things i learned abroad

1. to ride the train/bus backwards
2. to eat ketchup
3. to drink sparkling water

quick catch-up

my last 2 weeks in strasbourg sped by. on the weekends we explored the black forest, heidelburg, wrote our papers for the hague, shopped, rode our bikes around town, and ate at a l'observatoire about 5 times a week, minimum.

i already miss it. but not the dorm and the classes, but all my people.

last friday i stopped in munich and then continued to garmisch-partenkirchen to recouperate at my half-brother's house. this involved playing with his 3 babies and searching for summer jobs. on monday morning i left on my whirlwind tour of central/eastern europe.

i spent a few more hours walking around munich and then took the train to vienna. still one of my favorite cities. after dropping my stuff off at my hostel, i went to the town hall for their food and music extravaganza. i ate some fabulous spetzle, drank a radler, and watched classical music on a giant tv screen.

tuesday i met up with ilana and her friend shiri to enjoy some more of vienna.

wednesday morning during breakfast i met a boy/actor from nyc, who accompanied me to bratislava. thank god i wasn't alone. we really had to maneuver our way around the post-soviet capital. all i can really say is that bratislava is nothing like vienna, prague, or budapest. after a day in bratislava, we made our way to budapest.

my arrival in budapest was far from glamorous. it was alreadz 10.30pm and i had to make my way, with no forinths, to my hostel. after being controlled on the metro i finally got to my stop, and then spent close to an hour finding my street, which was completely hidden due to construction. this hour was not fun for several reasons: i was sweating (p.s. i ran out of deoderant), developed a giant blister on the bottom of my foot due to sweat, and was stressed out about being either robbed or my hostel closing down before i got there.

lucky for me, the guy was waiting for my arrival. in the morning i went to meet ilana and shiri for a walking tour. they never showed up, but i miraculously ran into them randomly in the streets and we set a time to meet for dinner. i went on the walking tour. it was the best 3000 huf (approximately 12 euro) i spent all week. there were onlz 3 of us with our private tour guide. after the tour i went to one of the famous baths and then met the girls for a nice dinner.

yesterday i had a very rough start. the atm machine i went to use to get cash to pay my hostel ate my card. because it's expired. so i had to use my credit card to get a cash advance. ugh. then i stood in the wrong line for my train ticket and missed the 11.10 train and had to wait another 2 hours. so i didn't get to salzburg until 8pm.

salzburg is beautiful. it rained all last night and this morning. now the sun is shining and the sky is bright and crystal clear as i prepare to head back to garmisch.

bastille day

yesterday was bastille day. which meant we had no class. which means we have way too much class the rest of the week.

last night we headed into the center of town to watch the fireworks. it felt like the entire city was out on the streets. the fireworks were cool and reminded me of how we basically missed the fourth of july and how i like to sing patriotic songs like god bless america and america the beautiful. it also reminded me of setting off fireworks in cupertino last fourth of july, which was incredibly fun. and slightly dangerous. it seems like every year the fourth of july is more and more bizarre. one can only imagine what next year will bring...

maginot line

sunday, we took the car up through northern alsace. we went through towns famous for pottery and then ended up in hatten, where we visited a museum/fort of the maginot line. the 3 euros we spent made for a much larger experience than we had anticipated.

baths-baths

saturday morning, we rented a car and headed off to baden-baden, a resort town in germany. when we arrived, we hiked around the alte schloss.





we had a great german lunch and then off we went to the baths, which were incredibly relaxing. the three hours we spent there just flew by.

we tried to go to the casino, but were not dressed well enough. but through the glass doors, it basically looked like casino royale. lucky for us, outside the casino was some kind of summer concert with really good food.

oh, and our car is super cute.

velocation.

on tuesday we rented bikes. 20 euro for the whole month. basically, the best possible transportation. it's so flat and biker-friendly here in strasbourg, and it doesn't even matter that the bike is a one speed :)

i only live about 5 minutes away from school by bike, which, for the most part, is a pleasant way to start the morning. however, it's so hot and humid here that after the 5 minute ride, entering our stagnant classroom is miserable.

