Hi from Sydney

No, it's not the Netherlands!  But it is a new international adventure.  I arrived in Australia yesterday, after 20 hours or so of flying from Indiana.  I'm here for a symposium on infant-toddler care and education at Charles Sturt U. in Bathurst, just a hundred miles or so west of Sydney.  I've got 5 days in Sydney before heading over to Bathurst.  It's a great city to explore!  I spent the first two days walking a lot, exploring the central city, shopping for a few items of clothing I didn't bring.  People are friendly.  It's nice to be in a harbor city-- the ocean seems all around me.  I am staying in a small hotel in North Sydney, Neutral Bay, so I need to take the ferry to get to downtown Sydney.  It passes the Opera House on the way.  It's been rainy since I arrived, but tomorrow it is supposed to clear, and I will take the ferry to Sydney Harbour National Park, rent a bike, and spend the day seeing some the coastal woods and the beach.

Back home in Indiana--Renewed!

We have been back in Indiana now for 4 weeks! The re-entry was not as hard as I had expected.  After 5 months in Europe, it felt good to be home. It's especially good to see Laura and Amy. (Haven't seen Amy yet, but hope to soon.) Plenty of hot temperatures and humidity, and even that felt good compared with the cool days in the Netherlands! The running, swimming, and biking I did in Amsterdam paid off.  Patty and I participated in our first ever triathlon on July 16th.  It was exciting, fun, challenging.  A feeling of accomplishment to realize I could set a goal and do something new, even at age 60. Come to think of it, my sabbatical was a lot about renewal.  Not only getting in better physical shape, but also getting enough sleep, and taking time to think, read, and write.  I discovered new things about my work.  I got a few good ideas about things I want to do in my last 10 years as a university professor. Planted seeds for a couple of new projects about improving quality of child care for infants and toddlers. I was able to work with my students to publish several articles about work we've done in the past 10 years. Renewed friendships in Europe and made some new friends. The whole sabbatical was an energy boost! 

Goodbye, Amsterdam!

My trusty steed.  Sold to a young guy from Montreal.

Its almost time to go home.  We fly to Indiana on Saturday.

Things I will miss about Amsterdam

The freedom of not having a car and getting around by bike or by good public transport.

Running in the Vondelpark.

The tolerance of Amsterdammers for wide variations in thought and behavior-- as long as it doesn’t hurt someone else.

Pretty women riding bikes.  (Note to Patty: This is a spectator sport only.)

Beautiful old houses on the canals.

Boats everywhere.

The textured feeling of walking and riding my bike over cobbles and bricks.

Cool breezy sunny days.

Fathers and mothers riding their little children on the bike, talking with them, singing to them, holding their hand.

Wine and conversations with my friend Louis.

Weekend bike rides in the green countryside.

Things I will not miss about Amsterdam

Four cold, rainy days in a row in late June.

Bromfietsen! (motor scooters)

Noisy drunken boys hollering at 2 AM on the street or in the apartment below.

The acceptance of mostly segregated “white” and “black” schools.

The high cost of everything when your income is in deflated US dollars.

Summer in Vondelpark

It's June, and Patty and I are aware that our time in Europe is running short. She arrives soon to spend the last few weeks with me in Amsterdam.  I think it will be a packed month, doing things we want to do in NL before we leave, spending time with our friends here, finishing work projects we need to get done.  But I find myself already getting reflective about my time here.  One important place for me, as you know if you read my first blogs, is the Vondelpark, Amsterdam's "Central Park."  I live just a few blocks away, so it's easy to run, walk, or bike there.  It has been a great place for me to think, exercise, feel peaceful, and get healthy. 

Also a place to observe the natives at play!  I took a walk through the park today, snapping photos so I could remember how it is.  My early blogs were in February and March.  Now it's really summer!  The park is beautiful, and many Amsterdamers migrate there when they have an hour, or an afternoon.  See more photos, take a walk with me from my house to the Vondelpark and back!

