Hello,
If you're reading this journal, I'm glad you think I've got something interesting to say. As you can see, this trip lasted a little over a week, and was jam packed with activities. All the text of my adventures and reflections has been posted here - as time permits, I am going back through and including pictures to go along with my story. Please be patient and check back often, and soon enough the entire story will be complete! Days 1-4 are currently documented with pictures, the rest of the trip is quickly catching up!
Namaste,
Amy
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Day 9: Tying it all Together
We are down to the last and final day of academic study and contemplation. For this special occasion, we have scheduled a visit at Amsterdam City Hall with two city council members: Maarten Van der Meer and Hetti Willemse. These two are from 2 different political parties, but are similar enough in some interests that the city council members had worked in coalitions between their two parties in the past.
I was really glad of the timing of this visit, as we have had many different perspectives on a variety of issues over the course of the trip. From academics, government officials, laypersons and volunteers, to professionals and self declared experts, everyone had different opinions about the state of affairs and the best way to solve the current problems and strategically place Amsterdam to maximize on future growth opportunities. One such example of an issue that received much consideration was the alleged attempt of the City Council to shut down Prostitution in the Red Light District. When asked about this issue, Maarten commented that the City Council is aware of the existence of the area, and its activities over the last couple hundred years. One thing that he mentioned that others had not was that the actual amount of prostitution had increased at levels unseen in the past. Hetti also commented that the City Council was concerned about the exploitation of women coming in off the trains, the crime and money laundering, and that these issues rose at the same rate the prostitution had over the last several decades. While I don’t agree with their approach of “guilty until proven innocent” that Bette explained during our PIC tour, she was seen as slightly exaggerated and biased when you compared her comments to those of every other speaker who were not so closely affiliated with the Red Light District. Being able to see these biases is crucial in being able to collect the information on issues and really be able to sort through to see what the true issues at the end of the day are, having been removed from the filter of bias as much as possible.
Another issue that was discussed was the shortage of housing, and a little bit of how the market structure is designed in Amsterdam. While we were all pretty informed that there is indeed a housing shortage in Amsterdam, it wasn’t until this meeting that the issues of housing affordability in terms of paycheck dollars towards rent or a mortgage became harder numbers for consideration.
I personally felt the most interesting part of this meeting was listening and watching the interaction of these two council members from different parties. When I asked how the 2 parties would differ on an issue they could provide an example of, it really showed us a lot about how each party viewed itself, and how it viewed itself when compared to the other party. The issue of social support and advocacy being a necessary ingredient of public policy and the cost of strong guidelines of personal privacy showed that even though Amsterdam is light years ahead of the United States in providing tolerance and freedoms to their citizens, it does not happen without debate and dissention about what exactly are the right steps to take. That being said, we were told that the most conservative members in the Amsterdam City Council have been heard saying they supported Barack Obama, a United States Democratic (liberal, in our view) candidate. This just goes to show how much perspective matters in your classification in a political ranking structure.
There is something that constantly amazes me about modern day American culture. We generally, as a whole, are not very good at giving names to things that can specify more than one level of meaning. My first experience with this was with Greek language having more than 1 word for love, to express different relationships and intentions. Reading through The Fine Art of Prostitution, I felt the most important thing I walked away from was the separation and actual definitions being used by the Dutch culture to explain their attitudes towards prostitution, but also showing they are still human and not as perfect as sometimes I have felt Amsterdam and the Netherlands in general has been portrayed. In American culture, we see so much as black and white. Because the Dutch culture does not outright legalize, and by Brant’s definition “prostitution is seen as regular labor, governed by the market forces. Neither being a prostitute nor earning money from prostitution in any other way is criminal, and it is subject only to such rules as derive from labor law and other statutes”. However, the U.S. culture in general would very quick make that definition synonymous to regulation, where “prostitution is accepted as social fact and strictly regulated by law, in order to protect not prostitutes, but the public from any adverse effects… including registration and mandatory medical inspections.”
As we keep reading about a lot of things we would consider radical in the US, I keep coming back to this prostitution article. Even though it primarily focused and made an example of prostitution, it has been one of the most eye opening texts we have had, especially at laying out and depicting the Dutch mentality and approach to their social and regulation issues in general. These attitudes were evident in the treatment towards the coffee shops and drug addicts as we saw in the film. Above all, I really felt the mental paradigm shift that I think is really necessary to not only appreciate the differences, but embrace how successful they have been at making Dutch policy work for its people and their ideals. Their end goal is the same: to have a productive, healthy, functioning society that is proud to call the Netherlands their home. I think they have finally figured out that humans will be humans, and that as history has shown us, attempts to change the core fabric of our instincts and interests will prove futile. Imposing morality clauses within law almost invariable soon follows any large exposure or awareness to less than ideal human behavior. I noticed this in a text from another course that talked about attitudes in the public housing slums of London in the 1800s, and later Chicago and New York. Jane Addams and her Hull houses in Chicago received attention because they were at the time the only real parties to be seen to actively interact with these populations. However, as in the Hull case, the impression of Christianity as the solution to the attitudes in the slums had little, arguably no true long lasting effect on changing how people approached a less than desirable issue from an intellectual and mental capacity. If we don’t change the parameters in which we operate, we will forever go around in circles coming up with the same failing “solutions”, that are never really having a good firm grasp of what needs to be included in the solution equation.
I was really glad of the timing of this visit, as we have had many different perspectives on a variety of issues over the course of the trip. From academics, government officials, laypersons and volunteers, to professionals and self declared experts, everyone had different opinions about the state of affairs and the best way to solve the current problems and strategically place Amsterdam to maximize on future growth opportunities. One such example of an issue that received much consideration was the alleged attempt of the City Council to shut down Prostitution in the Red Light District. When asked about this issue, Maarten commented that the City Council is aware of the existence of the area, and its activities over the last couple hundred years. One thing that he mentioned that others had not was that the actual amount of prostitution had increased at levels unseen in the past. Hetti also commented that the City Council was concerned about the exploitation of women coming in off the trains, the crime and money laundering, and that these issues rose at the same rate the prostitution had over the last several decades. While I don’t agree with their approach of “guilty until proven innocent” that Bette explained during our PIC tour, she was seen as slightly exaggerated and biased when you compared her comments to those of every other speaker who were not so closely affiliated with the Red Light District. Being able to see these biases is crucial in being able to collect the information on issues and really be able to sort through to see what the true issues at the end of the day are, having been removed from the filter of bias as much as possible.
Another issue that was discussed was the shortage of housing, and a little bit of how the market structure is designed in Amsterdam. While we were all pretty informed that there is indeed a housing shortage in Amsterdam, it wasn’t until this meeting that the issues of housing affordability in terms of paycheck dollars towards rent or a mortgage became harder numbers for consideration.
I personally felt the most interesting part of this meeting was listening and watching the interaction of these two council members from different parties. When I asked how the 2 parties would differ on an issue they could provide an example of, it really showed us a lot about how each party viewed itself, and how it viewed itself when compared to the other party. The issue of social support and advocacy being a necessary ingredient of public policy and the cost of strong guidelines of personal privacy showed that even though Amsterdam is light years ahead of the United States in providing tolerance and freedoms to their citizens, it does not happen without debate and dissention about what exactly are the right steps to take. That being said, we were told that the most conservative members in the Amsterdam City Council have been heard saying they supported Barack Obama, a United States Democratic (liberal, in our view) candidate. This just goes to show how much perspective matters in your classification in a political ranking structure.