last night i watched no country for old men with lisa. after she left my room, thunder and lighting hit. thank god. unfortunately, i still had to wipe the sweat off my body this morning. you know, because even though it's rainy and coolish outside, the air in every building is stagnant. i don't understand how europeans seem to be comfortable with non-moving air. i'm not even talking about air-conditioning, but, come on, get some vents open and moving air!

screw you la somme.

before we came to strasbourg, we were on strict instructions to, under no circumstances, allow ourselves to be put in the dorm paul appell. so after my 5 hr train ride, the 3 trams to get here (which, it turns out, could have been 1 if i hadn't followed the "instructions"), and the aimless wandering with luggage to find my street, i am told that la somme, my dorm where the rest of my classmates are already checked in, is full. no keys. "see, no keys." i might have cried. but all my friends were very positive and helped me carry my stuff up to their rooms so i could go at a leisurely pace to paul appell.

when i get to paul appell, woman is a bitch. sends me to registration. "registration closed at 7." "you have to register." so i go out and stare at the locked building and head back in to check in, now for the third time that day. i get my key to my unmarked room across from a stairwell that faces a ghetto apartment building. yay. i'm also told to register monday morning at 9am at the university. which part? i'm not sure. but it doesn't matter since i really can't register until tuesday. thanks bitch.

at around 8.30, ilana, lisa, and i head out of la somme with my luggage. our plan is to get dinner along the way to paul appell, maybe catch some of the soccer game. as we pass through the "lobby," ilana spies the desk guy who had assured her the previous night that he would "reserve" me a room. so we waited in line to speak with the man.

this man is a character. speaks spanish and some french. ilana questions him about my "reserved" room. "no, no keys. no rooms. all gone. sorry. paul appell. oh wait, but there is this one room, 317. but you don't want it, there's nothing there." "what do you mean nothing there? no bed?" "yes bed, but it's dirty." so we take the keys to look at the BAD room. it's "perfect." so i weasel my way into la somme. the building with stagnant air and no pillows and dirty floors.

oh and we can't forget about the 2 phone calls i got this morning from INDIA. the man was trying to call someone in room 315. why couldn't i take a message or get her? i'm sorry, i'm not the front desk (although i did try knocking on the door).

gastronomique.

friday night i couldn't sleep. apparently this is a new thing for me because i couldn't sleep last night either. also, i've become one of those always hot people. i'm thinking it's because i basically spent last summer in an air-conditioned office building and didn't experience summer?

lyon was splendid. and susi a great host. in the morning we stopped for a cafe and pastry in vielle lyon and then continued up the hill to a beautiful cathedral that overlooks the city. susi was able to point out every main attraction. we then made our way to the center/shopping area of the city and took advantage of the "solde," i.e. sale of the season. the first time this trip i've bought something other than postcards :)

we had a very lyonnais lunch, comprised of a salad with saucisson au briochet, this weird lyonnais bready-eggy delicious thing in a rocquefort sauce, and iles flottant. yum. also add in a bourdeaux rose and a cafe.

we did more walking around and made our way home for a short break before going to the hotel de ville for a beer. and later a crepe in vielle lyon. basically a beautiful night.

luckily i was able to pass out despite the sleep and slept the latest i have in weeks, 9am.

au revoir geneve.

it's 4pm and i'm sitting in my room, listening to jose gonzalez, and getting a bit nostalgic, as this is my last afternoon in geneva. and while in theory i'd like to go out and take in my last hours with the city, i've resolved to just sit here and be a little sad. this evening we are having our farewell fondue dinner in the old town, which will be nice, but several people have already left, so it'll still feel incomplete.

today i did two loads of laundry, since i don't know when i'll have the chance to easily do it again, and i'm slowly deciding which books and pamphlets to take with me. for lunch i ate the last of the food in my icebox and i'm currently drinking my last glass of wine. the bottle is already in the trash.

