in The Netherlands. St. Nicholas is also the patron saint of Amsterdam.

I wasn't able to get a picture, but across the street from Our Lord in the Attic is a home that has a "clock facade", which is more ornate, complicated and much older than the usual square facades on most of Amsterdam's other houses. This one has two giant fish on it that look like ancient sea monsters but are really images of what the designer believed dolphins would look like.

Day 19: Night Watch at Rembrandtplein

This morning, the group went out early before class to take a picture at the "Night Watch" statue in Rembrandtplein.

In class today we discussed market strategy. On a 3-mile beach, ice cream vendors would operate at a socially optimal level if an establishment is placed roughly at each mile. Spacial considerations are crucial in determining economic activity. Then we learned that, when picking a spot for your company, you should locate closer to your target market if raw materials are perishable or gain weight as they are processed. You should locate closer to the raw materials if the raw materials or final product lose weight.

Later we started discussing the diamond trade in this area, and I learned that Amsterdam and Antwerp, Belgium were major trade cities back in the day (if they aren't still today) where several diamonds made their way from the coasts of Africa. Amsterdam was originally a trans-shipment point; so to cut costs, diamond cutters and polishers moved here for work.

After class, several of us went to Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant near Centraal Station for lunch. I had a delicious "beef burger from Baambrugge on farmer's white bread with baked onions and pancetta". It was juicy, had great flavor, and the onions and pancetta were cooked perfectly. It just sucks that they forgot my order and had to put it in after all 13 other members of my group started eating. Overall I'd say the burger I had was a 9. One of the best I've ever had. That makes the second burger I've had on this trip to crack my Top 5 favorite burgers; the other being from Burger Meester (pronounced "Meister") around the corner. The service at Fifteen left something to be desired. It became increasingly clear to me by the sparse lunch crowd that this was more of a dinner place, and the service reflected that as well. 4/10 on that front.

On a more cultural note, I've learned recently that department stores and chain restaurants here usually have several floors. The H&M I went to last week had six floors! I've also seen McDonald's, Burger King and Subway with at least two floors. If you go out to eat and order a "club" or deli sandwich, it's popular to put sliced hard-boiled egg on it.

I did an assignment yesterday that involved a side-by-side comparison of prices for certain goods in America and the prices of those same goods in Amsterdam. I've come to find that on the whole, Amsterdam (and Europe in general) is more expensive than the States.

Day 17 & 18: Ajax Soccer & A Quick Lesson in Viral Street Marketing

Slow day for much of Saturday. Friday was a bit of a long night, so it was nice to sleep in. The biggest event of the day was the Ajax soccer game versus AZ, the former club of USMNT star Jozy Altidore. Many folks in our group tried desperately to get tickets, but the game appeared to be sold out, and the only tickets available were beyond our price range. Two members of our group managed to get tickets and attend the game in person. The rest of us found a pub on Rembrandtplein to watch the game at. I journeyed to the flea market at Waterlooplein earlier in the afternoon looking for a cheap Ajax jersey to wear, but there were none to be found.

What a game it was, though! I'm excited for Colin and Louis because they were present for about as thrilling a finish as you can hope to see in soccer. The game wasn't decided on penalty kicks, but it came down to a dramatic overtime finish with Ajax scoring the go-ahead goal after fighting their way back from a two goal deficit in regular time. It was an awesome game to see on TV, and I can only imagine how the atmosphere must've been just a couple miles southeast at Amsterdam ArenA (they capitalize both A's in "Arena").

We celebrated the comeback victory with a night of drinks and dancing, taking full advantage of our last Saturday night in the city.

Sunday was almost equally quiet as Saturday. I did homework in Oosterpark just around the corner from where we live. Lots of folks out with picnic bags and frisbees taking in the gorgeous, balmy weather we've had here in the wake of Saturday's rainstorms. Later in the day, I caught up with Dr. Wilson, Erin and Melissa from our group, and we went to get dinner from Sinbad's, a Turkish place near our residence. The weather was so nice that we took our meals to go and ate them in the same park. In the evening I noticed many more people grilling on small charcoal grills, which I thought would be an excellent idea if we actually lived here and had a grill to use. Later, I walked down a few blocks to the ATM, and I noticed an awkward pattern in the sidewalk. It looked discolored or stained. It took me a second to notice that what I was looking at was actually an incredibly clever piece of movie marketing.

There are poster advertisements in bus stops and on buildings all over town for several different movies; some of which even have monitors showing the trailers. But I hadn't seen The Wolverine advertised like this before. Very cool. Wish I'd thought of it myself.

Almost the entire group capped off the weekend with drinks at Kriterion around the corner, one of our favorite spots of the entire trip.

Day 16: Start of the Last Weekend

We had class in the usual spot this morning and continued our discussion about the effects of drug decriminalization. Should the United States adopt more tolerant policies towards soft drugs? If so, what are the pros and cons? Eventually we concluded that there really aren't many negative externalities associated with marijuana use; social stigmas placed on the drug may hinder America's immediate adoption of legislation similar to what's in place in The Netherlands.

We talked briefly about our excursion to the flower market next week, and I learned the following things: 50% of all flowers sold commercially in the world go through the Amsterdam flower market building each day. It's the largest commercial building in the world, and the auctions that occur there are not like what we might expect in America. A "Dutch auction" starts at a high price, and bidders attempt to mark it down as opposed to the other way around. Winnings go to the LOWEST bidder here.

It rained today for the first time since being in Amsterdam. I think more is expected this weekend, but it's been gorgeous since it stopped earlier this afternoon.

Day 15: Van Gogh Museum

This morning, the group took a trip to the Van Gogh museum where we admired several of the artist's original works. Sadly, his famous "Starry Night" is on loan to a museum in New York, so we weren't able to see it. But the "Sunflowers", "Self-Portrait" and the one with the smoking skeleton were enough to make the trip worth it.

"Self-Portrait" or as I've come to call it, "The Original Selfie"

After our visit, Dr. Wilson led us across town to Waterlooplein to get fresh-made deli sandwiches and drinks for around 5 euros. A perfect, cheap lunch that I'll surely be back for.

We were supposed to visit the Heroin Clinic today, but the visit wasn't able to be coordinated properly with anyone on the Clinic's end. We may go another day or not at all.

With that, it's been a relatively slow, quiet day. I just finished a homework assignment involving price comparisons from different "coffeeshops" around town. It's dinnertime here, and I'm feeling a bit peckish so I might head down to the grocery store and pick up something. Some folks headed out to the brewery at the Windmill awhile ago. Might try to catch up with them. Class tomorrow as our last weekend kicks off!