the daily view from Thru Other Eyes

People on Crackberry

I just returned a week ago from Laos and Cambodia which always leads to some difficult and strange feelings of cultural non-adaptation. Or as I sometimes like to call it in somewhat more popular vernacular - 'mind-fuck'. A great girlfriend of mine, who now lives in Cambodia, recently returned to the States for a home-visit and eloquently and succinctly described that strange feeling of cultural non-adaptation that I share with her:

"Traffic Jams. Sprint. Automated Answering Systems. Dressing for Dinner. Refrigerators that Beep. Everything that Beeps. People on Crackberry, no Time to Say Hi. Advertising. Complaining. Schedules. Entitlement. Belligerence. Reservations. Waste. Protocol. Hello to the Things I was not Missing."

 I especially loved 'People on Crackberry.' And lo and behold, last night I was sitting in De Jaren Cafe here in Amsterdam. I was sitting at a table with Malay friends who were all cackling away in Malay so my mind was arbitrarily wandering around. It landed on the memory of her comment 'People on Crackberry' and as I lifted my head, all around me I saw, people on crackberry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fashion Faux Pas or Not?

 September 22, 2009; Spuistraat 266, Amsterdam @ 15.20

Was running all over town today gathering some of the bits and pieces I need for my upcoming trip and I came across this fellow who didn't get the memo: "No white after Labor Day."

Headscarf Flash Mob Hits Amsterdam

 September 20, 2009; Dam Square, Amsterdam @ 17.00 - 17.05

Today as the nearby church tower sounded 5 PM, a small flash mob appeared on Dam Square to protest the €1,000 per year Muslim headscarf tax proposed this week by Geert Wilders, the leader of the Nethlerands' Freedom Party (which slowly but surely, given each subsequent initiative by Wilders,

could better be called the Dutch Supremacist Party). Wilders made his outlandish proposal during the week's annual parliamentary debate on the government's newly proposed budget for the coming fiscal year.

Happy birthday Noam

  September 1, 2009; Tweede Jan Steenstraat 1, Amsterdam @ 20.00

Today our dear friend Noam invited our 'inner circle' of friends to celebrate his birthday. Not everyone could make it and from those who could not all had arrived yet. But I didn't have my normal camera so I got this shot before the light was too dim for my cam phone.

Noam decided on a neighborhood Lebanese restaurant called Artist. None of us had been there ever and no one knew anyone who had so it was a bit of a gamble. And sometimes gambles pay off big time and tonight was one of those occasion. The food was really good, the atmosphere was cozy and warm and the couple that owns the place are really wonderful, wonderful people.

Artist is run by a husband-wife team and their son works there also. From the husband and wife, one is Lebanese Jewish and the other is Lebanese Christian. We never figured out which was which and it didn't really matter. They really made us feel like we were guests at their home enjoying that legendary Lebanese hospitality. Noam had made no prior arrangements and thought everyone would just order a la carte. Fortunately the owners had a different idea.

Knowing we were there as a small group celebrating Naom's birthday they just took control, not allowing us to even see the menus. "Don't worry," we were told, "sit back, relax and enjoy. We take care of everything."

They put down a great spread of appetizers: falafel balls that were very original in their lightness and seasoning, baba ganoush that had been perfectly roasted, tabouli with a fresh mint and tomato flavor, lebne, dolmas, Fatayer B'jibneh (mini pizza like things with feta) and Lahme B'Ajin (mini pizzas with ground lamb and pine nuts). Then came two dishes for the main course: the house specialty Riz' 'a Djej (spiced rice mixed with chicken and almonds) and grilled ground lamb meat with kibbeh (meat pie with cooked bulgar wheat, chopped mint and onions mixed into ground lamb meat). And of course the wine flowed like the head waters of the Al-Litani river.

When desert came out we were all surprised by a plate of delicious sweet baklavah with one in the middle with a candle! They played a kind of Arabic motief happy birthday tune to which Noam, never one to be shy, did his best imitation of an exotic and mysterious belly dancer.

Toon Borst - the power of loose change

  August 31, 2009; Albert Cuyp Market, Amsterdam @ 13.30

Meet Toon Borst who for the past seven years has wheeled his very recognizable foreign currency wagon through the streets of Amsterdam. Toon encourages people to turn in their left over foreign currency from vacations as a way of raising funds for charity.

