Rockin' with Oma and the Blues Transfusion

After my night in Venlo, I arrived at the train station at Neustadt an der Aisch about 17 minutes late.  Still, I can't complain after being locked out of a train station for over three hours.  I was completely dead on my feet, but rallied when I saw my dear friends, Leonore and her son Robert.  They were able to whisk me away to my room at the Landgasthof Sternbräu where I managed to shower and fall into to bed for a two hour nap.

 I like this Gasthaus because it's clean, spare, close to where I need to be, and it has a hair dryer!

Following my much-needed rest (I hadn't really slept the night before, and slept poorly the night before that),  it was over to Reiner and Sylvia's for a birthday lunch for Leonore.  

Sylvia and Reiner have a centuries-old manor house where they have lived for a  long time.  They've raised cows, pigs, sheep and  now ducks, and they always plant a fantastic garden.  They are committed locovores, eating foods that are accessible here and in season.

Reiner and Sylvia have been friends with the Baeumlers for decades.  Sylvia is an excellent cook and planned an "echte bayerische" (real Bavarian) lunch for Leonore, whom she dearly loves.  Leonore's neighbors, Susan and Steve, are also here to celebrate Leonore's birthday, and Susan volunteered her services as cook's assistant.  Together, these two women made a feast of roast duck, stuffing, savoy cabbage, kartoffelkloesse Ipotato dumplings) and soße (gravy).  We also had a delicious green salad, and of course, beer.  We were stuffed, but happy.

Following lunch, I got to take another nap which was sooooo welcome.  Later that evening, we headed into Fürth to hear Reiner play bass with his band, "Blues Transfusion." Before we were invited in for a practice session, we waited in one of the "lounge" areas of the building where the band practices.  Here's a look at some of the wall-coverings where dear Leonore was sitting.

The word "incongruous" comes to mind.

We headed in to the small practice room where Reiner and his band mates were set up, and were blown away by how very, very good they are.

This is an inter-generational band ranging in age from 40-60.  Their sound was tight and balanced.  What a treat!

They played for us for about 20 minutes, and then we said goodbye and drove over to Landbierparadies.  Steve has a brewery cum restaurant in Superior, and a big part of his trip has been devoted to visiting breweries first in Belgium and now in Germany.

The beer we ordered came in a small keg which Steve had the honor of tapping.

Our server brought us steins and we were good to go until Reiner returned from his practice session with "the boys".

We actually managed to kill the keg before Reiner showed up to join us.  He managed to find one brew for the road, regardless.

Walking in Venlo...After Midnight!

My colleagues at Erasmus very kindly invited me for dinner in downtown Rotterdam.  My host, Dr. Jansz, invited two other colleagues and the International Programs Coordinator, Emma, to join us at Kaat Mossel, a restaurant that specializes in Mussel dishes.

From what I could discern, this was "ware Rotterdam".  The other guests seemed to me to be "Rotterdam-Rijnmond"--from the area.  The restaurant did a steady business the whole time we were there--and this on a Monday night.

I followed the lead of one of my colleagues, David (an American whose been at Erasmus for four or five years), and ordered the mussels with tomato.  It was "erg lekker"!

The meal comes in a kettle, the lid of which is used to hold the spent shells.  The presentation is quite dramatic.

The three dipping sauces were quite delicious.

We had a delightful conversation, covering trips, wedding plans, and of course, the possibilities for partnership between our two programs.  We carried on for over three hours, and then it was time for my host to catch his train back to Leiden, a half hour trip.  Even with the prospect of a long ride home, my host kept me company as long as he could before he had to board his train.  Truly, this was a day of graciousness from all who hosted me.

