Crrrrunch Time.doc

So the return from Finland has been an odd one. I went from six full days of excitement, mayhem, and late nights to the realization that I have so little time left in Amsterdam. It's funny how on paper it looked like I had ten full days to leisurely pack up and enjoy the city, but the reality has proven untrue. I've been trying to concentrate on the drafts of the two papers I've written but it seems like every time I sit down for revision, all I can do is browse flights for summer traveling or start organizing and cleaning the apartment for Thursday's departure. I think my brain has effectively turned off for summer, so I'll have to trick it into at least three more days of productive work before enjoying the arrival of my favourite season.

On Tuesday evening I hosted the MAIPR group over at my place for the last time. Jocelyn was heading back to Singapore in the morning so I figured it was as good a time as any to have a potluck to send her off. It was a really relaxed get together (the opposite of our adventures in Finland). We dined on dishes cobbled together from AH trips: smoked salmon and cream cheese on baguette bread, mozzarella and tomatoes, miso soup, a greek salad, and many other snacks. By 10pm the rest of the remaining members of the group made it over (Zhenya and Stu aren't in the city anymore) and we said some goodbyes to Joce. Thankfully, I'll be seeing her in September upon return to the UK. Unfortunately, there will be some more goodbyes in the coming days!

This past week I saw more theatre that I have in the last month! The Holland Festival is running and it attracts international artists to Amsterdam. On Thursday evening I was given a free ticket to I went to the house but did not enter by Heiner Goebbels. The play is a collection of four scenes using texts from T.S. Eliot, Maurice Blanchot, Samuel Beckett and Franz Kafka. The world-renowned Hilliard Ensemble sing the texts in a remarkable four part harmony in scenes devoid of plot and character but with traces of loss, grief, and depression. It was an extremely unique performance with no narrative to follow, but with a lot of intrigue nonetheless. I quite enjoyed it, but it's hard to describe.

The second performance of the festival I saw was The White Body by EA Sola. That afternoon a few of us had an informal discussion with Sola about the inspiration for the piece and her choreography process (she has been working with her dancers for over a year and a half). After a really intellectual discussion about the creation of her dance piece, I have to say that I was deeply disappointed in the performance. Not only did the wonderfully articulate themes she discussed in the afternoon not transfer successfully to the stage, but her exploration of cultural imperialism was obvious and patronizing (how many times can Coca-Cola and Marlboro cigarettes be used to stand in for a Western influence?) The dance piece contains two moments of interesting staging, but for the most part the piece has been overworked and under thought. After the show, our Professor Kati and two of her friends shared a few drinks with Dev and I. At least there is always a bar to be able to discuss the show afterwards!

The rest of this week will be spent tying up loose ends and shoving all of my accumulated items into my suitcase for the Thursday evening departure. In between I have one more city photo session scheduled with Bec, a dinner with Courtney that I hope we can fit in, an internship dinner meeting, and one final MAIPR night of drinks on Wednesday. After that, I can look forward to one night in London before hitting Canadian soil for a wonderful break with family and friends back home.

Doc's Prescription of the Day: Enjoy the Summer Solstice activities. At the very least soak up the longest day of the calendar year and welcome those summer temps.