The Day of the International Student, School Visits, and the Nemo

So!

As I move into this experience a bit more, I seem to write less and less...I will chalk this up to being the fact that I feel my life is very regular nowadays, and so I find less exciting things to write about...

Regardless, I have some exciting things to write about now, oh yes indeedy. First and foremost, on the weekend of November 12th, I took my lazy bum off to Den Haag, the political capitol of Holland, to go to this giant international student conference. I took a train from Utrecht to Den Haag, feeling sad, because I was going to a big conference by myself. I took a tram to the conference center, and man, I wish I could have snapped a picture of what I found on the tram. It just so happens that the 12th of November is also the day that Sinterklaas arrives in Scheveningen (try saying that three times fast - it's basically what it sounds like when I sneeze) which is a port city. In an adorable display of Dutchery, Sinterklaas arrives in a ferry, and all the little children welcome him, and his white horse, and his black servant, Zwarte Piet. Most of these kids who go to see him also dress up - and on the tram were two of the cutest (and most bizarre) costumes I had ever seen. A man was holding his two daughters, one looked to be about three, and the other was a wee baby, just squirming in his arms. The three year-old was dressed as Sinterklaas, with a red cloak with a white fur trim, and a jaunty matching hat. The baby - was in blackface, and dressed as Zwarte Piet. Yes, folks, this man had put blackface on his baby. And the baby was loving it. Her hands were also black, and she was delightfully rubbing the black all over her father's coat and seat. I SO wish I could have snapped a picture of this kid, but there were just too many people in the tram blocking my camera. It had to be, as I said, one of the most bizarre costumes I'd ever seen. I mean, point 1) Blackface? But Point 2) Blackface on a baby?

In any case, I got off the tram at the conference center and the black-faced baby and the wee 3 year-old Sinterklaas went on their merry way to celebrate the arrival of Santa. At the conference center, I was greeted by a large crowd of people milling around waiting for the doors to open.

I swear to you, there were tons of people. They're all hiding behind me. People have a tendency to do that. I think it's cause I'm so gosh-darn good lookin'.

The conference was held in this snazzy building - the "World Forum."

Apparently a lot of important international things happen in The Hague. A lot of world justice courts are here, including, right next to this building, the Europol European Police office. So, it fits that a lot of international students live in and around the Hague to study issues of International Peace and Conflict Resolution. Like the nice fellow I met - Kevin. You see, I went to the conference all by my lonesome, and was very sad. But then, Kevin came and sat down next to me, and life was awesome again! He is super nice, and is also an American, and is here on a Rotary scholarship for a year, studying Conflict Resolution.

This is Kevin, standing on a rug with a map of America (and the rest of the world). He is standing on California, because he's from San Jose. Shortly after this photo was taken, he spilled that entire cup of coffee on dear San Jose...

This is me, sort of on Ohio. Moments after this photo was taken, I too spilled my cup of coffee. On Asia, I think...

As Kevin and I were wandering around alternatively stepping on countries and spilling our hot beverages (on accident) on them, the conference began, with a very good, very loud drum band, and these sassy ladies who knew how to shake what their mamas gave them, if you take my meaning.

Then there was a giant opening ceremony, which was really, really awesome. The host was a Dutch fellow who works with the International Department in the Hague, who was very, very funny, and even sang a whole Beatle's song at one point. There was also an improv team and a break dancing group. It was like seeing "Holland's Got Talent" live!

After this very exciting introduction, everyone was sort of told to go wander. There were amazing booths set up, with fun activities, including a "traditional Dutch game" where you compete to see who can hang on to a pair of jeans (like, hanging above the ground) the longest. I think that's a lie. The Dutch do not actually hang off jeans like this for fun, do they?


There was also clog painting, which Kevin (who also loves to paint) and I quickly scurried to. We spent...way too much time painting clogs. His turned out beautifully - it was a little miniature scene of a windmill, and some tulips, and a bike. It was really, really good (he used to own a business custom-painting Vans shoes for people). I made a kind of henna-inspired clog...