There is something that constantly amazes me about modern day American culture. We generally, as a whole, are not very good at giving names to things that can specify more than one level of meaning. My first experience with this was with Greek language having more than 1 word for love, to express different relationships and intentions. Reading through The Fine Art of Prostitution, I felt the most important thing I walked away from was the separation and actual definitions being used by the Dutch culture to explain their attitudes towards prostitution, but also showing they are still human and not as perfect as sometimes I have felt Amsterdam and the Netherlands in general has been portrayed. In American culture, we see so much as black and white. Because the Dutch culture does not outright legalize, and by Brant’s definition “prostitution is seen as regular labor, governed by the market forces. Neither being a prostitute nor earning money from prostitution in any other way is criminal, and it is subject only to such rules as derive from labor law and other statutes”. However, the U.S. culture in general would very quick make that definition synonymous to regulation, where “prostitution is accepted as social fact and strictly regulated by law, in order to protect not prostitutes, but the public from any adverse effects… including registration and mandatory medical inspections.”
As we keep reading about a lot of things we would consider radical in the US, I keep coming back to this prostitution article. Even though it primarily focused and made an example of prostitution, it has been one of the most eye opening texts we have had, especially at laying out and depicting the Dutch mentality and approach to their social and regulation issues in general. These attitudes were evident in the treatment towards the coffee shops and drug addicts as we saw in the film. Above all, I really felt the mental paradigm shift that I think is really necessary to not only appreciate the differences, but embrace how successful they have been at making Dutch policy work for its people and their ideals. Their end goal is the same: to have a productive, healthy, functioning society that is proud to call the Netherlands their home. I think they have finally figured out that humans will be humans, and that as history has shown us, attempts to change the core fabric of our instincts and interests will prove futile. Imposing morality clauses within law almost invariable soon follows any large exposure or awareness to less than ideal human behavior. I noticed this in a text from another course that talked about attitudes in the public housing slums of London in the 1800s, and later Chicago and New York. Jane Addams and her Hull houses in Chicago received attention because they were at the time the only real parties to be seen to actively interact with these populations. However, as in the Hull case, the impression of Christianity as the solution to the attitudes in the slums had little, arguably no true long lasting effect on changing how people approached a less than desirable issue from an intellectual and mental capacity. If we don’t change the parameters in which we operate, we will forever go around in circles coming up with the same failing “solutions”, that are never really having a good firm grasp of what needs to be included in the solution equation.
Day 8: Something Old... into New
In all of our previous explorations and talks, we had been focusing mostly on the Dam Square area and eastward, going towards Nieuwmarket and Centraal Station. This day, we were met at our hotel by Pieter Rings, who is a former student of Leon Deben, and a strong fan of the older architectural styles of Amsterdam. We started our tour by getting off of the tram at Dam Square, and heading west. One of our first stops was the University of Amsterdam language center, where people came to learn Dutch and any other languages that were offered. I was struck by the openness of the building, and this is something that Pieter also commented on. The rooms all had window walls, allowing you to see in and out. The walls were also curved, and in the space between the curves and the main hallways, the staircases going down to the lower floors fit very well into the created space, giving functional needs a crucial role within the design structure and ambience. From the top floor, we were able to look out at the city, and see that the sky line was relatively low, with the church steeples being the building most often peeking up higher from the surrounding rooftops.
Walking past the Anne Frank Huis, we crossed the Westerpark square into Jordaan, which used to be the working class neighborhood in earlier times of Amsterdam. There was a very large variety of eclectic shops, a better mix of residential/commercial needs in the sense of grocery market and other daily essentials. Dr. G pointed out the row of houses that held the place he had called home during his last trip to Amsterdam in October. In this area, we were also able to venture upstairs inside a canal house that was undergoing renovation. In this third floor apartment, there were windows overlooking the former cemetery now turned children’s playground, as well as a modest living room, kitchen area, and a main bedroom. The rooms seemed relatively spacious with the construction, but envisioning the place filled with furniture, it was easy to see how quickly the space would begin to feel much smaller. Incidentally, Pieter pointed out across the street the building which housed the apartment that Brad Pitt had purchased in Amsterdam some years ago. We had a small quasi discussion about the approach toward celebrities in the United States compared to Amsterdam, and I would have to agree with his sentiment that Amsterdam is much more respectful of a celebrity’s right to privacy and a chance to live a relatively normal life, unbothered by fans asking for autographs or Dutch paparazzi snapping pictures as they try doing their day to day errands. I still wouldn’t go quite as far to say the Dutch are completely immune to the celebrity clothes and perfume lines, because they still have perfume stores here that bear the names of Liz Taylor, among others.
We were able to get a peak into several semi private courtyards, including one that was for an area previously owned by the church and used for the housing of widows, making it cheaper for the church to provide for them by housing them together. Though spring had not reached full bloom yet, these areas were starting to show their potential, and it was obvious these areas were cherished and very well maintained. One courtyard area was even allowing the residence of a homeless person, with cardboard and a ratty blanket being left underneath the group mailboxes. There was a very distinct feel in the neighborhoods that had private inner courtyards. It was easy to forget that just on the other side of the building was a street with foot and bicycle traffic, and that you were just blocks away from busier car traveled streets as well. The sunlight seemed to warm up the area as the buildings all reflected the heat into the central garden square. If nothing else, having a place to leave a mark of care and beauty in your place and green spaces, the air even smelled fresher inside the courtyard than without. The necessity of these areas is even more evident when you look at the size of the space inside these homes – one area was very small, mostly single students, and the other had more elderly residents walking about; something where you can see that in order to make the smaller indoor spaces bearable, there needed to be a balance with more freely available and pleasing outdoor spaces for a respite.
Going ever further west, we also walked through an area that according to Pieter had been one of the lower income, slum type neighborhood back in the 80s. To my eye though, I thought that the definition of ghetto to Americans and Dutch has some variance, because in the U.S. we take ghetto to mean permanently condemned in all practical sense of the word, and yet this Dutch neighborhood did not appear to be an eyesore as we were walking through it. Instead of resigning a neighborhood to an eternally dismal state, the City stepped in and started to make improvements before the neighborhood ever reached that point. While it was true that we were probably the only tourists that the folk on the street saw this year, the streets still had some of the charm of Amsterdam central.
Coming out of this area, we then crossed into the Westergasfabriek Culture Park, sitting in an area that was formerly an industrial site for the West Gas Factory of Amsterdam. This area has become the public meeting and open space for the surrounding neighborhoods, all of who do not have the luxury of abundant green spaces in front of their home. The first thing that struck me as we entered the park was that I could have completely been unaware of its former status as a gas factory if I had not been informed beforehand. The historical brick buildings had been given new functions so seamlessly, it is very feasibly to believe all the historical pieces were intentionally planned into the design of the park. The café we had some coffee in was great for exposure to the inner workings, and our first reminder that these buildings had uses far less leisurely 100 years ago. Reading through the clean up efforts of the Westergasfabriek, it makes me wonder if the chemicals that we are producing in lots of production efforts today are as toxic or moreso than the things such as gas. This would be something interesting to look into, for if westergasfabriek is as bad as they come in terms of reutilization of a brownfield space, then there leaves no excuse for the United States to not take up the same efforts with areas here. A perfect example of this issue that comes to my mind is the Kodak business parks that were a few miles away from where I lived in Rochester, NY. New building initiatives have been limited due to the amount of toxic residue leftover from the film and other chemical processing. If the dangers we are creating for ourselves are far worse than the natural byproducts in Westergasfabriek, we will have to find some other way to truly maximize our exisiting infrastructures, and cut down on the attitude that suburban sprawl and new buildings are the only way to provide new business areas.