As we were finishing up our evening, my hosts inquired after my travel plans.  I showed them my crazy itinerary and they started offering recommendations for how to manage the next 13 hours.  It turned out that my four hour layover was not in Dusseldorf, but in Venlo, a town in the southeast of the Netherlands on the German border.  It has a population of around 100,000, but my hosts were concerned about how I would spend my time while there.  My train was scheduled to arrive around 1:15, and my connection to Dusseldorf wasn't slated to leave until 5:05.  My new friends recommended I consider taking a slightly earlier train to Venlo so that I could slip in to a hotel lobby and wait out the night, but that didn't seem practicable.  They felt pretty confident that I would be able to just stay in the station and I thought I might put the time to good use by grading a few papers.  The old saying goes, "Man [sic] plans, God laughs."  Indeed!  My friends warned me, "Don't fall asleep in Venlo!"

After my host left to catch his train, I sat at the Rotterdam station people watching.  It was altogether very pleasant, with the one notable exception of an Alsatian who started barking vigorously just before passing me while I sat on a bench.  I made it up to the platform with about 10 minutes to spare.  The train arrived in plenty of time and, together with a few other people, I boarded.

By the time I got to Venlo about two hours later, I think I was the ONLY person left on the train--other than the conductor.  The minute I disembarked, I headed for the WC (which was not the "nicest" experience I've ever had), and then walked in to the station to settle down for the next four hours.  That was when I encountered a rather nasty shock.  The stationmaster was gesturing me vigorously to keep walking out of the station.  I balked.  I told him, "I can't leave.  I have to catch my next train at 5:05."  His reply was a curt, "You have to go.  I have to close up the station and you must leave.  I will open again at 4:30."  I asked him where I was supposed to go, and he was rather abrupt in his reply.  The undertone was, "it's not my problem," but he suggested I seek out the hotel my friends had recommended in Rotterdam.

I started out walking, and wasn't at all sure where the corner was where I was supposed to turn left.  I stopped a woman on a bicycle to inquire and she pointed more specifically in the direction where I would find the hotel.  I thanked her and started out toward the indicated site.

I brought my backpack and a very wobbly suitcase to pull behind me.  This was the same setup I took with me last winter when I was traveling through the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany.  I knew then that my "suitcase" probably wouldn't make it another trip, but the size is really quite perfect.  The problem is, it's just not that great on cobblestones--a real handicap in the old cities of Europe.

There was one other person out where I was, and he didn't inspire confidence.  He was riding a bicycle that looked to be in the same shape as my suitcase.  We both stopped frequently to adjust our wheels.  I knew, however, that our commonalities ended there.

I found the hotel, only to discover (without too much surprise) that it was shut up tighter than a casket.  My heart sank, but I thought I'd go looking for a bar.  Mind you, it was a Monday night/Tuesday morning in mid-October--not exactly a party night.  The first bar I visited (and no, I don't get out to many bars) seemed lively, but the patrons exiting the door assured me that it was near closing time and that I wouldn't be able to hang out there.  I explained my predicament.  One fellow told me he was a cab driver and that if I found myself back on the steps of the station he'd let me sit in his car.  Another fellow with long grey braids and a leather vest wished me good luck, but looked like he thought it was a long shot.

I was starting to feel a bit shaky at this point, but soldiered on to the next bar I found.  I entered and found clientele more my "style", i.e. middle-aged men and women dressed in casual chic (I'm giving myself a bit too much credit on that score).  I asked if I might stay in the bar, and the proprietress indicated that she too was closing soon.  I asked if I could stay until she closed and she agreed I could, but then promptly asked what I wanted to drink.  I said "Nothing" at first, worried that if I had something to drink I might have to find a WC, and that seemed unlikely.  No sooner were the words out of my mouth, she was shooing me out the door.  I ordered a mineral water and started to sip--which was a pretty tall order given that my chin was trembling and the tears starting to spill from my eyes.

One of the gentlemen in the bar asked me where I was headed, and at that point I lost it a little.  I told him I was off to Nuremberg to celebrate my friend's 85th birthday, and was feeling a little desperate.  He could see I was frightened and came over to give me a hug.  It was a gesture of pure kindness.  I shared a little more of my plight and he was genuinely concerned.  He was dismayed by the practice of the train station and said I hadn't been the first person so affected.  He vowed to share his outrage with the city fathers.  I felt heartened by this, but was still at a loss as to what to do once the bar shut down for the night.