The money goes in part to 't Brinkie, a children's petting zoo in Amsterdam that serves underprivileged and handicapped urban kids and their families. And a part of the money goes to a similar project in India.

In addition to foreign currency, Toon collects a lot of left-over paper and coin money from European countries that have since switched to the pan-European Euro currency. Through his network of contacts the old money is exchanged at the national banks of the European countries where the money came from.

Since people obviously don't walk around with useless old national currency or foreign currency he has gotten about forty shops around the city to participate in his campaign by being a deposit point for all these coins and paper.

Over the last three years Toon's efforts have raised over € 70,000. Toon makes it impossible to ever say, "But what can I do as one person?"

Pet peeves and anti-social behavior

 

  August 19, 2009; Cafe Zuid, Rijnstraat, Amsterdam @ 18.30

It doesn't happen very often but I had a terrible stressed day and by the evening was about to explode. So instead of taking it out on my better half I just went down to the small bar next to our apartment and had a few cold brews.

Maybe because I was a bit irritable, this fellow attracted my attention when he parked his car in exactly the right way, if you want to make sure no one else can use the space in front of you. See that 1.5 meter of unused space he is walking through? In a neighborhood with already big shortage of parking spaces, this is the kind of anti-social behavior that I can usually ignore but sometimes get peeved at. Not because I am losing a parking spot because I don't even own a car anymore. But there is something upsetting about this egoistic self-centered, what we call anti-social behavior in general that is penetrating our society. And not to generalize or jump to conclusions, but this guy kind of looked like the sort that just doesn't give a f*ck about anyone but himself and his fancy car.

After looking at the picture I thought I was making too much of it but then later that night while watching CNN's Situation Room, guess what Jack Cafferty's The Cafferty file was about: "Best way to put the brakes on bad driving?" which is of course another form of self-centered car-related anti-social behavior. So I figured I was not alone in this kind of thing being a pet peeve.

What's your pet peeves when it comes to car or road related anti-social behavior?

Hartjesdag Amsterdam 2009

  August 16, 2009; Zeedijk, Amsterdam @ 16.00 - 17.00

Today's 'photo of the day' merits an entire small album as it was 'Hartjesdag' (day of hearts) in Amsterdam which is kind of a carnival festival. The roots of this festival is unclear although most experts believe that it dates from the Middle Ages, perhaps as early as 1200 - 1300.

It may come from an old festival called 'hertjesdag' (day of the deer) which was the one day in the year that commoners were allowed to hunt, an activity traditionally reserved for royalty. On that day, people would gather in the woods hunting and holding a festival.

The other theory is that Hartjesdag was an annual costume party for commoners, also an activity traditionally only practiced by royalty. But because everyone was so poor and of course could not afford a costume, men would dress as women and women would dress as men.

It is this dress-up version of the festival that has been practiced for a couple of hundred years. Today most people think that it is just a sort of after-party for Gay Pride which is always held two weeks earlier. The festival was outlawed by the Germans in 1943 and it took until 1997 to be re-established as an initiative to rejuvenate the entertainment area of the Zeedijk in Amsterdam's Chinatown area.

See the entire album here.

The varying faces of Amsterdam's tourists

  

 August 13, 2009; The National Monument, Dam Square, Amsterdam @ 15.45

May, June and July seemed to have been quiet months this year in the city in terms of the numbers of tourists. But all of a sudden there seems to be an explosion of tourists in the city from all over West and East Europe. My good friend who works at a currency exchange says business is all of a sudden booming.

I happened to be in the center today to hook up with my currency exchange friend. While I was waiting I went to the nearby National Monument at Dam Square to see the crowds of tourists. This is one of the favorite hang-outs for tourists so I thought I would make some pictures of tourists hanging out there and on the nearby canals.

Let's literally and figuratively zoom in to see who's in the crowd? What may they be up to? What might they be thinking or saying?

(click on images to enlarge if you want)

These two were later seen involved in some heavy French kissing. That was even a bit too voyeuristic for me to take their photo then. Ah, who am I kidding, I was just too slow pulling my cam out of my bag to get a good shot of their public romantic antics.

"Yeah, I've had enough of him also. Can't we dump him or send him back home?"

Tara, Tara… What does your future hold in store?

 July 26, 2009; friend’s house, Amsterdam @ 16.20

As I was leaving, one of our friends came by with her seven month old daughter. This is our friend Oren holding Tara.