Before getting on the bus to head back in the direction of Central Station and the public library, we had a chance to look at the Amsterdamse school, a building project that was aimed to build housing for workers that reminded them of waves and palaces. The top turret structures had wavy brickwork to invoke the sense of ocean waves, and smaller cabin port windows for the ship style feel. I was very impressed with the quality of the brickwork in this building, including the front gargoyle type lionhead at the front of the building that was made entirely out of brick, much in the same way that each ship would have a mermaid, woman, or animal at its front bow.
From Central Station, we got a chance to take a look inside a hotel that was being renovated. I loved the strong architecture and glass inside this place. Next and last stop was the Public Library, from the bottom floor to the top. Walking inside, you are greated with a massive open space 8 stories high. To the right is a piano available for the fingers of trained musicians to delight the ears, and to the left a large curved workstation that housed probably 20-30 computers with internet access for visitors. This library is nothing like the stuffy, traditional libraries of the United States. This is a place to talk, make noise, share ideas, hang out, and enjoy the space. Coming out of the elevator at the 5th floor, you become aware of the mixed uses of this space, from research to additional semi private meeting rooms for presentations and lectures. Towards the final floor, there is even a café with food and beverages – this library is definitely not one to scold you for consuming food or drink while you are inside the library!
Stepping outside on the balcony, you had one of the best views of Amsterdam that I have seen so far. Because the library is situation on the River to the East of Central Station, it is able to view the entire main city to the south, at least from our vantage point. There were balconies on all 4 sides of the building, but due to time constraints of our speaker, we just visited the one. Lucky for me, Pieter was leaving our group and taking the train in the direction of Amersfoort, the area which is home to Nieuwland, my focus for research. Pieter helped me to get a train ticket, and guided me onto the right train for the trip. While he got off a few stops before Amersfoort, I felt much more comfortable with my adventure knowing at least I was off to the right start.
Getting off in Amersfoort, I was reminded how much I am exhilarated by new experiences, despite their difficulties. I had looked at a few maps beforehand, including one that Frans Dubbeldam from our Zuiderkerk presentation had demonstrated for me. I knew the general direction I wanted to go and where I should end up. Lucky for me, the metro bus that would take me there was the “Nieuwland” #2 Bus. Bingo! That took the guesswork out of that for the most part. I got on and paid the 1 euro boarding fee – once we had been on the road for about 10 mins, we turned into the Nieuwland development, and I got off at the first stop after seeing the PV panels start to appear. The first thing that struck me about this community was the care that was paid to the layout and integration of vehicles, pedestrians, cycles, and the metro system. Looking at the bus route layouts, you see that the Nieuwland route does a loop within nieuwland, and then takes you back to Central Station. I really liked this concept, because Nieuwland is designed in a larger circled that encompasses the bus route, making this form of transportation very accessible for anyone living in the community. There are bike only dedicated lanes that make getting to your home much faster by bike or on foot than by automobile, and I felt extremely safe walking around the neighborhood. Because of the time of day I was there, I didn’t really see anyone out and about that I would be able to interview and ask some questions about their experiences in the community and make some clarification about the different things I was seeing on the roofs and in the design structure that might be purposeful but not obvious to the untrained eye. So, I resolved to come back on the last day of the trip in an effort to collect some interviews and learn more about the projects from the people who are experiencing their effects day in and day out.
I gave my reading presentation on Green Urbanism, and I was sorry to have to see the class discussion end after finally getting off the ground. It was easy to see that the environmental factors are really one of the major interests at the heart of Urban Planning for me, and I hope that helped make my presentation more impactful. Like I said in the presentation, while it is true that the United States is behind the game when it comes to energy conservation and green building, and while I don’t condone using our young history and suburban differences as an excuse to NOT make the change to more environmentally friendly living, there are definitely a lot more considerations to be made, as significant changes in the way of life would be seen here compared to the more pedestrian friendly history of Europe. While Europe has also seen an increase in car usage, their foundational infrastructure of train, public transit, and “amenities in 10 min walk” approach means that it is not truly necessary for every trip out of the home to be taken by car. With a country that has a relatively old road structure, these features were already in place back when the automobile was not even in existence, and the public transportation was the only other option short of walking or using horses.
I gave the example of suburban Phoenix neighborhoods, which encompass 98% of the building in the metropolitan Phoenix area. Other than maybe 10 blocks near Arizona State University in downtown Tempe, and another 10 blocks in Downtown Phoenix, there is very little that is easily accessible in a 10-minute walk. Add to that the lack of attractive interactive landscape – who would want to spend 30 minutes walking past a cinderblock wall next to traffic moving 45 mph? It’s not an aesthetically appealing place to go, and especially in Arizona, consideration of extreme heat also cannot go unsaid.
Something else the articles on the idea of Creative Class and Amsterdam having a heightened sense of awareness, I think part of the reason there is such a rift between the United States and the European countries is our water and land boundaries. The sheer size of the United States encompasses several of the generally smaller European countries, who also have land borders for the most part – the coast countries still have an average of 50% land border. These bordering countries are all relatively economically stable, whereas the United States is bordered by Mexico to the south, and Canada’s population is generally centralized into a few major cities across the north land. With the economic disparity to Mexico that is so evident in the border towns, as well as Mexico as a whole, it is easy to get a superior country complex that does not factor in our impacts on other countries when we make the majority of our decisions. We are also not as aware of what is going on in other countries, because it usually has minimal impact on us. This removal of interest makes it harder to take inspiration at the beginning stages, or work in concert with other countries with the same goals. In Europe, the cost of green building is more likely to be streamlined since it has been a practice for a longer period of time, and with the many countries nearby, there is a solid interest in this market. In contrast, it is mostly the US and Canada who would be purchasing and investing in these technologies, and we are just simply too far behind the curve at the moment for the economic start up cost to be feasibly attractive to the general public. The only way this will step up is the partnership of government and private enterprise to get this marketing growing and able to provide for the interested market. Private funding and entrepreneurship will take off in the government can provide the incentives that make this type of investment profitable – and this is where we see the greatest disparity between the European nations and the United States. We have not made it a priority like it is overseas, and has been for the last 20 years. The majority of initial, interest and informing projects could not have gotten off the ground without government tax incentives, subsidies, or both. As a result of projects like Ecolonia, they are actively experimenting and educating their public about these benefits, and the interest is now providing the profit attainability the investors need to make this market sustainable for the long-term future.