i've also been having some crazy dreams. many about the restaurant industry and people from my past life. weird. if i knew how to write in a journal, i would right now. oh man desperado just went on...it may be time to go outside.

mont blanc is not just a pen company.

after not making it home until LATE on saturday night, up ilana and i got at 7.30am to be at the bus station by 8.30 to take a bus to mont blanc (well, actually to chamonix, the town at the bottom of the mountain). unfortunately, the bus schedule changed saturday night, which meant we missed our bus. as we stood at the bus stop, weighing our options, ilana flagged down a swiss police car. they would not take us to the bus station. then several hired taxis passed us. finally at 8.15 one of the taxis that had passed by came back to get us. we made it to the bus station by 8.25 and off we went!

by the time we got to chamonix at 10am, we were exhausted. but we quickly found our way around the adorable alpen village to a superb patisserie. i picked up a great little danish-y pastry with custard and fresh blueberries. we took them to this hole in the wall internet cafe, where we figured we could buy coffee without being embarrassed about the pastries we bought elsewhere. this cafe was BOMB. one of the best "renverse" i have had. maybe because i was so tired and hadn't had a cup of coffee in a LONG time. we then bought 2 sandwiches a emporter to eat on the mountain.

we took the funicular up the mountain. it was spectacular. basically just lots and lots of photo ops. on our way down, we stopped at the halfway point to eat our sandwiches. these random sandwiches from the internet cafe were fabulous. i had one with chorizo, goat cheese, pesto, lettuce, and tomato. ilana's had smoked chicken, mozzarella, avocado, lettuce, and tomato. i would basically eat them non-stop if i could. after our lunch we took a hike to lake bleu, which was a bit difficult in my birks, as there was still snow to trudge through. and my foot definitely got stuck in snow a couple times.

and somehow i've gotten the tannest i've been in a long, long time.

hup holland hup!

saturday - lausanne. supposedly one of the two must-see places on lake geneva. the other is chateau chillon. clearly we read guidebooks.

lausanne was a lot like montreaux. upon arrival, susi, ilana, and i started walking up to the old town, through a market, of course, and stopped at a great little cafe. we had carac, susi's favorite swiss dessert and, while eating, were found by lisa and abbie. i think it may be time for someone to write a travel book on "market days through europe."

we then went to the olympic museum. and then went paddle boating. and then ate. and then ate a little more.





and once we came home, back we went to the music festival and to fanzone. but the russia v. netherlands game was truly ruined for me by some anti-american brit who basically yelled with me through the whole overtime period of the game. loser. too bad he was well-educated.

la fete de la musique and FANZONE

this weekend was la fete de la musique. everyone in geneva was out walking around the parks, listening to various types of music, drinking and eating lots of cheap, good food.

susi came in at 7pm, just as we were getting back from montreau. we went straight to the park to join in with the rest of geneva.



however, as we made our way to listen to some bossa nova, we suddenly found ourselves at the fanzone for the turkey v. hrvatska game. which was intense. not only did we get like dix churros pour cinq franc, instead of the usual six, but the game went into overtime, with turkey scoring in the last moments of the period to send us into penalty kicks. turkey fans had already started leaving and suddenly were sprinting back once the roar had erupted. lucky night for them, as hrvatska missed 2 shots.

lifestyles of the rich and famous.

friday, after our oral exam, off we went to the swiss riviera, i.e. to montreaux to see chateau chillon.

again, it's a bit unfair that our weather has been this spectacular.

montreaux was like disneyland. everything perfectly pruned, with walking paths along the lake, some sailboats, and a giant castle. after about a 45 minute walk, we reached chateau chillon, which was not at all like french chateaus, but like the castles we read about as children. the best part was that we were able to see almost the entire castle and from every window we saw lake. and mountains. and beauty. ahh.

oh, and i went swimming in the lake. finally.

daydream believer.

