And so begins my 'daily' picture blog...

I've begun bringing my camera with me almost everywhere to catch some images of my life in the city. Following are a few of my past week, including my first week with UNESCO, making new friends and a day of painting!

Taken out to lunch @ Nara, by my supervisor as a welcome to work :)
Marlene, a lovely Peruvian woman.

A little public transport in Bangkok..
Boat through the city heading to the United Nations building for happy hour with some new UNESCO coworkers

WTF Bar/Art Gallery = A fun Friday night!

Sunday Painting at Attic Studios
My first painting in a looong while, and it feels good :)

"Painting is damned difficult - you always think you've got it, but you haven't." - Paul Cezanne

xoxox
Amy

Asia!

Hello long lost followers! I hope that my absence hasn't caused you all to forget about my little story. But I'll do my best to catch you up on my recent travels and busy lifestyle.

So I left having finished my classes in Leiden and about to journey to another part of the world, ASIA! In between Leiden and my final term in Bangkok, I had the amazing opportunity to visit my cousin Tenzin Legtsok in India, where he lives as a Buddhist monk. Beginning the trip with no other expectations than to see his world, I left the country feeling amazed, peaceful, and rejuvenated. Legtsok opened his home to me and I got to experience a part of his daily life at the monastery, do a bit of traveling within India and visit with his Indian and ex-pat friends and students in Bangalore.

From the moment I landed in the foreign place, I was amazed at the colors, sights and energy of the country. India is different than anywhere I have ever traveled and I fell in love. Legtsok spoke with me about Buddhist beliefs and practice while I read a book on meditation. We offered rupees and prayers from my Aunt Carol, made an amazing lunch for his house mates and had a picnic watching the sunset over the jungle, among other adventures. I guess the best way to describe it was absolutely peaceful in every way. Head, heart and all.

Indian man praying in front of the Hindu temple

Tibetan prayer flags

Picking pepper

Afternoon with the monks..

Door to the temple

After my amazing experience in India, I traveled into the war zone known as Bangkok. I arrived on May 18th, the day the government cracked down on the protesters that had been disrupting the city for months. I was picked up by the school and hurried 3 hours south to Hua Hin, a cozy beach town where the undergraduate Webster campus is located. From that day on Bangkok's disruptions got better and I moved back to the city a month later. However, the beach town wasn't too bad for a month either :)

My final term in Thailand is best described as busy, overwhelming and a bit dramatic. For most, a master's degree entails a thesis paper, which usually takes a few months to write. I was assigned a mini-thesis (turning out to be 50 pages), as well as two other classes. This means that I wrote roughly 90 pages in two months, by far the most ever for me. I will say that I learned a lot! Which I guess achieves the purpose in the end :) I really enjoyed my topic, which was the debate between international museums and the source nations of artefacts. Making the work a bit less gruesome, haha.

Other than all of this boring talk of work, Thailand is a wonderful place. I will share a few highlights of some day trips around Thailand and one amazing week on Koh Phangnan island, where I spent the week on the beach, in yoga classes and with amazing people from around the world. Enjoy :)

Meditation Retreat

Tiger Temple with the cubbies :)

Buddhist offerings in the middle of a Bangkok market..

The teenage elephant..

Meditation Retreat with the monks.
They named me Ma-Li, meaning Jasmine in Thai.

Buddhist ritual in Ayuttaya

Las chicas from around the world :)

The beach bird... He woke me up most mornings outside my bungalow.
I even caught him stealing food from my neighbors...

Sunset over the islands, followed by a terrific lightning storm!


Sunday painting at the Ancient City in Bangkok

As many of you may know through the grape vine, I am not blessing the United States with my presence anytime soon. Rather I am staying here in Bangkok to take on an internship with my dream UN org, UNESCO. (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) In order to renew my visa in Thailand, I was 'forced' to take a trip across the border to Siem Reap, Cambodia :) This is home to Angkor Wat, one of the most famous temples in SE Asia, restoration site of UNESCO, and also made several appearances in my research during my degree.

The famous Angkor Wat

I traveled alone via, moto, metro, taxi, bus, tuk tuk, taxi, and one last moto to finally arrive, 10 hours later, at my hotel. (Traveling in Asia is something unexplainable, you simply have to experience it...)

Parasite tree taking over the ruins
But don't worry, UNESCO to the rescue!

I spent two days exploring, climbing and sketching within the ancient temples. I had a fabulous time. I talked with several Cambodians to get a feel for their culture, which is both similar and quite different than Thailand's. We chatted about Cambodian history, politics, culture, language and Khmer mysticism. I loved it! I do think the Khmer food has thai food beat. Similar ingredients but less spicey! It was great. If you ever get the chance, try the Amok. mmmmm

Penguin kisses with the Buddha at the Bayon Temple

cute Khmer boy

All in all, I feel extremely blessed.

And because I've been so out of touch with my blog, I have decided to change it a bit. I would like to make it a daily picture blog, with a snapshot of my daily life in Bangkok. So you can watch for these now!

Until tomorrow,

xoxox
Amy

Queen B's Birthday

Happy Birthday Queen B!

