The Amsterdam-Brussels Connection: History, Art and Identity in the Heart of Europe

Transcription

1 The University of California, Berkeley presents: Summer 2012 Travel/Study Course to the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg Dutch 177 (6 semester units) The Amsterdam-Brussels Connection: History, Art and Identity in the Heart of Europe Organized by Jeroen Dewulf, Queen Beatrix Professor in Dutch Studies Introduce yourself to the culture and identity of the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, three contrasting monarchies in the heart of Europe. The course begins in Amsterdam, from where we travel to Luxembourg, then to Europe s capital Brussels. From there, we continue to the bustling sea port of Antwerp and the exquisite coastal town of Ostend. We conclude our journey in Leuven, home of one of Europe s oldest universities. On our way, we trace important cultural, historical, and political developments on daily fieldtrips. From the medieval towns in Flanders over the Dutch Golden Age up to the contemporary (multi)cultural, liberal, and European identity of the Low Countries. We engage with international politics, art, and culture through trips to Utrecht, Haarlem, The Hague, Liège, Spa, Ypres, Ghent, Bruges, and many other cities. Guided visits to the Dutch House of Representatives and the European Parliament are also included. The Travel/Study Course Dutch 177 is open to students from all departments on the Berkeley campus as well as students from other universities, also outside the United States. It satisfies the UC Berkeley Arts & Literature or Historical Studies L&S Breadth Requirement, and it is also part of the Dutch Studies Minor or Major. Students from other departments are encouraged to consult with their advisor to see which other major/minor this program may fulfill. Visiting students are encouraged to talk to their advisor about transfer of credit to their home institution. This course has no requirements. No language-teaching is involved. For more information, please contact the program director: Prof. Jeroen Dewulf (jdewulf@berkeley.edu) or visit or visit the travel study website ( Itinerary **Note: students should plan their travel to arrive in Amsterdam, but to return from Brussels Saturday July 7 Departure to Amsterdam. Sunday July 8

2 Arrival at Amsterdam International Airport Schiphol. After you pass emigration-control and recover your baggage, take a train from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Amsterdam Central Station. At Amsterdam Central Station take a taxi to the Hostel. Check in at Stayokay Amsterdam Vondelpark Hostel. Rooms are available from 3pm onwards. If you arrive earlier, you can store your luggage in one of the lockers and wait until your room gets free. The program assistant will be at the hostel at 3pm to assist you with the check in. In case you arrive after 3pm, just check in yourself at the reception where there will be a list with your name and room number. No activities are planned for this day. Monday July 9 10am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Pick up your packed lunch. 25 min. walk to Amsterdam University, P.C. Hoofthuis, Spuistraat 134, room am-11am: Practical information on the course and the grading system. 11-1pm: Lecture: Introduction to the Netherlands History, Identity, Politics. 1pm: Tram to Museum Square pm: Free for lunch pm: Visit Vincent van Gogh Museum, dedicated to the famous Dutch expressionist painter. 4.30pm: Meeting at main entrance van Gogh Museum. Walk to Canal Boat pm: Boat tour along the romantic Amsterdam canals with Blue Boats. 6.15pm: Return to hostel. Introduction to tomorrow s program. 6.30pm: We offer you a free dinner at the hostel. Tuesday July 10 9am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Pick up your packed lunch. Walk to Amsterdam University. 9.30am-11.30am: Lecture: the Dutch Golden Age Art and Culture in the 17 th century Netherlands am: We walk to Amsterdam Central Station. Train to Haarlem pm: We visit the Haarlem city center. Free for lunch pm: Visit Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem. 2.30pm: We return to Haarlem Station. Train to Amsterdam. 3pm: We arrive in Amsterdam and take the tram to the Rijksmuseum pm: Visit Rijksmuseum: Visit of the collection of Dutch paintings from the Golden Age, including Rembrandt s famous painting The Night Watch. 5.30pm: Return to hostel. Introduction to tomorrow s program. 6.30pm: We offer you a free dinner at the hostel. Wednesday July 11 10am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Pick up your packed lunch. Walk to Amsterdam University.