this week, my class was on international organizations. but really, it was on the un and its pitfalls. i enjoyed it, but the french professor was a bit too anti-religion and pessimistic about the fate of america. apparently i'm still the eternal optimist, as i can't believe that 8 yrs of the idiot bush (and Strauss theory) could actually reverse the world's opinion of the u.s. and set us back several generations of human rights policy. but in any case, i may be able to make the world a better place for MY children.

last night we had a pizza and beer party. it was much fun. now that many of us have been together for close to 5 wks, we've all become pretty close, despite the natural separations during "freetime." we also played 5 v. 5 soccer before dinner. it's quite possible i sprained my toe. it's okay since my team won and i actually scored/assisted a few goals. all of the euro 2008 stuff really makes me miss field hocky and competitive sports. perhaps my fh hiatus is soon to end...

tomorrow after my oral exam we are going to montreau, i.e. the swiss riviera, on lake geneva and to chateau chillon. this weekend geneva is hosting a music festival. here is the website http://www.ville-ge.ch/culture/fm/. and on saturday, susi is coming in from lyon to go to lausanne, also a village on the lake. i want to take a side trip to gruyere to go to a dairy. and eat some fondue.

the weather has just become beautiful. and basically nothing has yet to change my positive feelings about this city. i may be coming from a skewed opinion because i love what i'm studying, despite sometimes disagreeing with speakers and the non-stop negative feelings we've been developing about the international system, and i love the people i'm surrounded by. most inspiring is the fact that all the students here are as inspired and determined as i am that we can make a difference. when the palestinian ambassador to the u.n. spoke to us last week, probably the best words he left us with were about the difference that our generation will get to make. we just have to seize the opportunities and truly believe that the sky is the limit.

one of my classmates is an llm student named kathleen. she lives in portland and has three kids. when we were in the hague she met with one of her greatest role models, a female judge on the icj (who may be elected the next high commissioner for human rights) and was offered a temporary job. kathleen is an international law junkie and serves as an incredible inspiration. even with a family, she is still able to be in the forefront of international human rights law. and she fulfills my belief that as long as you remain true to yourself and your dreams, your path will unfold before you.

sometimes i freak out that there is too much for me to do in my lifetime, especially when i want to have a family. but when i look at kathleen i'm assured that it will all work out.

honey, i'm home.

this morning i awoke with "as i went out one morning" stuck in my head. weird.

on friday, after our exam we went biking along lake geneva. we stopped at the botanical garden for a picnic and then at the lakeshore. it was so relaxing. the relaxation continued yesterday, when some of us took an hour long boat tour on the lake and then another boat to the medieval village of yvoire. (unfortunately, it was the one day i forgot my camera. ugh.) this morning i went to church for pentecost. the church is so beautiful. words can't even express it.

i think i've found where i want to live.

le jut d'eau

yesterday my allergies turned into what sounds like a smoker's cough. the worst part about it is that deep breaths and laughter only makes it worse. i've taken my first dose of cough medicine. we'll see if it works.

i wish i had more to tell you about my classes thus far, but truth be told, they haven't really caused much inspiration. although today we went to the icrc (international committee of the red cross) and it's possible i've found my job. we'll see. i feel like international human rights law may not be up my alley, but international humanitarian law could be. more on that next week when i'm in my humanitarian law class :)

geneva is just beautiful and might be the most livable city i've been to in europe, minus the high prices. yesterday we had the afternoon off, and ilana and i went down to the lakefront and walked around, stopping at the occasional beach and drinking 1 franc beers from the grocery store. when we stopped at the store for the second time, i remained outside. shortly thereafter 2 elderly swiss men left the store, holding a bar of chocolate between them. they stopped outside the front to open up the package and have a piece. it was the cutest sight. i just stood there smiling at them. after one old man took a piece, the one holding the bar offered me a piece. of course i took it. and they clearly knew what chocolate was the best to buy, because that was some good dark chocolate. we then headed back to the fanzone. to watch more futbol. yes.