As the proprietress wiped tables and cleared glasses she would shoot me a sympathetic smile, which I didn't completely believe given how quick she was to boot me out the door.  I noticed the kind gentleman talking with a woman, who seemed to be his partner.  He then came over and said, "We will take you back to our place and you will be safe."

Sometimes you just have to trust.  I could tell these two people were kind and generous.  She then came over and gave me a sympathetic hug.  I put my trust in these two wonderful strangers.  They trusted this short, chubby, middle-aged American not to be a thief (or worse) and took me in to their home.  I have never felt such gratitude.

We walked through the streets of the Venlo city center toward their apartment.  We entered their apartment and I immediately felt tremendous relief.  Aad and Hemmie are about my age, they each have two children from previous relationships.  She is a primary school teacher, he is a freelance copywriter.  They offered me coffee and an opportunity to use the internet.  Hemmie told me she had to retire to bed soon as she was planning to arise relatively early to travel off to see her mother.  Aad told me he was a night owl who enjoyed having the night to himself.  Still, Hemmie stayed up much later than she should, getting acquainted and offering snacks.  Aad asked me what kind of music I liked and played some Bach.  It turns out we both love Bach and early music.  I recommended the Catalonian singer Nuria Real, and he played two of his favorite singers performing "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring".

We talked and talked and talked.  We shared family stories and talked politics--both American and Middle Eastern.  Aad was curious about Israel and I shared what I could.

The night flew by, and all of a sudden it was 4:30, time to head back to the station.  Ever the gentleman, Aad helped me with my bags and walked me to the station.  He stayed with me until it was time for me to board my train and we said our goodbyes.

It turned in to a really wonderful meeting.  I felt blessed beyond measure to have encountered two such wonderful people.  Aad kept telling me--"when I was in America people were kind to me."  I only hope I will one day pay it forward the way he and Hemmie did early Tuesday morning.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Aad and Hemmie!

Getting to Rotterdam

It turns out my difficulty falling asleep on Saturday night was NOTHING compared with last night (Sunday).  What a DISASTER!  I made a point of getting to my room relatively early.  I took a shower and put on my pajamas and was calmly working on my blog by 9:00 p.m.  I finished the blog and read a chapter or two from my wonderful novel (The Golem and The Jinni), and turned out the light by 11:30. 

Fortunately, before climbing into bed I had enough foresight to contact my son and request a "wakeup call" via Google chat (he's in Oregon, so it was only 9:30 p.m. when he called me at 6:30 local time).  My watch battery died last month and I didn't replace it before leaving the U.S. so I was left without an alarm.  It occurred to me that this strategy would work, and Thank God it did. 

I tossed and turned forever (or so it seemed).  I went through the entirety of Jane Eyre in my head, said prayers for all my loved ones, reviewed what I had read in my book, went back over JE one more time and STILL I couldn't fall asleep.  I tried meditating, but I'm hopeless at that.  I finally decided to just close my eyes and rest to the extent that was possible.  Every time this happens to me (and fortunately, it doesn't occur all that often), I recall my mother telling me about consulting with our pediatrician about my poor sleep habits.  His advice to her was just to keep me in my bed and allow me to self-soothe until I dropped off to sleep.  I still try to do that. I figure, if nothing else, I AM resting.

Last night, though, it was especially important for me to sleep as I had to get up by half past 6 in order to get my tram to Amsterdam's Centraal Station, and the take the 7:49 train to Rotterdam.  Getting up early was bad enough, but tonight is a marathon train ride with at least three stops and one four-hour layover (in Dusseldorf, I think).  I must have dropped off, because the call for a Google chat did in fact awaken me, but I have no idea how long I was out.  I've learned that, if nothing else, during bouts of insomnia, it's a really bad idea to keep an eye on the clock.