Walking past the Anne Frank Huis, we crossed the Westerpark square into Jordaan, which used to be the working class neighborhood in earlier times of Amsterdam. There was a very large variety of eclectic shops, a better mix of residential/commercial needs in the sense of grocery market and other daily essentials. Dr. G pointed out the row of houses that held the place he had called home during his last trip to Amsterdam in October. In this area, we were also able to venture upstairs inside a canal house that was undergoing renovation. In this third floor apartment, there were windows overlooking the former cemetery now turned children’s playground, as well as a modest living room, kitchen area, and a main bedroom. The rooms seemed relatively spacious with the construction, but envisioning the place filled with furniture, it was easy to see how quickly the space would begin to feel much smaller. Incidentally, Pieter pointed out across the street the building which housed the apartment that Brad Pitt had purchased in Amsterdam some years ago. We had a small quasi discussion about the approach toward celebrities in the United States compared to Amsterdam, and I would have to agree with his sentiment that Amsterdam is much more respectful of a celebrity’s right to privacy and a chance to live a relatively normal life, unbothered by fans asking for autographs or Dutch paparazzi snapping pictures as they try doing their day to day errands. I still wouldn’t go quite as far to say the Dutch are completely immune to the celebrity clothes and perfume lines, because they still have perfume stores here that bear the names of Liz Taylor, among others.
We were able to get a peak into several semi private courtyards, including one that was for an area previously owned by the church and used for the housing of widows, making it cheaper for the church to provide for them by housing them together. Though spring had not reached full bloom yet, these areas were starting to show their potential, and it was obvious these areas were cherished and very well maintained. One courtyard area was even allowing the residence of a homeless person, with cardboard and a ratty blanket being left underneath the group mailboxes. There was a very distinct feel in the neighborhoods that had private inner courtyards. It was easy to forget that just on the other side of the building was a street with foot and bicycle traffic, and that you were just blocks away from busier car traveled streets as well. The sunlight seemed to warm up the area as the buildings all reflected the heat into the central garden square. If nothing else, having a place to leave a mark of care and beauty in your place and green spaces, the air even smelled fresher inside the courtyard than without. The necessity of these areas is even more evident when you look at the size of the space inside these homes – one area was very small, mostly single students, and the other had more elderly residents walking about; something where you can see that in order to make the smaller indoor spaces bearable, there needed to be a balance with more freely available and pleasing outdoor spaces for a respite.
Going ever further west, we also walked through an area that according to Pieter had been one of the lower income, slum type neighborhood back in the 80s. To my eye though, I thought that the definition of ghetto to Americans and Dutch has some variance, because in the U.S. we take ghetto to mean permanently condemned in all practical sense of the word, and yet this Dutch neighborhood did not appear to be an eyesore as we were walking through it. Instead of resigning a neighborhood to an eternally dismal state, the City stepped in and started to make improvements before the neighborhood ever reached that point. While it was true that we were probably the only tourists that the folk on the street saw this year, the streets still had some of the charm of Amsterdam central.
Coming out of this area, we then crossed into the Westergasfabriek Culture Park, sitting in an area that was formerly an industrial site for the West Gas Factory of Amsterdam. This area has become the public meeting and open space for the surrounding neighborhoods, all of who do not have the luxury of abundant green spaces in front of their home. The first thing that struck me as we entered the park was that I could have completely been unaware of its former status as a gas factory if I had not been informed beforehand. The historical brick buildings had been given new functions so seamlessly, it is very feasibly to believe all the historical pieces were intentionally planned into the design of the park. The café we had some coffee in was great for exposure to the inner workings, and our first reminder that these buildings had uses far less leisurely 100 years ago. Reading through the clean up efforts of the Westergasfabriek, it makes me wonder if the chemicals that we are producing in lots of production efforts today are as toxic or moreso than the things such as gas. This would be something interesting to look into, for if westergasfabriek is as bad as they come in terms of reutilization of a brownfield space, then there leaves no excuse for the United States to not take up the same efforts with areas here. A perfect example of this issue that comes to my mind is the Kodak business parks that were a few miles away from where I lived in Rochester, NY. New building initiatives have been limited due to the amount of toxic residue leftover from the film and other chemical processing. If the dangers we are creating for ourselves are far worse than the natural byproducts in Westergasfabriek, we will have to find some other way to truly maximize our exisiting infrastructures, and cut down on the attitude that suburban sprawl and new buildings are the only way to provide new business areas.
Before getting on the bus to head back in the direction of Central Station and the public library, we had a chance to look at the Amsterdamse school, a building project that was aimed to build housing for workers that reminded them of waves and palaces. The top turret structures had wavy brickwork to invoke the sense of ocean waves, and smaller cabin port windows for the ship style feel. I was very impressed with the quality of the brickwork in this building, including the front gargoyle type lionhead at the front of the building that was made entirely out of brick, much in the same way that each ship would have a mermaid, woman, or animal at its front bow.
From Central Station, we got a chance to take a look inside a hotel that was being renovated. I loved the strong architecture and glass inside this place. Next and last stop was the Public Library, from the bottom floor to the top. Walking inside, you are greated with a massive open space 8 stories high. To the right is a piano available for the fingers of trained musicians to delight the ears, and to the left a large curved workstation that housed probably 20-30 computers with internet access for visitors. This library is nothing like the stuffy, traditional libraries of the United States. This is a place to talk, make noise, share ideas, hang out, and enjoy the space. Coming out of the elevator at the 5th floor, you become aware of the mixed uses of this space, from research to additional semi private meeting rooms for presentations and lectures. Towards the final floor, there is even a café with food and beverages – this library is definitely not one to scold you for consuming food or drink while you are inside the library!
Stepping outside on the balcony, you had one of the best views of Amsterdam that I have seen so far. Because the library is situation on the River to the East of Central Station, it is able to view the entire main city to the south, at least from our vantage point. There were balconies on all 4 sides of the building, but due to time constraints of our speaker, we just visited the one. Lucky for me, Pieter was leaving our group and taking the train in the direction of Amersfoort, the area which is home to Nieuwland, my focus for research. Pieter helped me to get a train ticket, and guided me onto the right train for the trip. While he got off a few stops before Amersfoort, I felt much more comfortable with my adventure knowing at least I was off to the right start.
Getting off in Amersfoort, I was reminded how much I am exhilarated by new experiences, despite their difficulties. I had looked at a few maps beforehand, including one that Frans Dubbeldam from our Zuiderkerk presentation had demonstrated for me. I knew the general direction I wanted to go and where I should end up. Lucky for me, the metro bus that would take me there was the “Nieuwland” #2 Bus. Bingo! That took the guesswork out of that for the most part. I got on and paid the 1 euro boarding fee – once we had been on the road for about 10 mins, we turned into the Nieuwland development, and I got off at the first stop after seeing the PV panels start to appear. The first thing that struck me about this community was the care that was paid to the layout and integration of vehicles, pedestrians, cycles, and the metro system. Looking at the bus route layouts, you see that the Nieuwland route does a loop within nieuwland, and then takes you back to Central Station. I really liked this concept, because Nieuwland is designed in a larger circled that encompasses the bus route, making this form of transportation very accessible for anyone living in the community. There are bike only dedicated lanes that make getting to your home much faster by bike or on foot than by automobile, and I felt extremely safe walking around the neighborhood. Because of the time of day I was there, I didn’t really see anyone out and about that I would be able to interview and ask some questions about their experiences in the community and make some clarification about the different things I was seeing on the roofs and in the design structure that might be purposeful but not obvious to the untrained eye. So, I resolved to come back on the last day of the trip in an effort to collect some interviews and learn more about the projects from the people who are experiencing their effects day in and day out.