Netherlands-- It's a Part-Time World

Taking a break in a busy week

I've noticed that a LOT of people here have part time jobs, especially women.  The Netherlands may be unique in this respect.  A high proportion of women work, about 75%, but more than half of those who work do it less than full time.  And this seems to be mostly by choice.  "In the Netherlands, we women like to work part time!" say the college students I've talked with about this.  In the U.S., by comparison about 75% of working women are going at it full time.  The ideal here seems to be 2 or 3 days a week.  Handy for mothers with young children, but even women with no children seem to think part time is swell.  It is swell!  Imagine what that would be like.  Although, from another perspective, I suspect that sometimes it takes a while to get some things done.  ("Well, I don't work Wednesday or Thursday, and Friday is a holiday, so maybe we can talk about it next week...") And though most men work full time, often even they seem to have 2 or 3 part time jobs.  It's not unusual for me to meet a professor at the University here who says something like, "Well, I work here two days, and at University B two days, and I do consulting one day."  I am not quite sure how all of this part time work provides benefits-- but there is national health care, and everyone seems to have plenty of paid holidays and vacation!  And here's the kicker-- Dutch women, according to one study, have significantly lower rates of depression than women in France or Japan.  See the NYT article about it!

Learning Dutch

I have been taking an introductory Dutch language class at the University for the past few weeks.  It's been challenging for me-- I would not describe myself as a "natural" second language learner.  But it's been fun.  Partly because I'm the oldest student in the class-- by about 35 years!  It's just a kick being in a room with a bunch of lively 20-somethings from all over the world. (Italy, Mexico, Poland, Spain, Vietnam, Nigeria, Brazil, Israel, Norway, China, Algeria!)  Some might ask, "Why learn Dutch when everyone in the country speaks perfect English?" One reason is that it gives me more insight into Dutch culture. Part of it is being able to understand a little more when people are speaking .  But also reading language examples in the text book, watching the video examples, and conversing with the course teacher about various topics all give fresh glimpses of the culture that I might not otherwise get.  And I think my Dutch friends do appreciate the effort-- it's a sign of respect for the Dutch and their culture.  Even if I don't progress very far right now! See this video for an example of me grappling with those famous Dutch gutturals!  (Amsterdam heeft achtentachtig prachtige grachten.  =  Amsterdam has 88 beautiful canals!)

More about the benefits of biking...

Okay, I don't want to bore everyone by making the same point over and over again, but I keep finding reasons that a good system of biking/walking trails is a great idea. Yesterday I was coming home from my daily run and passed two mothers, riding their bikes next to each other, gabbing away, while their two 4 year old daughters, riding in the child seats on the back of their mothers' bikes were riding along gabbing with each other at the same time.  A lot of Amsterdamers get around on bikes.  It's easy with the trail system, it's cheap (parking and gas prices are very high), and it's simply part of the Dutch culture.  I keep seeing people talking as they travel this way, with their kids, spouses, co-workers, friends, etc.  It strikes me that in addition to the ecological, economic, and health benefits, biking and walking trails offer more opportunities for people to be "in contact" with each other as they go about their daily business.  Some of us worry about the loss of a sense of community in the U.S.A.  So many people don't know their neighbors, stay inside their houses when not at school or at work.  Would bikeways be a way to regain that sense of connection with others, even others in our own families?  Take a look at these two photos. Which child/parent would you rather be?

Freedom



Freedom is never given, but always taken!


The Netherlands celebrated Liberation Day (Bevrijdingsdag) about a week ago, on May 5-- a national holiday.   This is an annual commenoration of the day the country was liberated from Nazi occupation by the Allied troops in 1945. The evening before, May 4, at precisely 8:00 PM, there were two minutes of silence observed throughout the country, in a "Remembrance of the Dead."  All stores closed early, all public transport stopped, and things pretty much halted everywhere for those two minutes.  At the Dam square in Amsterdam, the Queen laid a wreath at the national monument while thousands of people stood silently. I watched the ceremonies on TV. Sometimes it is easy to get the impression that the Dutch don't go in for ceremony, or that they are not patriotic, because they do tend to be laid back, tolerant and anti-authoritarian.  But I saw a great deal of respect by young and old being paid to both those who died during WWII and more recent wars, and also to the royal family.  The Netherlands was occupied by the Germans for 5 years, during which the majority of the nation's Jews were deported and killed.  Most of the remaining Dutch population suffered through those years of occupation, culminating in the "Winter of Hunger" in 1944-45, when the Nazis cut off food supplies to the western provinces, many starved, and 18,000 died.  There were interviews on TV with old people who lived through those hard time.  Though it's not something people speak of often, there does seem to be a national memory of this loss of freedom, a gratitude for its return, and a modern sense that freedom needs to be guarded.  Back in 1969 when I first visited Amsterdam as a 19-year-old U.S. Navy midshipman in uniform, I did not get a very warm reception from people my own age.  (This was during the Vietnam War.)  But some of the older folks, those who lived through WWII, gave me a warm and friendly reception on the street-- perhaps still expressing their gratitude for our assistance in liberating them in 1945.