I realize I am now weeks behind on my blogging, and I have A LOT to catch everyone up on. It might take a few posts so bear with me :) I'll begin with my departure from my friends and new-found family I had formed during almost a year in Europe.

My last full weekend in Europe happened to be the Queen of Holland's birthday celebrations, aka Queen's Day. With the plans leading up to this day, we had heard several illusive stories. So I had tried to plan accordingly and finished up papers and homework before the party began. I had several friends coming in town and needed, including Roberto and another friend from London/Undergraduate at SLU staying with me. On top of this, there were several other friends from Geneva in for the weekend to help celebrate.

Leiden canal

We started the weekend off by a boat tour through Leiden. I had been getting really envious of all the Dutch people riding by me on their boats, so I organized a trip for about 17 of us to rent a boat and driver and take us around the city. We got lucky and the day turned out to be fabulous! Very unusual, considering I have been wearing my winter coat in May. The trip was awesome and ended with a picnic in the park. One of my favorite days.

Our boat!


The next day we got up 'early' to Amsterdam to celebrate the Queen! I honestly wasn't sure what to expect, but walking into Leiden station was a bit overwhelming. There was a crowd heading to the train platform that looked like a sea of people. Because of the crowds, the trains weren't running properly and it took us a lot longer than it should have, but we finally made it to Amsterdam.

Crowds to the train... absolute madness!

We followed the crowds of people to museumsplein and spent the afternoon drinking, people watching and sampling all the street food we could find! It was a crazy, fun experience with tons of good friends. There was everything from orange smoke bombs, public urination and a live show from DJ Tiesto. The pictures might do a better job of explaining than my words here. For those of you that have been, think Mardi Gras with the Dutch. :)

the boys are clearly not happy with me taking this pic... haha

Ste, Annie and Dena dressed to the nines!
UK, SA, USA

Of course they would have an orange smoke bomb..

DJ Tiesto Concert

The next week I finished up my final papers and said far too many of tearful goodbyes. The people I met this year have helped me create some of the best memories and give me insight into all over the world. I found a quote by the American author who spent a lot of time living in Europe to help me describe.

"I met a lot of people in Europe. I even encountered myself." - James Baldwin

xoxo
Amy

Blooming in Dutch!

Per the request of mi madre, I'm back to blogging. My apologies for my absence lately. Things have been hectic! I was just looking back to see where I had left off with my little story.

I was busy planning my trip to India and Thailand. Figuring out embassies and visas, and lots of homework. Things are still about the same, but amplified.
However, I'll start from the beginning.

Since arriving here in Leiden, I've enjoyed the small town atmosphere again. After London, the change was welcome. I have had the chance to visit a few neighboring towns, like the Hague (the capital) and Rotterdam (one of the biggest ports in Europe). Easy day trips by train. Roberto has been to visit a few times so we have been riding around Holland and finding things to do.


the Hague, Parliament square

Dutch view of the American Dream, haha

Rotterdam, NL

Blomme means blooming in Dutch and Flemish... People finally know what my last name is!!
Pronounced: Blumma

Luckily, his trips were before the big Volcano erupted in Iceland that grounded Europe from flying for several days, stranding people all over the continent. This also caused my parents trip to get canceled as many of you know. I couldn't believe it. After all this time and my mom and I finally got my father agreed to take a vacation and come all this way, and a natural disaster strikes.

To add to my twilight zone feeling, my next home has been in political unrest for the past few weeks. The Bangkok government has been dealing with protesters called the Red Shirts parked outside their offices, in the city center and blocking roads all over the city. The protesters, often poor villagers looking for equal rights, are asking that the current government be ousted and a new election take place.

The situation got more serious about a week ago when twenty some people died in a riot. This spurred my school to close down and begin looking for safer classrooms. The question was posed to all of us traveling there if we felt safe enough to continue on with our next term or to choose another location. The decision was tough for me. But after a few days debate I decided to stick with Bangkok, hoping for a learning experience and some safety.

Currently, I am still looking forward to the experience. I have several friends that are there now and say its pretty crazy, but I haven't heard anything too threatening.

To keep me distracted from my twilight zone, last weekend I had the chance to go to Brussels, Belgium for my class. Brussels is a bit like DC in terms of International Organizations and the home of the European Union. We were there to visit NATO, European Parliament and the EU Council.

Outside of Parliament

We arrived on Thursday morning and went straight to NATO to meet with our George Clooney look-a-like representative. (I think this was planned out by them to try and win students over.) But the visit was altogether very interesting. By far the highest security we have gone through on any of our visits. The rep answered our questions very candidly. He was an ex-congress press sec. and had some great stories. I can't say that defense and military actions are my favorite topic, it was engaging none the less. I had never thought I would have visited NATO headquarters.

Tight security at NATO, no pictures...

After this we visited the European Parliament. The closest thing I would compare it to would be the US House of Reps. There are currently 736 MPs from all of the 27 European Union countries. With 23 official languages, the most interesting part was the way in which they communicate within the meetings. Our speaker was also a translator and spoke seven languages. That morning she had just given a presentation in Russian.