Well, the bottom line is, I made it to Rotterdam without incident. 

Once here, I had to figure out how to find my tram to the university.  After a couple of quasi-false starts, I did find the tram and hopped on.  It's a bit more expensive here than it was in Amsterdam (3 Euro, as compared with 2,80), but it was clean and efficient.  There is a LOT of construction going on around the train station, and around Erasmus University as well.  Regardless, I made it here by the appointed time.

My first point of contact, Emma, is in charge of International Programs, and she couldn't have been more generous.  She set me up with an office and internet access.

 The office is a supply room with two desks, two phones, two desktops, cases of water, soda and BEER!!

My first engagement for the day was to sit in on a Master's seminar on Media Economics and Media Management.

My Rotterdam University colleague Matthijs Leendertse was a very personable, bright young man who gave a terrific lecture on Managing Globalization and Rapid Technological Change.

I learned a tremendous amount and will find a way of sharing what I can when I return to the states.  Once he was done with his formal presentation, the idea was for me to join one of the student groups to eavesdrop on a task he had set them.  As it turned out, Matt and I had a very stimulating conversation about his course, my courses, and world politics.  Frankly, once we were on the topic of world politics, there was no stopping us.  I never did eavesdrop on the students.  By the time they were ready to report, it was time for me to go to lunch with two students and three members of staff.  It's a pity I didn't hear what the students had to say, but I don't regret for an instant learning what Matt had to say.  I felt we made a real point of contact.

I had lunch with the aforementioned group in the Faculty Club on the 17th floor of one the university's newish buildings.

The faculty club is a very elegant space, complete with a bar, where faculty and others can eat an elegant and quiet meal.

The view is spectacular.

It was wonderful to exchange information with both the staff and students about the value of study abroad programs, internships and aspirations.  The  undergraduate students were very bright young people with big dreams.

It is clear that they both anticipate going in to some business aspect of media--developing new products, working in PR, but also, getting Master's degrees along the way.  The three staff members all had international study experience and all three had completed Master's degrees. 

We talked about student exchanges--over 50% of Erasmus students participate in exchange programs--as well as the international student and faculty composition of the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication.  "International" is really the key word to describe my experience here.  It was very, very impressive.

After lunch, Jess, one of the young students who ate with us, escorted me to his Human Communication class, taught by Dr. Professor Joern Jansz.

Dr. Jansz is acquainted with one of my colleagues at UMD, as both have done extensive research on video games.  As it happened, Dr. Jansz was lecturing on his research on two video games as part of a unit on Persuasion.  He shared a study he conducted with one of his Ph.D. students wherein they were examining the potential for games to persuade players to change behaviors and attitudes. 

The game was about fashion modeling, and he and his colleagues worked with a Dutch bank to see if the role of bank within the game could affect players' attitudes toward learning about banking and engaging in banking.

 

He shared ethical concerns with the group as well.  One of the issues he addressed was that he, a middle-aged man, along with two female colleagues, were taking on the persona of "Minime," one of the characters in a game. "Minime" is a young female, so obviously, there is a concern about representation.  He explained that he and his research colleagues had been criticized for having such a close working relationship with a commercial interest in this project.  He presented his ethical retort by noting that his research group had formed very clear agreements with the bank that anything they discovered in the course of their research could be published.

The second research project he explained was for a game called Poverty is Not a Game, or PING.  The research on this game was designed to explore attitudes and behaviors of players with respect to income inequality, and other political issues related to poverty.    He found attitudes did change, but behaviors didn't.  He was heartened by players' willingness to talk with others about politics, which he noted is essential for a functioning democracy, but the behavioral change piece is probably something which takes a longer time. 

It was a very interesting lecture.  It was also interesting to observe his classroom management style.  Some things, it seems, are universal.  He had to admonish at least three different groups to focus or stop talking.