I gave my reading presentation on Green Urbanism, and I was sorry to have to see the class discussion end after finally getting off the ground. It was easy to see that the environmental factors are really one of the major interests at the heart of Urban Planning for me, and I hope that helped make my presentation more impactful. Like I said in the presentation, while it is true that the United States is behind the game when it comes to energy conservation and green building, and while I don’t condone using our young history and suburban differences as an excuse to NOT make the change to more environmentally friendly living, there are definitely a lot more considerations to be made, as significant changes in the way of life would be seen here compared to the more pedestrian friendly history of Europe. While Europe has also seen an increase in car usage, their foundational infrastructure of train, public transit, and “amenities in 10 min walk” approach means that it is not truly necessary for every trip out of the home to be taken by car. With a country that has a relatively old road structure, these features were already in place back when the automobile was not even in existence, and the public transportation was the only other option short of walking or using horses.
I gave the example of suburban Phoenix neighborhoods, which encompass 98% of the building in the metropolitan Phoenix area. Other than maybe 10 blocks near Arizona State University in downtown Tempe, and another 10 blocks in Downtown Phoenix, there is very little that is easily accessible in a 10-minute walk. Add to that the lack of attractive interactive landscape – who would want to spend 30 minutes walking past a cinderblock wall next to traffic moving 45 mph? It’s not an aesthetically appealing place to go, and especially in Arizona, consideration of extreme heat also cannot go unsaid.
Something else the articles on the idea of Creative Class and Amsterdam having a heightened sense of awareness, I think part of the reason there is such a rift between the United States and the European countries is our water and land boundaries. The sheer size of the United States encompasses several of the generally smaller European countries, who also have land borders for the most part – the coast countries still have an average of 50% land border. These bordering countries are all relatively economically stable, whereas the United States is bordered by Mexico to the south, and Canada’s population is generally centralized into a few major cities across the north land. With the economic disparity to Mexico that is so evident in the border towns, as well as Mexico as a whole, it is easy to get a superior country complex that does not factor in our impacts on other countries when we make the majority of our decisions. We are also not as aware of what is going on in other countries, because it usually has minimal impact on us. This removal of interest makes it harder to take inspiration at the beginning stages, or work in concert with other countries with the same goals. In Europe, the cost of green building is more likely to be streamlined since it has been a practice for a longer period of time, and with the many countries nearby, there is a solid interest in this market. In contrast, it is mostly the US and Canada who would be purchasing and investing in these technologies, and we are just simply too far behind the curve at the moment for the economic start up cost to be feasibly attractive to the general public. The only way this will step up is the partnership of government and private enterprise to get this marketing growing and able to provide for the interested market. Private funding and entrepreneurship will take off in the government can provide the incentives that make this type of investment profitable – and this is where we see the greatest disparity between the European nations and the United States. We have not made it a priority like it is overseas, and has been for the last 20 years. The majority of initial, interest and informing projects could not have gotten off the ground without government tax incentives, subsidies, or both. As a result of projects like Ecolonia, they are actively experimenting and educating their public about these benefits, and the interest is now providing the profit attainability the investors need to make this market sustainable for the long-term future.
Day 7: Epiphany
History has shown that collaboration of information breeds innovation, and innovation is what keeps a city full of creative solutions to its physical, social, and economical problems. Collaboration with the University of Amsterdam via lectures with Dr. Leon Deben was essential to get an academic perspective.
The first time I started reading through Understanding Amsterdam, Dr. Deben’s book, I had a hard time getting into the essays. I picked up a second time a few days later, and WOW! I don’t know if it was because of all the different readings coming together, or that I’m being more exposed to the planning field and have more ongoing mental dialogues going through my head, especially with my planning theory class and the 50 or so articles that we are covering as part of the class.
My first interest was that someone finally was able to point out how often times words are grossly misused, and there is no concrete meaning. I was glad to see that admission, and an offered definition of global economy. I mostly agreed with the points that it is possible for a global economy to exist, but not necessarily encompass each and every country entity. The biggest point is the interdependence and influence that other countries and nations now have on each other, to a tremendous scale. There is no secret that the telecommunication age is helping to encourage this dependency and growth. There was an argument that the information age is having the same revolutionary impact as the Golden Age, or the Industrial revolution in terms of massive changes to the urban scene, and I absolutely agree. The ability to share ideas, and connect with people all over the globe makes it harder to stay ignorant of other cultures and ways of life.
Having traveled to Europe, I usually do not just freely give out my status of American, if at all possible. In my personal experience, many times Americans have given a bad reputation. Inconsiderate American tourists to Europe undoubtedly help to fuel this perception. This bad rep is also evident when American culture is blamed for invading Europe and causing corruption and vileness in European culture. It was refreshing to see an academic reference that there is a fundamental difference in our history, based in the roots - the example of the cowboy and Indian story, where there are just a few generalized figures, and not the breadth of history that makes up European culture. This is also reflected in the comment that American culture has from the beginning been focused on the working class and lower interests and desires, and thus we find jazz and country music have origins here, and not in European countries.
One thing I found interesting were conflicting theories about what drives people to central downtown areas compared to the suburbs. Dr. Gilderbloom had a theory that gays were more driven to the downtown areas, while lesbian were more suburban drawn, partly due to pay differences, but that the female were still entrenched in the theory of the home and being domestic. Understanding Amsterdam had an article that theorized that location was partially dependent on how much women played a role in the household. If it the family had a more matriarchal household, it would drawn to downtown areas for its proximity to jobs and urban services, triggering gentrification. The more patriarchal the family is, it would be more drawn to the suburban neighborhoods to raise children, all economic circumstances being equal. I found this contrast fascinating, and it showed that there is no real right or wrong about some theories - some can be proven right at a certain time, and then 10 years later they may be obsolete. Or, some may be an accurate representation for some groups of city residents, but not all those in other cities, as the geographic experience can vary so widely, especially in the United States.
The first time I started reading through Understanding Amsterdam, Dr. Deben’s book, I had a hard time getting into the essays. I picked up a second time a few days later, and WOW! I don’t know if it was because of all the different readings coming together, or that I’m being more exposed to the planning field and have more ongoing mental dialogues going through my head, especially with my planning theory class and the 50 or so articles that we are covering as part of the class.
My first interest was that someone finally was able to point out how often times words are grossly misused, and there is no concrete meaning. I was glad to see that admission, and an offered definition of global economy. I mostly agreed with the points that it is possible for a global economy to exist, but not necessarily encompass each and every country entity. The biggest point is the interdependence and influence that other countries and nations now have on each other, to a tremendous scale. There is no secret that the telecommunication age is helping to encourage this dependency and growth. There was an argument that the information age is having the same revolutionary impact as the Golden Age, or the Industrial revolution in terms of massive changes to the urban scene, and I absolutely agree. The ability to share ideas, and connect with people all over the globe makes it harder to stay ignorant of other cultures and ways of life.
Having traveled to Europe, I usually do not just freely give out my status of American, if at all possible. In my personal experience, many times Americans have given a bad reputation. Inconsiderate American tourists to Europe undoubtedly help to fuel this perception. This bad rep is also evident when American culture is blamed for invading Europe and causing corruption and vileness in European culture. It was refreshing to see an academic reference that there is a fundamental difference in our history, based in the roots - the example of the cowboy and Indian story, where there are just a few generalized figures, and not the breadth of history that makes up European culture. This is also reflected in the comment that American culture has from the beginning been focused on the working class and lower interests and desires, and thus we find jazz and country music have origins here, and not in European countries.