The Queen's Day, April 30th

We were fortunate to be in Amsterdam on the Queen's birthday this year, April 30th.  Actually, it's not the current Queen Beatrix's BD, but her mother Juliana's.  Someone told me, "Well, we could have changed it for Queen B., but hers is in January-- and the weather is not so nice!  So we kept it on April 30."  Beatrix does not seem to mind. In Amsterdam, this is the most amazing street (and canal) party I have ever seen! Everyone was out, partying from Friday evening through the wee hours Saturday night.  Vondelpark was packed with kids and adults on Saturday; it seems to be the special place for kids on this special day. All over the city, including along the roads and paths in Vondelpark, many people brought their old household things to spread out on a blanket on the ground to sell.  Music stages with live music or DJs were set up in the streets all over the city. In the park, kids were performing with their musical instruments, doing acrobatics, singing, selling cookies, or running homemade games you could play for 50 cents or 1 euro. In the canals, it seemed everyone who owns a boat, large or small, was cruising around, singing, playing loud music, and partying. It is one gigantic flea market/beer garden!  Everyone wears orange-- shirts, crowns, leis, suits, and we even saw a bachelor party with two guys dressed as giant orange penises!  Follow these links to see more:  Queen's Day photos.  Video of canal boat parties.

Tulpen!

Yesterday my friend Louis and I took our bikes to North Holland and spent the day tooling around the vast tulip, daffodil, and hyacinth fields out there.  This cultivation area is near the beach of the North Sea, so we also had lunch and dinner stops at beach restaurants.  Of course, I had heard before about the bulb fields and seen pictures-- but being out there in the middle of them in mid April was quite another experience!  I have never been in the Netherlands at this time of year before.  Photographs cannot convey the intensity of the colors in some of these patches of flowers.  And the smells!  When we rode by large fields of flowers, especially the hyacinths, the perfume was almost overpowering. Imagine the smell of 100,000 flowers coming right at you! The whole day was a sensory experience-- sights, sounds, smells, and oh yes, sore muscles.  We did get lost for a while.  Well, not really lost.  As Daniel Boone, the legendary American frontiersman is reported to have said, "I can't say I've ever been lost. But I was bewildered once for 3 days!"  We finally did get back to where we had parked the car.  To see more flower photos, go to my Picasa site.

What's the deal with helmets?

Commuters riding through the Vondelpark

The Dutch ride bikes more miles per person per year than any other country.  According to one Dutch safety expert, they have the lowest injury-accident rate on bikes than any other country.  With all the people riding, you hardly EVER see someone  wearing a helmet.  They DO crash, sometimes (rarely)-- I have seen it.  They ARE skillful riders.  (When you see the 3 year olds scooting along on two wheel bikes, you understand why!) Yet the safety expert estimates that if all Dutch riders wore helmets, there would be 1,000 fewer head injuries in the Netherlands each year!  So why don't they wear them?  I've heard a number of explanations-- vanity (messes up the hair), doesn't look cool, it's uncomfortable, too hard to manage carrying a helmet around all day when bike is your basic mode of transportation, and "we don't need them because we know how to avoid a serious fall."  The notion of a helmet law has actually been discussed in Parliment.  But I think the politicians are afraid to pass what would be an immensely unpopular and difficult to enforce law!  Maybe what it comes down to is people's sense of individual freedom and not wanting anyone to tell them what they SHOULD do! Part of the Dutch "live and let live" (or in rare cases die!) attitude?

Want to get email notice from this blog?

If you would like to receive an email each time I post a blog here, just email me at elickerjg@gmail.com.  I will then invite you to join my google group.  If you join, you will get email notifications when I add something new.