even better, our friend coen from leiden emailed me back about the dutch game (they won on tuesday 3-0, it was great). i'm really touched that the these friends we've made are maintaining contact :) wow, i'm one of those mushy people.

tonight most of us are staying in to catch up on reading, as we have our first exam tomorrow morning.

i've also had the opportunity to work on my russian, speaking both with ilana and the russian. well, more like improving my comprehension skills, as i still respond in only half russian.

john knox

basically i just wrote a post and then hit a button and it disappeared. what's the point of autosave, when it autosaves the disappeared text OVER the text that used to be there?

so here's a funny story.

i'm staying in the john knox center. yesterday on our tour of the old town, we stopped in front of a monument recognizing four protestant reformers. wooooweeee. one was john knox. apparently, a guy in our group asked his taxi driver from the airport to take him to john knox. the driver took him to the statue. HA. also, clearly law school is affecting my life because i kept misspelling statue as statute. HA.

after our tour of the UN building we went to the fancenter to watch the france v. romania and the netherlands v. italy game. the second game was PACKED. and it was the game we were really there for, since we all now have this strong connection with the dutch people. by halftime we were winning 2-0. the fancenter is awesome. there's great atmosphere and LOTS of food. i had a veal sausage on a roll. tomorrow night, when we go to watch the russia v. spain game, i will get the falafel wrap. it's supposed to be excellent. also, surprisingly, the food at the fancenter is priced almost better than any other place.

sweat, sweat, and no sleep

right now i'm sitting in a weird chair at the john knox center, my new home for 3 wks. 2 seats to the left of me is a russian guy speaking to a ukrainian girl who is standing beside me. neither of them are with my program. but the reason i bring this up is because the guy has a phenomenal speaking voice. it's deep and sexy, and it's kind of blowing my mind right now.

i'm not sure if i should work backward of forward from yesterday to best impart on you the vast amount of sweat that came to pass from my body. (although i'm sure dena beats me.)

i arrived here at 11am, after hiking 15 minutes up hill with my bags, which was after the bus ride, which was after the train, which left paris at 7.10. i think that "i'm afraid of missing my train" feeling kept me tossing and turning all night.

the paris i saw last night was beautiful. but like i said before, the feeling of melancholy still remained.



on my last day in paris i went to the musee d'orsay and l'orangerie. they were both incredible. i made my first purchases...a small monet print, a book on l'orangerie so you all can see what an awesome "museum" it is, and 2 postcards. one of the postcards is this random orientalist piece that is called elephants in africa. it's basically not at all the typical style of art i like. but something about it drew me in.

i like paris, but i don't love paris. but i could basically eat my way through the city. too bad money doesn't grow on trees...

paris, je t'aime

today was basically insane. i almost overslept. my train left bruges at 6.26am. i was rushing out of the hostel at 5.55am. to catch the bus to take me to the train. as a result, i'm not a pretty sight. i didn't straighten my hair last night, so my bangs are kinda crazy. i have bugbites on my face (and a zit), and barely any mascara. and i've worn this same shirt like 4 times. which could explain why i've been sweating so much because i think old clothes makes you sweat more. now that i've adequately grossed you out, i will continue.

i arrived at the gare du nord at 9am. i was at my hostel by 10. then i walked. all day. i also went to the picasso museum. i ate one sandwich. by 2pm my legs couldn't carry me any longer, so i went to see the sex and the city movie. more on that at another time. after the movie, i started walking again. and i stumbled across a giant crowd watching the semi-finals of the french open in front of the hotel de ville. i joined them for about half an hour before i went to au lys d'argent, a teeny restaurant on the l'ile st. louis that my mom had recommended. it was good. i had a salad with toast and smoked salmon, then a crepe with fromage, tomato, and creme fraiche, then a chocolate cake with creme anglais. i drank a glass of muscatelle with dinner and an espresso with my dessert. i sat and ate it all alone, with no one else in the restaurant. because i'm in paris and was clearly eating too early. afterwards i made my way to the eiffel tower and read. now i'm at an internet cafe. soon i will go to sleep.