So beautiful! I am an artist!

After we spent an incredibly long time painting our respective shoes, we moved on to doing henna (I know, doesn't this sound like the coolest international conference ever?):

My totally rad henna design, meant to emphasize Kevin's "Energy" wrist tattoo. Yeah, I know, it's awesome. ;)

After henna, we went ice skating:

They made this ice rink from blocks of ice cut like puzzle pieces. How cool is that!?

And last but not least, there was a delightful fashion show, where students all wore their native clothing:

Colorful. Blurry. Tastes like America.

So, this ended up being a really wonderful day, and I made an excellent friend, even though I went to the conference alone. I'm so glad I went, though!

I've also been doing a LOT of classroom visits. Some are excellent, and some are...not so excellent. In all of them, I meet (at least a few) students who are enthusiastic and excited about hearing what I have to say. Some of them are really shy, and take a long time to say anything in Dutch, and some of them are very outspoken, and know exactly what they want to ask. I even played a YouTube video of me singing in the musical "Violet" for one group of students who really wanted to see me singing in high school. I love when classes get bolder, and ask me all about what they think about America - "Are there cliques, and cheerleaders, and does everyone eat pizza?" "Why does everyone love football?" "Are you a Republican or a Democrat?"

One of the most interesting differences between American and Dutch high schools is the fact that American high schools do in fact have cliques, while in Dutch high schools they are practically unheard of. As I've explained to several people, I think this is a product of the staunch Dutch egalitarianism, but also because in Dutch schools, sports are separated from Academics. Most schools don't have their own school teams, and most kids play sports somewhere removed from the school. Schools are divided into three levels, VMBO, HAVO, and VWO. VMBO is the lowest level, and is shorter than HAVO or VWO. When you are 12, you take a test to determine which level you get into. You can switch - but it's hard. VMBO kids go on to do more...technical, hands-on jobs, and the only kids who can get into University, to get degrees in "theoretical" knowledge, are the VWO kids. Now, we have a problem in the US where too many kids go to college. Most people will admit this. They go because they do not know what else to do. Would a divided system like this solve that problem? Would it be better if we split our kids up at 12? I don't know. But I think this is another reason why Dutch schools don't have quite the bullying/us vs. them problems of American high schools.

Last, but certainly not least, there was a big brain conference held at the Amsterdam science center (which I absolutely need to go back and see) this past week, and Dienke presented her research, and won! First place! And got a sweet little brain trophy. I aspire to be as cool as that.

Here are some pictures of the delightful event:

All of my wonderful lab-mates. From left to right: Juliette, Lizanne, Branko, Dienke, and Lara. These are the nice people who help me make it through the day, and say things like, "Ik begrijp u niet."

We also had a brief stint where we could go and tour around the museum a bit:

What do you see? Little kids see dolphins.

This was the coolest thing ever (literally) there was a heat-sensing camera, to my right. And if you held your arm to one of these super-chilled metal pieces, and then pointed it at the camera, it looked like you had a tattoo, because that part of your arm would be momentarily cooler than the rest of your body. So. Awesome.

At this museum, they had a...scientific exhibit about sex. Living up to the reputation of Amsterdam, right here.

Juliette, being some rapper dude. This was in part of an exhibit that said, "Who are You?"

Some mind games! Which of these lines is longer?

Of the two center circles, which is bigger?

How could you cu a circular cake into eight equal pieces with just three straight cuts of a knife>

Chiseled into this stone are nine cryptic characters. The sixth character, the third one in the middle row, was left out. The puzzle is to figure out what this character should be...this can be done by determining what each of the other characters stands for. They all have something in common!

And so, yes. I have also begun scanning and interviewing people in Dutch, and yes, it has been going (thank god) well. I actually really surprised myself, recently, with how much Dutch I can just pull out of the sky (it feels like) when I'm under pressure. Performance under pressure. Another thing I need to thank theater for. I'm so making my kids be in plays with me.