More about the Pistoia preschools

Three year olds creating with clay and natural objects

Since my time last month in the Pistoia preschools and infant centers I have been thinking a lot about some of the things I saw and talked with people about.  One thing that keeps coming back to me has to do with what we in the USA call "accountability" in early childhood education.  Especially in our “best” early childhood programs like Head Start or university lab schools, we are quite concerned with showing, in a quantified way, that the program is effective or beneficial to children.  This means we typically have some standardized measures of development or school readiness that we administer to all the children, so we can show how much children learned from time 1 to time 2.  On a national level, we do studies to show if a particular program or curriculum is “effective,” meaning it has a significant and measureable effect on learning in a large number of children. 

Documentation panel in the hallway about "Experiencing"

In Pistoia, on the other hand, accountability seems to be more personal and individualized.  Teachers rely on documentation panels like the one here to show parents and others how the children are learning. There seems to be at least a tacit aversion to standardized assessment.  The view I got from the educators was something like, "every child is unique" or "we meet each child where he/she is, and go from there." It is obvious, by observing and listening, that the teachers are thoughtful and reflective about each child and what she is experiencing, and what kinds of learning experiences might be beneficial.   Portfolios or diaries are used to document the experiences and development of each child.  Children with special needs are seemingly served by carefully observing their needs and abilities, having conversations with their parents, and working out the best approach on a day-to-day basis.  (I am sure sometimes kids must be referred for in-depth evaluations, but I did not hear about that...)  It all seems to work well, even without the numbers and standardized tests. Children, parents, and teachers seem satisfied that this individualized, qualitative approach works. The funding for these programs has been generous, compared to what we have in the U.S.  I find myself wondering, though, as city and national budgets constrict (and they are!) if there will be demands for more a quantified accountability.  Or maybe these services for children are viewed more as a right and thus not subject to our kind of accountability?  Maybe measurement and standardization are not the Italian way.  What do you think?
To see more photos of the Pistoia preschools, click here.

Cycling and social cohesion

Since returning from Italy I've been settling back into Amsterdam, thinking a lot about what I saw and heard in Pistoia.  My morning runs in the Vondelpark bring me close to many children and parents as they go to school on their bikes. I'm been struck by how much traveling by bike puts everyone in contact-- with their surroundings, and with each other.  Couples or friends ride together to work or school.  Parents take their kids to school, sometimes in what appear to be neighborhood groups.  Mothers ride along with one, two, or even three kids in the "bakfiets," talking with each other.  The children listen to their parents talking, or they just look around, or talk with each other.  They observe all these people from the city, walking or riding their bikes.  Quite different than being encased inside autos. Traveling this way is just another way to be connected with others and with the immediate surroundings. Cycling as a form of social cohesion? 

Spring Fever

It amazes me the enthusiasm of Amsterdamers for these warm spring days.  Today I think everyone left work early and went to Vondelpark!  I cruised around on my bike just taking it all in.  The picture is of a cafe' in the middle of the park.  Packed with bikes and people sitting out having a coffee or drink at 4:00 PM.

Early Childhood Centers in Pistoia

I returned this week from a very rich experience, visiting the early childhood centers of Pistoia, Italy. These centers are not quite as well-known as those in Reggio Emilia, but from all reports they are every bit as good.  I think the most impressive single discovery I had in Pistoia was the leadership I saw throughout the system.  In the several centers we visited, there were very articulate and obviously experienced and competent pedagogues. They had been engaged, often for more than 20 years, in the development of a philosophy of early education, care, and family support.  The philosophy they espoused was quite consistent in each place my group visited—respect for children and families, welcoming children and families with open arms, developing and maintaining close family-like relationships with each child, including their parents, discovery, creativity, and connection with the community.  The second thing that impressed me was the level of investment in the centers—ample space, nice grounds surrounding the buildings, and a high degree of care and attention to the aesthetics of the environment.  “Making beautiful spaces for children that offer ‘provocations’ for children to discover, think, communicate, and relate closely to others.”  See the photos in this link to get a sense of these impressive early childhood programs.

Back in Amsterdam-- And it's spring!

