The end of an era

I will graduate on the 19th of Septembre 2007.

From that day on, I am Floor Schmeitz MSc (Master of Science) and MA (Master of Arts).

When travelling expect the unexpected

Yesterday night the board of Atma Mumbai had a meeting with our supervisory board. While sitting at "societeit Hermes" (headquarters of a local student association) I realized that many people at the table had interesting stories to tell.

Alexa, responsible for external relations, has just returned from a 2-month research trip in Bangladesh. She decided, after reading the Lonely Planet, to visit a museum. They opened the museum just for her, after clearing the dust and rags of spiders. The organization she worked for was afraid something would happen to her and to be on the safe side she was always accompanied by a group of locals. These locals did not speak english and made a habit of staring at her for hours while she worked. People, in general, were very friendly and warm to her though. It is just weird to work on your thesis while people are staring at you, only inches from your face.

Adrienne, founder of Atma has travelled a lot. Her passport is filled with stamps of countries like Romania, Russia, Cuba, India, Mexico etc. Just think for a second which country would not appreciate this very much???
Can you guess??
The same country that always asks whether you have ever committed a terroristic act, that makes you go trough customs for hours, even when you are only on a transfer, the country were you can never joke at customs: the US of A.
Flying to Mexico is cheaper trough the USA, but customs did not appreciate Adrienne's stamps very much. She was interrogated by two gorillas for an hour in a claustrofobic room. Much travelling has its disadvantages....

Hans, from our supervisory board worked in Africa for 2 years. The thing with travelling is that you always encounter the unexpected. Riksha drivers all of a sudden decide it is time for their break. Since power cuts are normal, laptops are easily disheveled or blown up for that matter. Government agencies are a story in itself.

The only solution is to take it as it comes. Let go of your game plan, relax and wait for things to happen. This was the lesson I learnt from visiting India. Expect the unexpected when travelling. The lesson came in handy when my plane got cancelled in Madrid and everyone was freaking out. A Spanish dude asked me where I was from and acknowledged I was the only Dutch person in line that was still calm and making jokes.
My response was simple:"I went to India and Mexico, that's life, shit happens. "
He smiled as I walked slowly to the end of the line, took out my book and started reading. That night I was on German soil, in the end it turned out fine, as it always does.

Brilliant campaign

Headlines one week ago: question marks seen on large Dutch multinational corporations.

Several offices of well-known Dutch corporations were branded with question marks. Everyone was puzzled who did this and why.

This week, a Dutch newspaper aired their new commercial: mystery solved. They are campaigning against acquisitions of Dutch companies and losing our business heritage. The question marks symbolizing which victim could be next.

Although in Dutch, the clip on YouTube shows the branded companies. I say: chapeau, brilliant PR campaign!!

Final weeks

Today my final weeks started.

In 2 weeks from now I will leave Rotterdam.
In 2 weeks, my thesis will be laying in a stack of papers at the university.
In 2 weeks, my job in investor relations is finished.
In 2 weeks, my cousin will be married.
In 2 weeks, my car will go back to my mam and dad.
In 2 weeks, my free public transport card will be terminated.
In 2 weeks, students discounts are a thing of the past.
In 2 weeks, my last salary will be deposited (for the next 2 months).

In 2 weeks, Andrez and Thomas will be back.
In 2 weeks I will live in the same city as them.
In 2 weeks, I finally have weeks of doing absolutely nothing.
In 2 weeks I will live in the city of my dreams, the city that makes me happy.

2 more weeks.....

To go or not to go

Finally graduation in September, travel in October.
Here comes the dilemma (of a very overpriviledged life I might add). I have an entire month to explore the world. But what part of the world should I go to?

I am considering India, maybe see Pruthvi and visit the Atma Mumbai projects. I also have a friend in Singapore and the flight passes trough Doha so I could visit Lonneke.
However, my parents were seriously freaking out when told this plan. Somewhere along the lines of: “u cannot go by yourself to Asia, it is not Europe” and “Oh my god, people get kidnapped in The Middle-East”. While explaining them that Mumbai and Singapore are not unsafe and Doha is not Iraq, I felt guilty though. Everyone who travels knows about worried parents. But heej, don’t my parents realize that I come from the country that is perceived by many as the Sodom and Gomorra of the earth? Amsterdam in some circles has a far worse reputation than Singapore does. Still the guilt trip worked.