3 10.30am-12pm: Lecture: The Netherlands in WW II - the Netherlands under Nazi occupation and the Holocaust pm: Free for lunch pm: Tram to Dutch Resistance Museum. 1-2pm: Visit Resistance Museum pm: Visit Dutch Theater-Holocaust Memorial, the Auschwitz Memorial and February Strike Memorial. 4-5pm: Visit Jewish Historical Museum in the former Ashkenazi Synagogue. 5pm: Tram to Westermarkt. We visit the memorial dedicated to the homosexual victims of Nazism pm: We visit the Anne Frank House, where we are received by the museum s director Ronald Leopold. 6.30pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Thursday July 12 9am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Tram to Central Station and train to Utrecht. Walk to Utrecht University am-12.30: Visit Utrecht University. Information session about the Dutch educational system, the exchange program between UC Berkeley and Utrecht University. Presentation of Utrecht University by Wiljan van den Akker, Dean of Humanities, and Caspar de Bock, Senior Policy Advisor pm: Lunch offered by Utrecht University. 2-5pm: City tour in Utrecht with historian Marijke Huisman, including a visit to Utrecht s popular music instruments museum. 5.30pm: Return to Amsterdam. 6.30pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Friday July 13 10am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Pick up your free packed lunch. Tram to Central Station. Train to Leiden pm: City tour in Leiden by Steef Eman, Director of the Central College Abroad pm: free for lunch 3-5pm: We visit the Netherlands Centre for Biodiversity NCB Naturalis. Museum designed to advance our knowledge of biodiversity. 5pm: Walk to Leiden train station. 5.30pm: Return to Amsterdam 6.30pm: Tram to hostel and introduction to the program of next week. All journals are checked, if you make an online journal you have to provide the link, if you make a written journal, you have to bring the journal with you and present it to the program director. Saturday July 14 free day in Amsterdam. Sunday July 15 free day in Amsterdam. Monday July 16 10am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Pick up your packed lunch. Walk to Amsterdam University.

4 10.30am-12am: Lecture: The colonial history of the Netherlands - the former Dutch East Indies and West Indies and the Dutch involvement in the international slave-trade am: lunch break pm: Lecture: The contemporary Dutch multicultural society the debate on the integration of the Muslim community. 2.30pm: We take the tram to the Tropenmuseum. 3-5pm: Visit Tropenmuseum with collections on the former Dutch colonies in Asia and the Caribbean pm: We walk to the Oosterpark and visit the Slavery Memorial. 5.30pm: Return to hostel. 8-10pm: We take to tram to Amsterdam Central Station where we meet with Dutch writer and journalist Jan Donkers, who takes us by ferry to Amsterdam-North, the former working class neighborhood that has been transformed into an attractive living area for young artists. Tuesday July 17 9am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Tram to Amsterdam Central Station am-12pm: Guided visit to the Dutch House of Representatives (Hofweg 1). [Do not forget your passport; Visitors should dress appropriately no shorts and flip-flops] 12pm: Walk to the Dutch Language Association De Nederlandse Taalunie. Lunch offered by the Taalunie pm: Lecture on the history and the importance of the Dutch language pm: Visit Mauritshuis - Art Museum with Vermeer s famous painting Girl with the Pearl Earring. 4-5pm: Visit Panorama Mesdag, the world s oldest surviving panorama-painting in its original location. 5pm: Return to Amsterdam. 6pm: Tram to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Wednesday July 18 9am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel. Pick up your packed lunch. Tram to Amsterdam Central Station. Train to Arnhem. Bus to Bronbeek am-1pm: Bronbeek (Indisch Herinneringscentrum), visit Center of Commemoration of the Repatriation from the Netherlands Indies. We are received by historian Humphrey Delacroix who tells us the story of the Dutch-Indonesian community in the Netherlands. We also meet with representatives of other ethnic minority groups in the Netherlands, including the Netherlands Muslim community. 1-2pm: Free lunch: a selection of the best Dutch-Indonesian food. 2pm: Bus to open-air museum that recreates life in a typically Dutch 17 th -century village pm: Visit Open Air Museum. 5.30pm: Train back to Amsterdam. 7pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program.