i'm not sure how i feel about travelling alone. part of me likes it because i don't have to bend what i do to someone else's needs. and i can get started early, as is my style. but there's this part of me that gets kind of melancholy. maybe it's really like that because being in paris reminds me of the last time i was in paris. and so much has changed since then.

here's hoping that no one has stolen my suitcase. since it's been sitting around in the hostel for 12 hours.

in bruges

on wednesday morning i left scheveningen and arrived in brussels at around 2pm. i did a whirlwind tour of the center...2 walking tours and a lunch of beer, mussels and fries. then back i went to the train station to pick up my bags and headed to bruges (of course that was after dealing with the crazy brussels train station, where my train didn't say it was going to bruges). my first night in bruges i ate dinner on the center. i had beer and this weird salad, where it seemed like the chef threw together whatever he could, i.e. endive, lettuce, green beans, tomatoes, cucumber, bacon, warm goat cheese on little apples slices, croutons, all joined together with a raspberry vinaigrette. truth be told, it was still good. i then befriended 3 of my roommates in my hostel and we went downstairs to the bar.

yesterday, i toured bruges with one of my hostelmates. we did, of course, a walking tour. saw some historical stuff, blah, blah, took a tour of a brewery, where we met some nice australians, bought some belgian chocolates, and then had dinner at a pub, which had over 150 kinds of beligian beers. all delicious. i tried some kind that is unique to belgium. it's called a trappiste. it's made by a special group of monks. there are only 7 trappiste breweries in the world. their beer is super strong, but you can't even tell. and has great flavor.

thunder and lightning

on sunday, lisa and i went to the m. c. escher museum, which i loved. outside the museum was a typical dutch flea market, with a couple of food stands. i was craving fresh squeezed orange juice. it was expensive, but quenched my thirst. after meandering through the stalls of persian rugs, chrystal, and delftware, we walked around the center of the hague, and stopped for some dutch french fries.

yesterday and today were my last two days. these two weeks have just sped by. unfortunately, our early days have not lent themselves to much exploring, due to intermittent thunder showers. we did manage to go to our suriname restaurant yesterday and a great doner deli today. tonight is our farewell dinner.

heineken pilsners

yesterday, ilana and i left the hague to take in the last of the surrounding areas. in haarlem, we walked around the saturday market and kept buying food. they had these great vietnamese spring rolls. we also had samples of raw salmon from the sushi stand and really good sausage. also ilana finally got to see a windmill. at the de adriaan windmill, we took a tour from a really funny (unintentionally) dutch man, who basically told us the entire history of windmills and demonstrated how they work with models.












we then made our way to leiden, but, by the time we got there, the botanical gardens were already closed. instead, we just meandered through the university and then toward the center, with no map. as we headed back to the train station, we passed a bar playing loud dutch music, where the patrons seemed to be celebrating something special. of course we went in. they were not celebrating, it was an ordinary saturday night.


at rembrandt cafe, we quickly befriended the entire bar. all we kept hearing was, why did you decide to come in here? most people just walk on past. the bar closed at 8pm to the public, but remained open for us and our dutch friends. when coen and his brother, thomas, realized that we had yet to eat real croquets and fricadels, thomas got on his bike and rode to a snackbar to bring us back some. this kindness was seen all night, as ilana and i only spent 3 euros, total. we were also invited to come back this afternoon for a bbq. unfortunately m.c.escher beckons.

wining

thursday was my last day watching trial at the icty. yesterday we went to the icj and watched some of the arguments in a dispute between croatia and serbia. the difference between the icj and the icty was startling, but i suppose that makes sense as there aren't any war criminals at the icj.