I am an elementary Spanish student and I wanted to improve it for a long time now. I am pretty sure my parents would not object to me spending 3 weeks in Spain, immersing myself in Spanish culture and language. But they also speak Spanish in other parts of the world, which due to the current Dollar-Euro exchange rate is more financially attractive. I am thinking in the lines of Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Cuba, something exotic. At least then I have a host family, I won’t be alone and I can meet new people. I can hear my parents now, when I tell them…. “central America, isn’t that”…..No mom and dad, I will be fine. If anyone has tips and tricks or ideas to share, please let me know.

Work hard, party harder???

After working hard during the previous years, it seems I got my energy back and putting it to good use: I am partying harder!

Last weekend I went to a festival again. It started on friday with one hell of a preparty on the camping site (yeah, there were tents involved :-)) and ended sunday night. When I would have had the monday off, I would have stayed one more night.

The festival itself rocked, the music was awesome, the atmosphere amazing, nice people and the sun was finally out. I cannot really put the entire experience in words but I think the images say it all.

Video of one of Atma's projects

Atma Mumbai, the NGO I work for in the hours that I am free, is still making progress. We have just finished a video on one of our projects, Muktangan.

There are so many people that want to help Atma by making video's, designing brochures or create strategies. Biggest challenge is not finding people that want to help, but finding suitable assignments for them to do. It is hard writing a job description that suits a person's talents and will maximize value for both the person and the organization.

Mm, anyone with HR experience who knows how to tackle this :-)??

Extrema Housequake: wicked!!!

The last set of Extrema Outdoor 2007, as I wrote before, an amazing set!!! The crowd, as you can see from this, was just going crazy. If you listen carefully, in the beginning the VJ says: "this is another you-tube moment". Watch the video for DJ Roog and DJ Erick E, battling it out at Housequake.

Today I got a minor shock. I am used to the idea now, that friends from the old days are having children. However, today a friend that I know from my studentdays told me his girlfriend is pregnant too!!

My jaw just dropped.

I immedeately got flashbacks, thinking back of the time that I knew him. He was always together with 3 other friends and we partied a lot. I just remember so many awesome nights in cafe Bolle with lots of Apfelkorn and wine. Back then I still smoked and I was so focused on partying. It was the time that my best friend and me still asked the dj to play our song, doin it by LL Cool J, scoring drinks was a sport and going out was almost a daily activity.

I cannot believe he will be a father soon.

Different encounters with old friends.

I have always been more of male friends person. During my time at the University of Tilburg I was part of an inseparable group of friends, me and 4 guys. We went trough a lot together: growing up, one marriage, one funeral and many nights in our student houses. I have sort of lost touch with some of them. Last week however, I went to see Lennaert and we had diner together with his wife. Since they got married young, they are sometimes struggling but I was very impressed with the life they built and their relationship. They are not a dull couple but very open to both me and each other. A lovely night it was.

Last weekend I went to Leiden to see Scott, a.k.a. Douglas. We met in India and always kept in touch. Whenever he is in The Netherlands, taking a break from his prestigious but beloved Oxford university, he gives me a call. When I was visiting him in London last year, we were having breakfast across the street of the British Museum (for anyone who knows him: typical Scott spot) and I was enjoying my morning tea. Since we both love to talk, Scott however wanted to start a discussion. He convinced me some philosopher stated, 100 years back, that the politics of the Middle-East was an analogy for….honestly after this I cannot remember the conversation. Babbling in his own world, using political theories that I never heard of, convincing me he was right. That is Scott though.

Since he already gave me the Leiden guided tour once (involuntarily by the way, but oh my god, he is like a walking, talking tourist book), he reduced his comments to a couple random remarks (did u know this building was built….yes Scott, u told me). We took a table at a restaurant next to a canal. I asked the waiter a random question, while Scott explained to him that I was an ignorant student, while wearing an AIESEC sweater sponsored by 5 different companies and a short-sleeved pants, funny. It was very good talking to him again though. Since Harry Potter is a shared passion of ours, we went to see the new movie after. It ended at the station, with Scott contemplating the question what fundamental things had changed in the last decades. Evoked by Harry, he was mesmerizing the good and the evil in this world. God, I will miss him when he goes back.

Laugh about it

I can laugh about it,
I'd better try to laugh.
I can cry about it.
You'll never see me cry
I should ignore the words you say.
they can hurt,
but won't kill me
They can hurt but won't kill me.