European Parliament Hemi-Cycle

That evening we went out to dinner as a group with our professor. We ate 'mussels in Brussels' and had a few of the famous Belgian beers. I heard the most amazing story of how her and her husband fell in love and came to be married. (Her husband is also our professor.) I was blown away. Sorry for the suspense, but it could be a blog in and of itself.

Afterward we walked around the city a bit and to the square (check out my video at the bottom from the next day). We ate waffles and found a bar that is home to the biggest selection of beers on the planet. I had a Chimay Blue. :) Very dark Belgian beer.
It was an amazing day in Brussels, the city has architecture mixed from the 1600s to the 1980s . I absolutely love it!


Part of the Berlin wall...

Square at night. Obviously closer to 1600s than 1980s :)

The next day we had one last visit with the EU Council, which is where the heads of state all meet every 3 months. We listened to the director of the terrorism department, who was extremely passionate about his work and full-body scanners. :) I regret to inform you that I believe they will become the norm in the future...

That afternoon I walked around the city with a friend of mine. We stopped in a Magritte Museum, ate street fries and enjoyed the sunshine!

Brussels is picturesque!

That evening I had planned to meet an old friend from High School for dinner. Vanessa was a foreign exchange student from Germany when I was a sophomore. We had seen each other about 4 years ago in Amsterdam. It was so fun to catch up again and have a local show me around the city.

Vanessa and I, 10 years since her time in Memphis!

Back in Leiden, I've been busy working on papers, presentations and game simulations. However, on Thursday we went to the International Criminal Court's (ICC) Special Court to Sierra Leone to watch the trial of Charles Taylor, ex-President of Liberia. It has been in the news recently because of new events that Naomi Campbell was given a diamond by Taylor, which would prove that he was in S. Africa buying guns for his the war on Sierra Leone. It was on ABC news recently. Check it out.

Anyway, the trial was super interesting. I did some research on Taylor before visiting. He's a really bad dude. The defense was giving their side of the case when we were there. They had called a soldier from the Liberian army to testify. The prosecution previously had called child soldiers, amputee victims and much more. It's been going on for 3 years now.


ICC Building, Den Haag
Side note: The ICC is a treaty where the majority of nations have signed, agreeing to let their nationals be tried in an international court. Currently the US is not a party to the treaty. Both Bush's could easily be brought to trial if they were. Clinton signed it and Bush Jr. 'unsigned' it.


Quick visit to the Organization for the Proliferation of Chemical Weapons, Den Haag
Photo op with all of the flags :)


That's the extent of my crazy life right now. Coming up next weekend is Queen's Day (the queen's birthday) so I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories for everyone!

xoxo,
Amy

Brussels Square Video :) Click play twice...

Reading, Writing and Travel Plans

Since I have been so busy lately, I haven't gotten out to do much sight-seeing. So instead I'll tell you a bit what I have been up to. Again, I should be working on a presentation due in six hours... but I'm sure it will all come together :)

On arriving in Leiden, we had an assignment of about 15o pages of articles, an entire book of reading and a paper. This has been the theme the past week and half, tons of reading and huge work load up front. Usually the professors give us a week or two before shoving anything significant on us, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Hopefully that will mean that finals will be less intense :) I'm still hopeful. haha

This term I'm taking a Politics of Development class focusing on aid in Africa. Our professor is South African and the assistant prof is Nigerian. It's been interesting hearing debates on whether the West should continue to give aid to the continent. My other full class is Globalization. The two compliment each other really well and are focusing on a few of the same theories and ideas, which will hopefully make studying easier. Our professor for this class is Iranian and extremely intimidating. (the presentation due in six hours... yikes!)

But all of that is boring. On top of school work I've been trying to plan my trip to in between Leiden and my next term in Bangkok and look for jobs. Stress! I've come to realize that travel agents have a very difficult job. Dealing with Visas, strange airline websites, and converting foreign currency to check each price is a class in itself! However, I'm very excited for my trip. I'm flying to Bangalore, India to visit with my cousin Brian, now Legtsok. I'm staying with him at the Buddhist monastery he's studying at. I've never been past Eastern Europe, so this idea of unknown and completely foreign really excites me. I'm ready for the challenge!

On top of being in Asia, I'm excited to learn more about Buddhism, which shouldn't be hard residing in a monastery. Last night after class we got drinks at the local pub near school, and I found myself in a conversation with my Nepalese classmate about Buddhism and his religious revolution from atheism. He was mentally putting together a book list for me to read. His stories of government corruption, children and meditation in his homeland caught my interest and make me want to see more.

After my stop in India for about 10 days, I'll be heading to Bangkok for my final term and writing a thesis. This year has flown by. Each term goes faster than the last. The next stop after that is real life. I'm hoping to get a job in Asia for a year or so after the program. That's the plan right now :)

After all this ranting, I can't not share a few pictures. Some friends and I went to Amsterdam for the day last week. Here are some of the sights from our day trip and other Dutch things.


View out my apartment window in Leiden

Flowers and rain drops

Dena and I overlooking a canal in Amsterdam

The Dutch love biking everywhere!

Street market in Amsterdam, this little car had two fiesty puppies in it!

Rembrandt Square in Amsterdam