One thing I found interesting were conflicting theories about what drives people to central downtown areas compared to the suburbs. Dr. Gilderbloom had a theory that gays were more driven to the downtown areas, while lesbian were more suburban drawn, partly due to pay differences, but that the female were still entrenched in the theory of the home and being domestic. Understanding Amsterdam had an article that theorized that location was partially dependent on how much women played a role in the household. If it the family had a more matriarchal household, it would drawn to downtown areas for its proximity to jobs and urban services, triggering gentrification. The more patriarchal the family is, it would be more drawn to the suburban neighborhoods to raise children, all economic circumstances being equal. I found this contrast fascinating, and it showed that there is no real right or wrong about some theories - some can be proven right at a certain time, and then 10 years later they may be obsolete. Or, some may be an accurate representation for some groups of city residents, but not all those in other cities, as the geographic experience can vary so widely, especially in the United States.
Day 6: Your world..Twisted
Today was the big Rotterdam day. Unfortunately, I had a minor crisis when my hearing aid would not power up when I woke up for the day. As I need adequate hearing levels in order to truly function in the hearing world, I had to forego the morning train to Rotterdam and the bike ride so that I could look into getting my hearing aid problem diagnosed and hopefully fixed. As it turns out, we were able to eliminate 2 possible reasons for failure, but were still left with a dead hearing aid. The only possible solution the hearing center was able to offer was dehydration tablets in case moisture had gotten inside the case and that was what was affecting its performance. However, 12 hours after putting the aid to dry, I was still left with no success.
While trying to figure out what was left that I could salvage by way of class trip experiences, I went down to the Chocolaterie and cheese shop to explore these Dutch specialities. It was such an amazing sensory experience in both places, and even more so going almost directly from the chocolaterie into the cheese shop. I ended up leaving with some selections from both places, both to savor on the remainder of the trip, and also to take back with me to the states. Before the chocolaterie, I also stopped by the nearby bakery to pick up some highly recommended cookies. I felt a little more confident in my ability to interact doing all of these exchanges without my hearing aid, but I definitely have to thank Jessica for helping me sort through this maze of half hearing. We both decided to make The Hague or bust, and so began my first experience catching a train at Amsterdam Centraal Station. We weren’t able to get the intercity train, so the sneltrain that was hitting more of the stops offered a chance to see some other areas of Holland, and we both loved seeing the tulip gardens, as well as the canal structure and green spaces as we made our way south to de Hauge. The gentleman that shared the compartment with us lived in de Hauge, and was also taking the same bus to get home that we would need to reach Hanneke’s home. He provided some insights about the architecture and buildings we passed on the bus, for example the Dutch Parliament building, as De Haauge is the political and legal capital of the Netherlands. After learning this and being aware of Hanneke’s involvement with governmental affairs, it helped to explain why she and Hans settled here.
Because of the hearing loss mentioned earlier, I am having a harder time recounting the verbal exchanges that occurred during our visit, but it was still very enjoyable nonetheless. We had a second shot at herring tastings, and I was able to enjoy the experience much more in this setting, with the proper seasonal accessories and a strong Dutch Bols to watch down the fish and tomato afterwards. Of course, I have a very large weak spot in my belly for cheese and wine, and we were definitely not disappointed with the Gouda and Cumin/pepper cheeses that were paired with a very mellow but smooth red wine - a very tasteful and well thought out combination. It may not have appeared to be much food, but none of us were really even thinking about dinner once we were back in Amsterdam, thanks to the excellent hospitality of our guests. I am really glad we brought the extra bat to give to them, because it was obvious to see that Hanneke really shared the mutual enjoyment of our visit, and she was very well informed on a variety of issues. Having these interactions in both formal and informal settings (ie her home and also the Zuiderkerk with Frans Dubbeldam) really help to make the conceptual beliefs and especially their differences very evident, but not in a way that leaves no room to learn from them and explore the ways these differences might offer solutions to one or the other. It was good to see that while the Dutch have good idealism, Hanneke did mention that there is still a tension between the ideals and the reality - as she mentioned in the right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion, but that bringing harm to another person was prohibited. This is a classic example that the United States sees also, especially reviewed and considered by those in the Libertarian party who focus their party goals and values around such a scenario, and offer policy solutions similar to those of the Dutch government, but more conservative, despite being an extreme party in the United States.
I started a dialog in class after we watched the movie on Amsterdam’s policy on sex and drugs, Sex, Drugs, and Democracy. Part of the comments were being raised from the effect of the Nazi occupation roughly 60 years ago on the embrace of tolerance in the Dutch population. I raised the question of whether it could be argued that the U.S. went through this same embrace of tolerance back when we had our Revolution after being occupied by the British, and in a way we saw this tolerance later by the African American population being non enslaved in Northeastern United States. There is definitely a huge gap in historical age between the countries though, and that is where I start to wonder what could be concluded. I would hesitate to say that the Dutch have ALWAYS been as tolerant as they are viewed today to be. They have been around for hundreds of years, and also went through the Protestant Reformations that swept Europe during the Enlightment and other previous time periods.
While trying to figure out what was left that I could salvage by way of class trip experiences, I went down to the Chocolaterie and cheese shop to explore these Dutch specialities. It was such an amazing sensory experience in both places, and even more so going almost directly from the chocolaterie into the cheese shop. I ended up leaving with some selections from both places, both to savor on the remainder of the trip, and also to take back with me to the states. Before the chocolaterie, I also stopped by the nearby bakery to pick up some highly recommended cookies. I felt a little more confident in my ability to interact doing all of these exchanges without my hearing aid, but I definitely have to thank Jessica for helping me sort through this maze of half hearing. We both decided to make The Hague or bust, and so began my first experience catching a train at Amsterdam Centraal Station. We weren’t able to get the intercity train, so the sneltrain that was hitting more of the stops offered a chance to see some other areas of Holland, and we both loved seeing the tulip gardens, as well as the canal structure and green spaces as we made our way south to de Hauge. The gentleman that shared the compartment with us lived in de Hauge, and was also taking the same bus to get home that we would need to reach Hanneke’s home. He provided some insights about the architecture and buildings we passed on the bus, for example the Dutch Parliament building, as De Haauge is the political and legal capital of the Netherlands. After learning this and being aware of Hanneke’s involvement with governmental affairs, it helped to explain why she and Hans settled here.
Because of the hearing loss mentioned earlier, I am having a harder time recounting the verbal exchanges that occurred during our visit, but it was still very enjoyable nonetheless. We had a second shot at herring tastings, and I was able to enjoy the experience much more in this setting, with the proper seasonal accessories and a strong Dutch Bols to watch down the fish and tomato afterwards. Of course, I have a very large weak spot in my belly for cheese and wine, and we were definitely not disappointed with the Gouda and Cumin/pepper cheeses that were paired with a very mellow but smooth red wine - a very tasteful and well thought out combination. It may not have appeared to be much food, but none of us were really even thinking about dinner once we were back in Amsterdam, thanks to the excellent hospitality of our guests. I am really glad we brought the extra bat to give to them, because it was obvious to see that Hanneke really shared the mutual enjoyment of our visit, and she was very well informed on a variety of issues. Having these interactions in both formal and informal settings (ie her home and also the Zuiderkerk with Frans Dubbeldam) really help to make the conceptual beliefs and especially their differences very evident, but not in a way that leaves no room to learn from them and explore the ways these differences might offer solutions to one or the other. It was good to see that while the Dutch have good idealism, Hanneke did mention that there is still a tension between the ideals and the reality - as she mentioned in the right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion, but that bringing harm to another person was prohibited. This is a classic example that the United States sees also, especially reviewed and considered by those in the Libertarian party who focus their party goals and values around such a scenario, and offer policy solutions similar to those of the Dutch government, but more conservative, despite being an extreme party in the United States.