After his lecture we returned to the Comm office building where we chatted with the Department Head about the possibilities for exchange.  I think it's fair to say we all see tremendous possibilities for student exchanges, for short-term faculty exchanges, and more.  We'll discuss more over dinner.

One of the graduate students from the morning seminar fetched me and took me on an extensive "walkabout".  This young man really embodies the international quality of this campus.  He was born in Hong Kong, moved to South Africa, where he grew up, move to the Netherlands to finish high school and started college, moved to the UK for a gap year (and hopes to return once he's completed his MA), and then returned here to complete his BA and MA.  He was a wonderful host who gave me a flavor of this campus.

As I noted earlier, the campus is really under construction.  Although the university is celebrating is centennial this year, I didn't see any older buildings.  James, my guide, indicated a number of buildings which had just opened in September, or which had finished dramatic renovation this fall.

The buildings at Erasmus University have letter designations, rather than names.  The Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication is located in the L-Building.

I snapped a great many photos of the campus buildings we visited to convey the atmosphere of the Campus Woudestein (there are two campuses).

My tour guide, James, started our tour at a building featuring numerous lecture halls.

I thought the colored seat backs added a little spirit to an otherwise standard classroom.

The campus features an Examination Hall building where the students sit for their major exams.

One of the more surprising features of the campus were the numerous bars.  This one was my favorite.

This bar is run by students who volunteer their services in exchange for beer.

Another "new" building houses office space for student organizations, such as this one devoted to law students.

This particular building also housed the book store, notions store (cards, Erasmus-wear, etc.), and a Hair Salon!

The campus has many, many water features.

This makes sense in a country where water is so prevalent.

I think my favorite building was the one with the theaters.  I thought the design was elegant.

The library appears small for a campus of over 20,000 students, but it is clearly well used.

 These two images seemed to offer a nice reflection on my day at Rotterdam.

 

There were quite a few images of Erasmus himself, but I think this one was my favorite.

Farewell Erasmus...until the next time.

A visit to the Jewish Quarter of Amsterdam

My new friend Femmy offered to go with me to the Jewish museum this afternoon if I could wait until she returned from church.  I had every intention of arising at a reasonable hour so that I could wander about.  My intentions, however, were not realized.

I wrote late into the night last night and then tried reading until my eyes were tired.  By the time I finally turned out the light, it was almost 2 a.m. local time.  Not an auspicious start to my sleeping hours.  My trick for falling asleep is to recite the story of Jane Eyre to myself.  I can tell how difficult my night is going to be by how far in to the story I get.  I managed to make it to the story of Mason being attacked by his sister.  That's pretty far into it.

Once I fell asleep, it was a sound sleep.  The only problem is, I didn't wake until after 11 a.m.  Yikes.

Femmy came around 1 and asked if I could give her an hour and then we'd be off, and thus we were.

We took the #14 tram (at a cost of 2,80 Euro to Waterlooplein and walked a short distance to the Jewish museum, housed in the old Great Synagogue.

I had a funky angle here--this is the Magen David.

Oh...did I mention it was raining cats and dogs?  I tried using Femmy's umbrella to compensate for my not-so-waterproof raincoat, but check out the fate of these umbrellas.

The 12 Euro ticket gave me access to this museum pictured earlier, as well as the still functioning Portuguese Synagogue across the street.  Additionally, there was a photo exhibit in the lower level featuring photographs, clothing, video and a few other artifacts from Antwerp's Chassidim.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  The photos were really interesting--check out these beauties (don't mind the flash):

The caption for this one explained that these boys were thronging the vending machine for kosher after school snacks.

The father of this family is about to swing these chickens around his head to transfer  his (and his family's?) sins to the chicken before the day of Atonement. I prefer our Tashlich service myself "wherein we symbolically cast our sins into the water and leave our old shortcomings behind us, thus starting the new year with a clean slate."

 These two photos feature children dressed for Purim.