5 Thursday July am Check-out hostel. 9am: Transfer to Luxembourg by bus. All your luggage should have a name-tag am-12.30pm: Stop in Nijmegen. Guided tour in Nijmegen with UC Berkeley Professors Cindy Loy and Ivo Duijnstee (Dept. of Biology) pm: Lunch in Nijmegen. 2.30pm: Departure to Luxembourg. 6.30pm: Arrival in Luxembourg. Check-in in Youth Hostel Luxembourg-City and introduction to tomorrow s program. Friday July 20 10am: Meeting at reception of the hostel. We go to the Conference Room Nr am-12pm: Introduction to the medieval history of the former Southern Netherlands, today s Belgium and Luxembourg. Focus on the specific history and culture of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg since its independence in pm: We walk to the city center to 14, Rue du St. Esprit, and visit the Luxembourg City Museum that tells us the history of Luxembourg from the early foundations until today pm: Free for lunch. 3-4pm: We walk to the Montee de Clausen to the Bock casemates, the impressive, UNESCO-heritage fortifications of Castle Luxembourg. 4-6pm: We walk up the hill to the Luxembourg Modern Art Museum, 3, Park Dräi Eechelen. 6pm: Return to hostel and introduction to the program of next week. All journals are checked. Saturday July 21 free day in Luxembourg. Sunday July 22 free day in Luxembourg. Monday July am: Check out hostel. 9am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel. Bus to Brussels, the bilingual (French/Dutch) capital of Belgium. On our way to Brussels we visit two cities in Wallonia, the French-speaking south of Belgium. 11am-2pm: Accompanied by city guide Gaëtan Plein, we visit Spa, the city that gave its name to water treatment resorts all over the world pm: Lunch in Spa. 3.30pm: Bus to Liège, the biggest city in Wallonia. 4-6pm: Guided city tour in Liège by Guy Janssens, Head of the Dutch Studies Program at the University of Liège. 6pm: Bus to Brussels. 7pm: Arrival in Brussels. Check-in in Youth Hostel Brueghel Brussels and introduction to tomorrow s program. 10pm: We meet at the hostel and walk to Brussels Central Square pm: We watch the lightshow on Brussels Central Square.

6 Tuesday July 24 10am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel pm: Lecture on the cultural history of Belgium and the city of Brussels pm: Free for lunch. 2.30pm: We meet at the hostel pm: Guided tour in Brussels with historian Marc Maes. 5pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Wednesday July 25 10am: Meeting reception hostel am: Lecture on the political historical of Belgium and the roots of the tensions between Belgium s Dutch- and French-speaking communities pm: Free for lunch. 1.15pm: We meet at the hostel and walk to the Belgian Federal Parliament, Leuvenseweg pm: We visit the Belgian Federal Parliament. 4pm: We walk to the take René Magritte Museum pm: Visit René Magritte Museum, dedicated to one of the world s most famous surrealist painters. 6pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Thursday July 26 10am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel am: Lecture on the history and importance of the European Union. 12-2pm: Free for lunch. 2pm: We walk to Paul Henri Spaak Building. 3-5pm: We visit the European Parliament. [Do not forget your passport; Visitors should dress appropriately no shorts and flip-flops] 5pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. All journals are checked. Friday July 27 10am: Check-out hostel am: We take the train to Antwerp. 12pm: Check-in in Youth Hostel Pulcinella pm: Free for lunch. 1.30pm: We meet at the hostel with Maarten van Ginderachter, Professor in History at Antwerp University pm: Guided tour in Antwerp. 3-5pm: We visit the Antwerp City Museum MAS, dedicated to the international character of on one of the world s biggest sea ports. 5pm: Return to hostel. Introduction to next week s program. All journals are checked. Saturday July 28 free day in Antwerp. Sunday July 29 free day in Antwerp.