I started a dialog in class after we watched the movie on Amsterdam’s policy on sex and drugs, Sex, Drugs, and Democracy. Part of the comments were being raised from the effect of the Nazi occupation roughly 60 years ago on the embrace of tolerance in the Dutch population. I raised the question of whether it could be argued that the U.S. went through this same embrace of tolerance back when we had our Revolution after being occupied by the British, and in a way we saw this tolerance later by the African American population being non enslaved in Northeastern United States. There is definitely a huge gap in historical age between the countries though, and that is where I start to wonder what could be concluded. I would hesitate to say that the Dutch have ALWAYS been as tolerant as they are viewed today to be. They have been around for hundreds of years, and also went through the Protestant Reformations that swept Europe during the Enlightment and other previous time periods.
Day 5: Creating Your Future
The wet and rainy war against us visitors has continued, but today we were inside for the beginnings of our educational knowledge trek. We were hosted by Frans Dubblebaum at the Zuiderkerk, the planning centre of Amsterdam. Frans works with the Amsterdam City Council, and has been one of my favorite speakers thus far on the trip. During his presentation, he provided an overview of the planning concepts currently being utilized by the Dutch, many which we have discussed in class already in varying levels of detail. For example, he showed the history of the population growth, and how the areas were growing as the industry and population migration was shifting. I thought it was very helpful to see Paris and Amsterdam compared to each other, especially in terms of defining density. Not only does this mean how many buildings or dwellings per area, but also the number of inhabitants. There was a good connection between their desire to have a population/economic status similar to that of Paris, and they compared not only their residents living in spatially similar areas, but also the amount of annual tourists who visit the area every year.
I really thought the class did a great job of presenting intelligent, well thought out questions that enhanced the information he generally presented. Such a question would be Dr. G’s question on clarification of the integration of planning and public administration in practice. Seeing this example, and understanding the relationship they have used, to much success, I believe, it then becomes clear to see why they have established 15 city districts to allow for greater consensus about the needs and goals of each area. I would have possibly liked to learn more about the qualifications of those who are on City Council, that are not in the planning or administration, but still have power to make planning decisions. I would be curious to know what training background and expertise can be found among them, and whether this constitutes an asset or liability within the planning structure. I would also have to agree it has been insightful to ask the same question at times to different parties, to see how their views change, and whether the information one has is the same as others, to seek out extreme bias. Hearing Frans talking about the importance of regional planning shed light on an area that perhaps can be an explanation for the weakness in American planning projects. There is no real effort or push to incorporate areas together in the Louisville-Lexington area, or even in general areas of Kentucky, at least from what I have gathered. To say that is important for the healthy growth of all regions to have smart planning in place ahead of time speaks to the wisdom of well researched areas of issue, and also goals for the area in terms of regional economic and population growth. In the waterfront book, an example of this is the later developers not seeing the South Bank and the Zuidas as necessarily competitive rivals - instead, each was developed with its strengths and complementary weaknesses, with the two areas coming together to be stronger than either standing alone.
I was also excited to meet Frans because after asking whether he was familiar at all with the nieuwland project, I came to find out he actually lives within minutes of the development. Hopefully, we can get at least one sunny afternoon here so I am able to take the train out, rent a bike, and take some pictures and learn more about the community. I would also love to see if the Amsterdam library has anything written on the area. I have a feeling that it will probably be in dutch, but it is a place to start. If I can squeeze in a visit either on Wednesday or Friday then I hope to also be able to schedule a final visit on Saturday as well.
Perusing the Zuiderkerk, I ended up buying a book about Amsterdam’s water front, which had about 300 pages of detail about the architecture on the South IJ shores, many of which we passed on our boat tour on Saturday. I’ve read about 20 pages of the book so far, and I am really enjoying it. We haven’t really had anything that covered this architecture and history in depth other than brief presentations of pictures by Dr. G, and I also think my pictures will now also be much more memorable because I have more information about them to go along.
One of the other special things I was able to do today was have lunch at the café inside De Waag. (indewaag.nl). It was really a remarkable setting. All of the lighting was provided by candles, and there were huge 40 candle chandeliers hanging from the 2 story ceilings. There was also a red velvet curtain to separate areas of the dining room in case of private meals or functions. The best part in addition to the romantic, historically charming atmosphere was the reasonable cost of the lunch. With the cold rain blowing nearly every umbrella inside out, it was a real treat to sit inside, with a warm cup of cappuccino in my hands at the end of our meal.
While reading through the first sections of Green Urbanism, I admired the thinking of some countries that national defense went beyond missile and weapon protection, and into the sustainability of the country under siege by having their food supply available from within the country. Right now, the U.S. is definitely feeling the oil supply crunch, and while this is considered a “necessary” commodity in our country, people will die a lot faster from starvation than they will from not being able to drive their cars.
However, I disagree with the suggestion Beatley made that strict control may very well be a necessary ingredient for a successful sustainable urban form. While gun control does appear to have an effect, the black market ensures that guns are never really completely gone. This issue was pointed out in that Belgium, right across the border, allows access to firearms. Instead, I think the process we have of strict regulation at least provides more information about the people who are attempting to obtain guns through the legal system. It is currently not to so difficult to get through that it makes the black market more appealing, and I think this allows the folks who would use a gun strictly as a form of self defense to obtain one for those purposes. Those with the intent to use a gun as a means of wielding power will do so whether the guns are legal or not.
I really thought the class did a great job of presenting intelligent, well thought out questions that enhanced the information he generally presented. Such a question would be Dr. G’s question on clarification of the integration of planning and public administration in practice. Seeing this example, and understanding the relationship they have used, to much success, I believe, it then becomes clear to see why they have established 15 city districts to allow for greater consensus about the needs and goals of each area. I would have possibly liked to learn more about the qualifications of those who are on City Council, that are not in the planning or administration, but still have power to make planning decisions. I would be curious to know what training background and expertise can be found among them, and whether this constitutes an asset or liability within the planning structure. I would also have to agree it has been insightful to ask the same question at times to different parties, to see how their views change, and whether the information one has is the same as others, to seek out extreme bias. Hearing Frans talking about the importance of regional planning shed light on an area that perhaps can be an explanation for the weakness in American planning projects. There is no real effort or push to incorporate areas together in the Louisville-Lexington area, or even in general areas of Kentucky, at least from what I have gathered. To say that is important for the healthy growth of all regions to have smart planning in place ahead of time speaks to the wisdom of well researched areas of issue, and also goals for the area in terms of regional economic and population growth. In the waterfront book, an example of this is the later developers not seeing the South Bank and the Zuidas as necessarily competitive rivals - instead, each was developed with its strengths and complementary weaknesses, with the two areas coming together to be stronger than either standing alone.
I was also excited to meet Frans because after asking whether he was familiar at all with the nieuwland project, I came to find out he actually lives within minutes of the development. Hopefully, we can get at least one sunny afternoon here so I am able to take the train out, rent a bike, and take some pictures and learn more about the community. I would also love to see if the Amsterdam library has anything written on the area. I have a feeling that it will probably be in dutch, but it is a place to start. If I can squeeze in a visit either on Wednesday or Friday then I hope to also be able to schedule a final visit on Saturday as well.