I am back in the city after spending 9 days in Italy, touring early childhood programs in Pistoia and having a nice long weekend in Florence and Siena with Patty.
What a difference a week makes in the feeling of spring! I had my run in the Vondelpark this morning and noticed all kinds of new flowers and people enjoying the nice weather.
Click on this link to see some photos of people in the park.

My Neighborhood

Saturday morning. After a nice long jog in the Vondelpark, I grabbed my camera to take a few morning shots near my apartment.  Saturday is a busy shopping day for many people.  Sunday seems typically to be reserved for rest and entertainment, and most shops are closed.  Today I just went out and took a few photos within 1/2 block of my front door.  Here you will see a father and a mother with their children running errands on Kinkerstraat, the busy shopping street one block from my house.  The mother is riding the typical "bakfiets" (pronounced "baak-feets") that is common among families that have little kids--a wooden box with a seat for two small children, sometimes with a cover for rainy weather. The father has a rather fancy folding version of the bakfiets.  See more photos of "my neighborhood" on my Picasa page. (Or view the slide show...)

Stormy Weather

Sunday.  Today I overcame my fear of going out in the rain!  After a couple of days of mostly holing up in my warm apartment, looking out at the wind and rain blowing in from the North Sea, I started to feel sluggish, fat, and lazy.  Time to brace myself and get out for a run!  This is the Netherlands, where people go out and do things in all kinds of weather!  Again, I am reminded of a statement a Scottish friend made years ago: "There is no such thing as bad weather-- just bad clothes!"  I did make some accommodations in my dress-- goretex jacket, and took off my glasses wore my wool cap.  Running in Vondelpark today turned out to be a great experience!  I was quite comfortable, not cold, despite the blustery weather.  I was rewarded by the following scenes, flashing by. (Sometimes I wish I had a little camera built into my hat!)  A young father striding purposefully along the park road in his Northface parka with the hood up, pushing a well-buttoned-up baby pram.  A father and his young son, both in bright yellow rain jackets, the father jogging and the 8 year old son riding alongside on his bike.  And perhaps most surprising, several pairs of bright green parrots or macaws, flying from tree to tree in the park.  What are they doing here in this northern place!!? Why haven't I seen them before on my morning runs?  Do they like the rain?  They looked quite at home. When I got home I read on a Fodor's web page that "flocks of parrots—apparently the progeny of two escaped pets—...live here year-round."  (See this Fodor's review for more interesting observations about the wonderous place that is Vondelpark.)

Signs of Spring

First blooms in Beatrixpark

This is the end of my third week in Amsterdam. In the past couple of days is has been raining off and on, and even snowed and sleeted a bit on Wednesday evening.  But today it is cloudy and the temperature is mild, about 45 F. This week I have been working on a writing project, so that has kept me in during much of the nasty weather, sitting at my laptop, next to the nifty gas heater in the living room looking out over the canal and West Amsterdam from my 3rd floor (USA = 4th floor) apartment.   To take breaks from work I have ventured out to eat, shop for groceries or run important errands. I am increasingly relying on my bicycle to get around.  In the past few days I've gone to appointments north, south, and east of my apartment, each time wheeling out into unknown territory, armed with my city map and the assurance that it's actually pretty hard to get lost in Amsterdam! It's not a large city for a main metropolis, and it's neatly arranged around the central rings of canals, kind of like half of a big bike wheel, with the hub at the Central train station. I am learning the local cycling etiquette (such as it is-- Amsterdamers don't cotton much to rules!) and beginning to feel comfortable moving in this efficient and healthy way around the city.  This morning I rode about 2 miles to the "World Trade Center" in the south of Amsterdam to complete my registration process as a foreigner, which is necessary because I will be here more than 3 months and I will be employed part time to do things for the University of Amsterdam. It's a rather complicated process, involving several forms and an "authenticated" copy of one's birth certificate.  (I'm thinking it would be difficult to hide out in the NL!) Everything went fine, the officials were pleasant, and I am now officially an approved resident of Amsterdam!  On the way home I cruised through Beatrixpark (named after the beloved Queen).  It was green, quiet, and pleasant, and I noticed in a number of places crocuses and daffodils were emerging and beginning to bloom.  Damn!  Spring comes earlier here than in Indiana, and I do like that!