I love the little ladybug and her brother, Napoleon.

 But I also loved the clothing display and explanation.

There was a helpful key explaining the nuanced variations in hats, wigs and coats.  I love the shtreimels (second from left in the top photo), although I can't imagine anyone I know wearing one.  The wigs, on the other hand, do not impress me.  I see them and I just think, "hot".

This exhibit also had kiosks with information and video clips from a 1990s film on the Haredi of Antwerp.

The still image above is hard to make out, but it was part of a marriage ceremony.  I have another still from that film which speaks volumes.

The rabbi on the right holds a ribbon which "connects" him to the bride.  He's dancing around and she's just standing there looking mortified.

This exhibit didn't take terribly long to peruse--probably about a half hour.  From there I headed upstairs to the Great Synagogue.

It was packed with Judaica and stories about Amsterdam's Jews.  There were numerous megillot, etc., etc.

I really loved some of the fine paintings.

There were also some modernistic pieces of home Judaica, such as this Havdalah set,

this clock

and this Seder plate.

 This grogger really caught my eye.

It means business!

The upstairs display focused on what it meant to be a Jew in the Netherlands.  Although the Jews enjoyed relative freedom to practice their religion (particularly in contrast to Spain and Portugal during the Inquisition), Jews were not permitted entry to many professions as deemed by guild practice.  Some Jews were able to thrive, but many were very, very poor--particularly the Ashkenazi from Eastern Europe.

I found this image by Rembrandt to be quite impressive.

This is Manessa ben Israel, the so-called "mouthpiece of the Jews".  His family emigrated to the Netherlands in 1604, the year of his birth.  He became a rabbi and printer.

There's much more in this exhibit.  The next room focused on the 20th century.  This display caught my attention.

This was a wall of glass cubes featuring modern images of Amsterdam's Jews.  I thought it was very engaging.

The rest of this room told the story of Dutch Jews in the 20th century.  It's often a tale of tragedy.  Before the war, there were more than 130,000 Jews living in the Netherlands.  After the war, there were only 30,000 Jews remaining. Around 25,000 Jews went in to hiding, and 18,000 survived the war.  Much of the display focused on how hard it was to rebuild their lives in the face of so many Jews having been sent to the transit camp Westerbork, and from there to the death camps of Auschwitz and Sobibor, as well as Bergen Belsen and Terezin.  Still, many of the Dutch came to the aid of their Jewish neighbors and friends and sought to provide them shelter during the war and aid after the war.  It's a complicated story.

The last part of this visit took me to the Portuguese Synagogue across the street.

Unlike the sumptuous synagogues of Prague, this one (still in use to this day) is downright austere.  There's no heating or electric lights in the synagogue proper.

Not only do you see candleabra, you also see candles in the pews.

 There's also a burning candle in the Ner Tamid (the eternal light) in the lower left of this photo.

I found a tallis (prayer shawl) in the seat of the pews.

The most surprising aspects (other than the lack of heat and electricity) were the couches by the ark (where the Torah scrolls are kept),

Special guests may sit on these couches during Simchat Torah, but that does not mean politiciams.

and this wooden chuppah (wedding canopy).

The chuppah was built by the bride's father in the 1950s.  She was a survivor of the concentration camps.  Her husband had also suffered during the war.  It must weigh a ton, literally!

The synagogue was built in 1675.  It's amazing that it is still in use.  It is surrounded by one story level apartments containing the book shop, a mourner's room, study rooms, etc.

The museum was getting ready to close by the time I crossed the street to find Femmy in the coffee shop, so we suited up and headed out to explore the rest of the quarter.

This image took me by surprise.  When I saw it, I thought, "how cute!"

Femmy asked if I knew what it meant.  Obviously, I didn't.  She informed me that this is an image which is placed on spots where great violence had occurred. 

Fortunately, we ended our evening on a much more positive note--Supper!

I recommend the Blauwberg cafe!