Perusing the Zuiderkerk, I ended up buying a book about Amsterdam’s water front, which had about 300 pages of detail about the architecture on the South IJ shores, many of which we passed on our boat tour on Saturday. I’ve read about 20 pages of the book so far, and I am really enjoying it. We haven’t really had anything that covered this architecture and history in depth other than brief presentations of pictures by Dr. G, and I also think my pictures will now also be much more memorable because I have more information about them to go along.
One of the other special things I was able to do today was have lunch at the café inside De Waag. (indewaag.nl). It was really a remarkable setting. All of the lighting was provided by candles, and there were huge 40 candle chandeliers hanging from the 2 story ceilings. There was also a red velvet curtain to separate areas of the dining room in case of private meals or functions. The best part in addition to the romantic, historically charming atmosphere was the reasonable cost of the lunch. With the cold rain blowing nearly every umbrella inside out, it was a real treat to sit inside, with a warm cup of cappuccino in my hands at the end of our meal.
While reading through the first sections of Green Urbanism, I admired the thinking of some countries that national defense went beyond missile and weapon protection, and into the sustainability of the country under siege by having their food supply available from within the country. Right now, the U.S. is definitely feeling the oil supply crunch, and while this is considered a “necessary” commodity in our country, people will die a lot faster from starvation than they will from not being able to drive their cars.
However, I disagree with the suggestion Beatley made that strict control may very well be a necessary ingredient for a successful sustainable urban form. While gun control does appear to have an effect, the black market ensures that guns are never really completely gone. This issue was pointed out in that Belgium, right across the border, allows access to firearms. Instead, I think the process we have of strict regulation at least provides more information about the people who are attempting to obtain guns through the legal system. It is currently not to so difficult to get through that it makes the black market more appealing, and I think this allows the folks who would use a gun strictly as a form of self defense to obtain one for those purposes. Those with the intent to use a gun as a means of wielding power will do so whether the guns are legal or not.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Day 4: Old Town, from the ground ... up
The days are definitely full, long, but also going by quickly. This morning, we all woke up to dreary, slightly chilly, but continually rainy weather. I was prepared to the nines, with umbrella, gloves, hat, parka, and poncho. In the end, the water kept coming down, so all you could really do was minimize whether the water drenched you or just mostly soaked you.
Despite the rain, I really enjoyed the historical tour given by Ruud of Visual Text. I was able to hear him very well nearly the entire time of the tour, and felt he did an excellent job of pointing out buildings that helped to provide a more comprehensive structure of Amsterdam historical buildings and their interconnectedness to each other. I especially felt this was most prominent in the “Omnibus Idem” quote on the old Customs house. To have that quote still there sends a powerful message, and from my assessment it would be mostly accurate to say that is still an ideal they strive for yet today, even if they have not achieved perfect success yet.
Of the 2 wooden houses, I liked the one that was now the Grasshopper Bar the best - it seemed to have more a weathering test, being more exposed to the daily traffic and elements. While the nunnery house inside the church courtyard had its own beauty, the histo
ry of the building just did not draw me in as much. As much as churches may be overplayed at times, it is hard to deny their ability to enhance urban growth, being a place where people can gather and share ideas, and build and maintain relationships. Also, the ideology of the given churches can have a powerful impact on the character of the surrounding neighborhood. It is no mystery why the Buddhist temple in the Chinatown area is located here in that area and not in Jordaan.I did find it especially interesting that the different ruling powers were aware of this as well, making many symbolic movements by using the churches as their means to write a message, even if it was just to restrict the Lutheran churches from building steeple towers. This was really the first time I had heard of this, but it does make you stop and think about what it is that draws you to a church first. I noticed this myself in trying to find the Old Church. I am used to the churches being one of the taller buildings around, easily identifiable with their tower slightly above the edge of the horizon made by other buildings. As I displayed in an earlier entry, this was not the case with the Old Church, and added to my difficulty i
n recognizing the building as a church from afar.I also feel like I am able to more intelligently assess the buildings that we pass, knowing more about the specific type of architectural features that were popular in given ages, and about the changes in the areas surrounding it. I still cannot quite tell which buildings might be brand new and which ones might be 100 years or older - yet a great testament to Amsterdam’s infill and restoration policies, the perfect example of which is the Amsterdam Venice district. As a homeowner or renter, I think that I might be more attracted to a newer home that has the character of the older models for several reasons. While any older building will require more maintenance, for virtually all of the United States, you do not also have to factor in the effects of water and pylons on the existing structure, and the additional maintenance requirements. Also, if the necessary improvements were not done in a timely and consistent manner, I don’t know that I would be able to afford massive structural repairs on top of the already high cost of living and rent. With a newer building, I might be able to better plan for the upkeep of structural integrity, and also have newer building materials and technologies.
As Ruud pointed out, not all of Amsterdam always has its best social interests at heart. As he demonstrated with the example of original Jewish/ now social housing along the canals, there were some that felt the progression of transportation avenues was a higher priority than maintaining the historic housing district to meet housing shortages. I also felt a higher sense of segregation and lack of connection to the surrounding streets in that neighborhood - the big courtyard in the center was bounded by a canal, but it was not really visible to those on the other side of the canal, compared to the other canal house districts such as the Red Light District, where you can see across clearly and have a better sense of integration. It is no wonder, then, that the grouping by race, whether voluntarily or by force, was accomplished with minimal effort.
The most hopeful comment from Ruud was his observation of the Chinese mentality “it can’t stay a bad neighborhood forever”, in reference to the cleaning up of the former big drug dealing/crime/violence area. This got me thinking about my own previous home search, and the tips and considerations I was given. It then raises the question of whether it is a good idea to invest in a home in a bad neighborhood and also raise a family there, or if there were others who saw the future potential, made a purchase, but then chose not to actually live there themselves until the area conditions were back on the upswing and more suitable to family and safer living. With the cost of housing what it is, I am curious how many folks in Amsterdam would actually have the luxury or even possibility to consider such a property investment and living choice. From my observations, it is hard enough to find a place that meets your needs as far as location and ideal surroundings due to cost and space restrictions, much less pursue the capitalistic side that is more pronounced in the United States.
After the tour had ended, the students who were interested made an additional trip to the Van Gogh museum. I have been a Van Gogh fan ever since I first saw his Iris paintings, one of the most artful depictions of my favorite flower I have seen. This was the first time I had been in an European art museum, and it was interesting to see the contrast in the art style and focus compared to the Phoenix Art Museum, for example. The impressionistic and expressionistic styles seem to have so much more life in the settings from which they were inspired. I could find myself resonating with a handful of paintings, who were speaking beyond the brush and the dated portrait into the heart of who we are as humans. I love the Van Gogh wanted to paint to make an impact, not merely for fame or self-promotion. While having a successful portfolio is an important part of what will get your name and vision out, I think that his lack of initial success in this area helped him to actually get to where he ended up at the time of his death, having much more exposure to many painting styles and techniques in an effort to continually improve on his skills and thus hopefully enhance his painting profitability.
Last but not least …. I am so glad for the opportunity to visit the Bloemmarket on the Canal again. This is one of my personal favorites of Amsterdam. The last time I visited it was in June 5 years ago, and there were a lot more fresh and already budding flowers; it was also very enlightening to see the flower markets in their planting stages, and the enormous variety of plants and variations that are available.
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