last night we invited people from our program over for wine. we ended up with about 10 people, which was a perfect amount for our not-so-large apartment. and, like i said before, it was fun being surrounded by other students interested in studying the same things, as we inevitably start dissecting the proceedings at the icty. it's almost surprising to me how many students are leaving the hague with the perspective that the icty is flawed.

today we are off to haarlem and leiden, neighboring towns. i'd like to eat at the surinamese restaurant near our apartment. it's supposed to be cheap and good.

ground up rocks

after class yesterday, i went home, poured myself a glass of tempranillo, and made myself dinner. my roommates and i then packed my backpack with some beers, and headed down to our beach, to watch the 4 hour sunset.





i still can't get over where i'm living! it's this weird combination of so many places in the world. unfortunately, the wind picked up last night and the sand ground it's way into my eyes. luckily, my classmate had medicated eyedrops that magically turned the bloodshot whites back to the appropriate color.


and everyday in court, we experience some new, unexpected element of the trial. yesterday we watched seselj's trial again. i wrote about him before, referring to the "seselj show" and how he uses the trial to build his political career. this time, he was doing the cross-examination. instead of posing questions to the witness, he manages to give long monologues and answers the questions he poses himself. "didn't croatia begin the war? yes, of course they did." and when the judge stopped him, to explain that he needed to be posing questions and not create new arguments he said, "he doesn't need to answer my question. it's already been answered." search seselj on youtube, i'm sure you'll find some great footage.


currently i'm home for lunch, drinking a cup of coffee. we just finished our last session of watching trials at the icty. tomorrow we will go watched an icj trial between serbia and croatia. fabulous! tonight i'm planning on training up to amsterdam to tour the anne frank house and the red light district. hopefully the sun will come out like it did last night.

the fog of war

on tuesday, we had two incredible speakers, a couple from berkeley, who are defense attorneys. i was inspired by them for several reasons.
1. for the first time this trip, the speakers expressed similar thoughts to mine. while they are critical of the icty and the "international community," they still retained a lot of hope in its potential and in my generation's role in changing it into a more just system.
2. though i've often thought the role of a defense attorney to be one i could do, i struggle with the thought of defending guilty criminals. this couple helped me realize that the role of a defense attorney is different; it is founded on the fundamental belief in providing a just trial. at the icty, few cases are acquitted. this couple was the defense team for one of the only "winning" trials. the prosecution in this case never argued that the defendants were the actual perpetrators of the crime. this is a mistake that many come to the icty with...the belief that the defendants are already guilty. we can see this in the emphasis on bringing justice to the victims.
3. it is not unrealistic to be optimistic.
4. they mentioned the film, the fog of war, viewable at http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8653788864462752804, which is great.

Homo Sapiens non urinat in ventum

li10 hours in amsterdam makes for a long and full day.

amsterdam is beautiful. unfortunately, it was raining. but have no fear, we still did rick steve's "amsterdam city walk." about halfway through we stopped at a spectacular cafeteria in one of holland's oldest department store chains, vroom & dreesman. and spent a good deal of time at the flower markt. we also said "hello" to the van gogh museum and the sex museum, and took a canal tour.

before heading home we had dinner at an indonesian dutch restaurant, where we dined on a rijsttafel, a huge assortment of bites.

and this is a block away from where i live...

vermeer

i love how dutch sounds like it has no vowels.

today we* went to delft, a town outside of the hague, and to mauritshuis, a well-known museum in the hague, which houses the girl with the pearl earring. apparently today was all about vermeer.

delft was so quaint and was full of people enjoying the outdoor markt, i.e. flea market. we walked around for several hours, touring both the old and new church, climbing the bell tour, and watching an artisan paint delftware.









at mauritshuis, i got my fill of dutch artwork. we'll see if i "have time" to see the rijksmuseum in amsterdam... there was an excellent exhibit on coorte, who is famous for still-lifes, and i benefitted from the spectacular FREE audioguide. mauritshuis also had several vermeers and rembrandts.