7 Monday July 30 10am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel. We walk to Antwerp s Our Lady s Cathedral pm: Visit Tower of Our Lady s Cathedral: meeting with carilloneur Geert d Hollander. Life performance with fantastic view on top of the cathedral s tower: 400 feet high! pm: Visit Our Lady s Cathedral Painting The Raising of the Cross by the famous baroque painter Pieter Paul Rubens pm: free for lunch. 2-6pm: We learn about the history of Antwerp s Jewish community with historian Veerle Vanden Daelen. We visit the old Sephardic Synagogue and the Antwerp Diamond Stock Exchange. 6pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Tuesday July 31 10am: Meeting reception of the hostel. We take the bus and visit the Antwerp sea port with Em. Professor Marc Hybrechts, who has a Ph.D. from Berkeley Boalt and is one of Belgium s most prominent scholars in Maritime Law pm: Lecture on the history and importance of Antwerp Sea Port. 12-1pm: Free for lunch. 1-3pm: Visit Antwerp Sea Port. 3pm: Return to Antwerp. 4-5pm: We visit the Museum dedicated to the painter Eugeen van Mieghem ( ) who painted people from all over Europe who immigrated to the United States from Antwerp sea port. 5pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Wednesday August 1 10am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel. Walk to Antwerp train station. Train to Ghent. We take the tram to the city center where we meet with Walter Prevenier, Em. Professor in History at the University of Ghent. 11-1pm: Guided city tour with Prof. Prevenier, with special attention to the importance of Ghent in the Middle-Ages pm: Free for lunch pm: We visit Ghent University (Het Pand Building). Introduction to Flemish medieval painting (the work of Jan van Eyck and other so-called Flemish Primitives ) by Prof. Dr. Marc de Mey, Em. Professor in Cognitive Science at the University of Ghent pm: We walk to Saint Bavo Cathedral. Guided visit by Professor de Mey to Saint Bavo Cathedral and exclusive visit by our group to the most famous Flemish medieval painting: the Mystic Lamb by Jan van Eyck. 6pm: We are divided in small groups of 3-4 students and have dinner at the house of a Flemish family. 10pm: We meet at Ghent Train Station St. Pieters pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Thursday August 2

8 10am: Meeting at the reception of the Hostel. Walk to Antwerp train station. Train to Ypres pm: Lunch in Ypres. 2-3pm: Lecture by city guide Wouter Sinaeve on World War I and the Flemish war-front, the trenches, the poison-gas, the destruction. 3-4pm: Visit to the interactive museum In Flanders Fields on WW I pm: City tour in Ypres. Visit of the former war front and trenches, war cemetery pm: free time in Ypres. 8pm: Meeting at the Menin Gate for the Last Post Memorial Concert. 8.30pm: Return to Antwerp. 11pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Friday August 3 12pm: Check out hostel pm: Walk to Antwerp Train Station. Train to Ostend, one of Europe s most famous coastal cities. 2-4pm: Walk to hostel. Check-in in Youth Hostel De Ploate. 4-6pm: City tour. We visit the local Fishing Port, the Galleries of King Leopold II and the James Ensor House, dedicated to one of the most famous early expressionist painters. 6pm: Return to hostel and introduction to next week s program. All journals are checked. Saturday August 4 free day in Ostend. Sunday August 5 free day in Ostend. Monday August 6 10am: Check out hostel. Walk to Ostend train Station. Train to Leuven. Walk to Leuven Youth Hostel am: Check in Youth Hostel Blauwput. 12pm: We visit Leuven University pm: Lecture on the history of Leuven University pm: Lunch offered by Leuven University. 3pm: We meet with Patrick Pasteure, Prof. in History at the Univ. of Leuven. 3-5pm: Guided city tour in Leuven pm: Visit university library with Luc Rombouts. The library had been destroyed during World War I but was later rebuilt with donations from American universities, including the University of California. 6.30pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Tuesday August 7 10am: Meeting at the reception of the hostel. Train to Bruges pm: Visit of the city s archives, where the archives director Noël Geernaert shows us some of the city s most precious documents dating back to the Middle Ages pm: free for lunch.

9 2.30-4pm: City tour, including visit of the famous City Hall and the Chapel of the Holy Blood. 4-5pm: Visit Groeninge Museum with a fabulous collection of Flemish medieval masters, including work by Jan van Eyck and Hieronymus Bosch. 5pm: Return to Leuven. 6pm: Return to hostel and introduction to tomorrow s program. Wednesday August 8 10am: We meet at the reception of the hostel pm: Final review of the course and information session on the final exam. 12pm: free. Thursday August 9 10am: We meet at the reception of the hostel pm: Individual presentation of the journals. 12pm: free. Friday August 10 10am: We meet at the reception of the hostel pm: Final Examination. 12pm: free. 7-10pm: All group presentations at the Flemish cultural organization Davidsfonds. Dinner offered by the Davidsfonds. Saturday August 11 Check-out by 10am (or earlier according to your flight). Walk to Leuven Station. Direct train-connections to Brussels International Airport. Return flights from Brussels International Airport Zaventem. Arrival in the USA. HOUSING In Amsterdam: Youth Hostel Stayokay Amsterdam Vondelpark Zandpad 5, 1054 GA Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Tel +31(0) , Fax +31 (0) , vondelpark@stayokay.com (Arrival: July 8, Departure: July19) In Luxembourg: Youth Hostel Luxembourg City 2, Rue du Fort Olisy 2261 Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Tel +35(2) , luxembourg@youthhostels.lu (Arrival: July 19, Departure: July 23) In Brussels: Youth Hostel Breughel Heilige Geeststraat 2, 1000 Brussels, Belgium Tel +32(2) ; Fax +32(2) , brussel@vjh.be (Arrival: July 23, Departure: July 27) In Antwerp: Youth Hostel Pulcinella Bogaardeplein 1, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium Tel +32(0) / Fax +32 (0) , antwerpen@vjh.be (Arrival: July 27, Departure: August 3)