When I see a beautiful baby, and all babies are beautiful, I feel such wonderment at the magic of life. Being in the presence of such complete innocence, purity and unwritten potential is truly humbling, almost awe inspiring. I think of myself and the journey I have traveled since being just like this baby Tara. And I wonder what life has in store for this new little person.

What will be for you, Tara, the balance of nature and nurture? Will you be influenced by your Chinese birth year, the year of the Ox? What do the stars and planets of your Zodiac say , being a Capricorn? Can we divine your future in the secrets of numerology? Are we truly masters of our own free will or does each of us have a pre-destined path we perhaps unknowingly and unwittingly travel?

What kind of world are we going to leave you, Tara? How can I look at your innocent soul and feel your energy of pure love and not accept the responsibility to cherish and nurture not only you but also the world we have brought you into? It does take a community to raise a child.

Tara, may your journeys be your’s and your path one of love. May you inherit a world of equality and peace, a healthy planet still full of nature’s wonders.  May we be deserving of the gift we have been given in you, little Tara.

The Birds

July 14, 2009; Pieter Lodewijk Takstraat 33, Amsterdam @ 18.20

Had to go out for a walk before dinner (yes sometimes we get a bit irritated with each other hahaha but it passes quickly) and came across this couple feeding the pigeons, sea gulls, ducks and one heron. They were feeding them white bread which is like the worst thing for birds. Somehow, they look to me like people who go out and feed birds every day.

Shameless

July 10, 2009; WTF?! backporch, Amsterdam @ 15.30

"Man in The Looking Glass"

As you know I am not generally the subject of these photos but when I looked at this reflection I just had to do it. That's me, taking a break from housecleaning. Just finished the vacuuming which is no small feat when you're lazy and have two cats. No, not just the floor this time. Also vacuum all the upholstery, cat climbing thing and drapes. And then wash the floor also. (Still so happy we put laminate and not hard wood floors in this apartment.) Today is D-Day of the housecleaning.

Music. Shorts. Oh my god, those dark socks! So far listening to a mix of Dolly Parton and George Strait and the song that most stuck by me?

Cool man

July 4, 2009; Frederiksplein, Amsterdam @ 16.30

Between our house and the town center, a route I bike almost daily, at least once, is the small square with this fountain. The square is ringed by trees giving it a bit of a set-off feel from the street. On warm days it is apparently popular with dogs and other waders. It is a sunny square so it gets a lot of people hanging out as well on the benches and sometimes in the evening small groups enjoying some wine or other stuff. The fountain is also the occasional target of pranksters with soap liquid resulting in an incredible mass of suds covering the whole square.

All around the campfire

June 15, 2009; friend's backyard, Amsterdam @ 00.30

Our group of friends, varying between 4 - 8, generally get together for dinner on Sunday evenings. This week we were only four strong and got together at Oren's house. After a good meal, a spliff (or two) and some tequilla we decided that a nice small campfire would be cool on a chilly June evening. After our tiny initial supply of kindling burned out, we went scouring the neighborhood in search of wood like mischievous teenagers (or mildly stoned and drunk adults). We found one wooden pallet on a small construction site which we liberated in order for it to fulfill its destiny in giving light and warmth to the masses. We pretty much sat like you see here, mesmerized by the fire, until about 2.30 AM. We were amazed that none of the neighbours called the police or fire department to complain about the occasional smoke.

No where to go

May 23, 2009; in front of our apartment building, Amsterdam @ 20.50

Who is this man and why has he been sitting in my doorway for 90 minutes like a well-fed, recently-shaved homeless man with a satchel of groceries, the contents of which could suit a crazy homeless man: toilet paper, three boxes of cat snacks, one liter carton of no-brand OJ, single-serving microwaveable macaroni kind of bolognese and 1 box of kitty litter. What really is going on? I stepped out for five minutes to go to the shop across the street, closed the apartment door and realized I didn't have a key. The upstairs neighbor, who has a spare key, was of course out. My best mate who lives one street away was also of course not home. And Amie was still at work. Oh well....

Little Buddha

May 17, 2009; home, Amsterdam @ 11.15

Amie decided to shave his head last night since he was tired of all the attention and time his long hair demanded. This morning he showed up in the living room all of a sudden playing the role of a Buddhist monk asking for donations and rice - the bedspread (coincidentally yet appropriately purchased in Thailand) is doubling as his monk's garb. We had a good laugh. Luckily there was some left over rice in the kitchen for Little Buddha haha.