*we refers to myself, ilana, and lisa, my roommates minus one

beers

last night some of us drank beer in plein, a square in the center of the hague. this was the first time we rode into the center since arriving. the hague is a beautiful town! although the center is a bit polluted with mcdonalds, burger king, subway, and kfc. after the boys used the outside urinal, we went back to scheveningen and hung out by the beach at one of the many outdoor bars with fire pits.

the only beers typically on tap are brand and heineken, both lagers, and some kind of weisse beer that i really like. weisse beers are often served with a lemon wheel and a cute little muttler and are not as heavy as many others i've had, but still retain the banana-ey flavor.

this is my apartment

this is our bedroom.

this is our kitchen.

this is our living room.

good coffee doesn't exist in the netherlands

in my apartment, we make breakfast each morning and pack a lunch for court. at the icty, you can pay 25 euro cents for a coffee from the vending machine. it's pretty nasty, but, then again, some people like vending machine coffee. on wednesday, i thought i found the solution. in the cafeteria there is a little coffee stand. with an espresso machine. so i ordered a cappucchino that cost 1.50 euro. i basically paid the guy to push the button on the vending machine.

luckily, in my apartment, we have a teeny tiny coffee maker with a built in filter. after paying the "barista" to push the button on the vending machinge, i opted to buy some coffee grinds at the super market. this proved much more difficult than i had anticipated, but apparently i've learned enough dutch to buy the proper grinds for my machine.

here, the bread you buy for sandwiches is dutch crunch. although maybe they just call it crunch. and italian restaurants are like starbucks here...on every corner. but there are no cafes.

i may not be as idealistic as you might think...

yesterday was a rough day. my roommates and i took the tram to the icty for our first day of court and class. the study abroad office seems to enjoy providing very little information, just to make our experiences that much more enriched. it was a rough day, as we were all jet lagged and had to sit through several hours of introductory lectures and trial. but we ended the day with a welcome dinner at the galleria on the boulevard, an italian restaurant on what is very similar to a boardwalk, minus rides. i then went and had beers with another classmate near my apartment. the bar was super kitchy and beer was only 2.25 each.

today was incredible. we sat through about 4 hours of trial. this trial was for seselj, former president of the serbian radical party. he's being tried for persecutions on political, racial, or religious grounds, inhumane acts, murder, torture, cruel treatment, and destruction. it was spectacular because, not only is he defending himself, but he is using the broadcasting of the trial throughout serbia for his political benefit. we met with the head prosecutor after court, daryl mundis, who explained that seselj's party is currently creating a coalition with other minority parties, and may be able to take control of the serbian government shortly. additionally, it is believed that he uses the broadcast and court sessions to communicate with his party members and give out orders. moments like these make me question the effectiveness of the icty and, even, the icc. despite these organizations, there still exists little accountability for atrocities throughout the world. and how much does trying men like seselj help the international community? in many ways his political muscle has only gotten stronger.

it's been very stimulating to be surrounded by liberal-minded law students, who are always eager to discuss the problems of the world :) just my kind of folks. unfortunately, there are no eligible bachelors.

throughout trial today i kept pondering, perhaps nancy haley wasn't so crazy afterall...perhaps i could be a prosecutor.

i'm here!

it's 3:30 pm on tuesday, and i'm sitting in my apartment in scheveningen, a beach town outside of the hague. our apartment clearly was originally a portion from a larger home, as the floor plan could be the strangest thing on earth. but we do have a living room with wireless internet, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a large bedroom with 4 twin-sized beds. the ceilings are probably around 20 ft high with elaborate crown molding, and the sun is shining in through the large windows on opposite sides of the apartment. the weather is spectacular...like spring in cupertino :)

my schedule

5/19: leave home
5/20 - 6/4: the hague
[6/3: by now obama is our candidate]
6/4: brussels
6/5: bruges
6/6 - 6/7: paris
6/8 - 6/27: geneva
6/28 - 6/29: lyon
6/30 - 8/1: strasbourg
8/1 - 8/6: garmisch-partenkirchen
8/7: return home