10 In Ostend: Youth Hostel De Ploate Langestraat 82 - B 8400 Oostende, Tel +32(0) , Fax +32(0) , oostende@vjh.be (Arrival: August 3, Departure: August 6) In Leuven: Youth Hostel "De Blauwput" Martelarenlaan 11A, 3010 Leuven, Belgium. TEL +32(0) , FAX +32(0) leuven@vjh.be (Arrival: August 6, Departure: August 11) Course Requirements No previous knowledge about the Low Countries or about European history is required. No knowledge of Dutch or French language is required. No language teaching is involved in this course. All readings and discussions are in English. You are expected to attend all lectures and participate in all trips. You must have completed the required reading before the beginning of the course and to be ready to pose questions, try out ideas, listen to and challenge the ideas of others, and actively engage the material as a group. We expect you to behave properly at all visits as you represent the honor of our university. Improper behavior will affect your final grade. Your attendance and participation count for 30% of your final grade. You will be required to keep an intellectual journal during the course. Therefore you should always make notes during the lectures and during all visits. In your journal, you should present a summary of the daily visits and add your personal comments and reflections, using your notes and the texts in the reader as intellectual support. You should include in your journal quotes from the reader and from your notes. It is important to show how the successive visits shaped your view of the Low Countries, their history, culture, politics and identity. You may opt for either a written or an online-journal, which enables you to add images, photographs and videos to your journal. For examples of online journals, go to You will also need to prepare a group presentation at the end of the course. Your group, composed by a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 5 people, will show its presentation on the final evening of the course, August 10. We encourage you to opt for a video-presentation, which enables you to add images, music and photographs. For an example of a video presentation, go to Your journal and final presentation count for 40% of your final grade. This course has a final examination. In this 3-hours final exam, you will have to analyze several questions about the topics that have been discussed during the course. You are allowed to make use of both your notes and the reader. You should take into consideration the following questions: What is at stake in this question? How can I connect this question with other problems that have been discussed during the travel course? How can I sustain my arguments on the basis of my notes and quotes from the reader? It is highly recommended to express a personal, critical opinion. The final exam counts for 30% of your final grade.

11 People who are not enrolled in the program are not allowed to join us for the visits during the program. This does not apply to the weekends, because during the weekends, you are completely free. You will only share your room in the hostels with other students of our group. Male and female students remain (at all times) in separate rooms. People who are not part of our program are not allowed to remain in your room at the hostel. During the week, we expect you to sleep at the hostel. If, during one of the weekends, you intend not to sleep at the hostel, you must inform the program director and provide him with the address where you intend to stay. You are completely free to organize your own program during the weekends. Be aware, however, that this is an intensive program and that you should consider using the weekends to relax. We strongly recommend remaining in the Low Countries during the weekends. If you plan to visit other countries during your stay in Europe, we recommend that you plan these trips before or after our program. Try to limit your luggage to the strict minimum. Most hostels have washing machines and dryers (but no detergent). Hostels offer pillows, sheets and blankets but you should bring your own towels. You might also bring sandals to use in the showers. Hostels do not offer you a kitchen to do your own cooking. Supermarkets in the Low Countries usually offer a rich variety of salads and sandwiches at relatively cheap prizes. We expect you to stay in the program from July 8 until August 11, late arrivals on August 9 or early departures on August 10 are not permitted. Assignments and Grades Attendance and Participation 30% Journal and Final Presentation 40% Final examination 30% Required Readings A reader (300 pages) will be made with a selection of texts dealing with Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The reader will be available for purchase at Replica Copy 2140 Oxford Street, Berkeley. Non UCB-students can request a reader by mail to the program director.