The Planetarium :O

The ceiling clock was from the planetarium was probably one of the most intricate devices I have ever seen. At first I thought it was a little disappointing because you really couldn't see it move noticeably since its units of measurements were of days or greater. I did have a chance to go upstairs in the planetarium to see the "guts" of the clock and I was flabbergast from all the components that make up the clock. It was powered with 3 weights, one of which would only be reset at most twice a year. There was a single pendulum that timed the whole device. Watching things spin a different rates due to gear ratios was pretty entertaining to say the least.

Nicolette

I really enjoyed going to the planetarium. It was much smaller than I had first anticipated but being able to see the world's oldest planetarium was awesome.  I thought it was amazing how accurate everything with the limited number of resources Eise Eiseinga had.  It must have taken him a really long time to paint the planetarium on the ceiling, it was really beautiful.  I was most amazed by the mechanism itself. Being able to go upstairs and see how everything worked was so cool. The rest of the museum, though not as exciting, was also interesting. We learned about Eise Eiseinga's life as a wool maker and the solar system. 

Planetarium

Seeing the ceiling of this mans house was very impressive. I was amazed by the amount of work he put into it and his ability to scale everything to size so that it fit perfectly with in the room. I thought it was cool that he had actual representations of the planets circle the sun. Going upstairs in this house was a bit challenging for some because the ceilings were so short. Although, once we got up there it was impressive to see all the gears, pins, and devices that are used to keep his solar system revolving so perfectly. Going into that little house i didn't expect much, but it was bigger then it appeared and I actually learned a lot about this mans life. For example, the astronomy part of his life was just a hobby, he actually did work with wool.

Marittime Museum

Our tour guide was a sweet old man but I couldn't hear him unless I was standing right next to him. The maritime museum was dedicated to the long history of Rotterdam being a vary important port in the Netherlands. I enjoyed the museum mostly because my grandpa was a sailor and I remember him telling me about the ships he was on. the new exhibit sex and the sea was definitely something you wouldn't normally expect from a museum like this. At one point we were watching some what of a documentary of sailors accounts of being out at sea and its peaceful with fish, dolphins and sun sets then it starts to change with semi pornographic art that the sailors would have or see and then it changed between the fish swimming around to naked humans swimming around back to fish. We all were so speechless our tour guide thought we really enjoyed the documentary, but we were speechless for a completely different reason. Even though it was odd it is something that you wouldn't think to have an exhibit on but it was interesting at the same time.

Planetarium

It was very interesting to hear about the planetarium and the time and work went into making it.  The planetarium has been running continuously since it was built which is incredible.  It is able to show us an accurate depiction of the current locations of the planets in our solar system, as well as the time, date, and moon type.  The gears that ran the planetarium were all hand made to precise measurements.  The planetarium was incredible to see especially when taking into account that it was built centuries ago.

Hordis Botanicus

It was cool to se some of the medical plants they had in the garden although those of us who where in the group that went in the garden at Utrecht had already been shown allot of the things the tour guide was talking about.  my favorite part ofcthe gardens where the greenhouses, there where beautiful desert and tropical plants flowering wjile we were there.  I also thought I could smell black tea leaves when I went in to the largest part of the greenhouse but I could not figure out which plant it was. 

Hortus Botanicus

I really enjoyed this site. I enjoyed it because it amazes me that people were able to figure out that plants could heal people and that they could be used to help others. I am sure with much trial and error they were able to figure out what plants and how much of that plant could be used to help the ailing. The guide was also very funny and made the tour enjoyable. The butterfly room was also very cool there. There were many butterflies flying around in the room. Which I thought was very neat.

Planetarium of Eise Eisinga

The Planetarium of Eise Eisinga was located in Franeker. It was a smaller museum but worth going to!  In the museum was a working solar system that is the oldest working one. The model was located on the ceiling of Eisinga's living room. The mechanical operations of the model is located in the space above the ceiling. The gears in the model contained about 10,000 handmade nails. The model is run by a pendulum clock. The planets on the ceiling move in real time.  To take in consideration of leap year, every 4 years someone has to reset the clock. The model also shows the current time and date.

Also in the museum was a small exhibit on what Eisinga did for a living. He made wool and dyed it. The exhibit had a short video and tools that he used.

Planetarium

I thought it was amazing that someone could find out information with very little resources to make an exact replica of our solar system that consisted of many small pins and gears that was powered by a pendulum clock. The planetarium is the oldest working planetarium in the world and it doesn't use electricity to function; it used weights that you would pull down every so often to keep it running. Not only was the planetarium great, but the whole town of Franeker was an interesting place to visit. I would like to come back and see the planetarium at a different state to see how it changes.

Franeker Planetarium

The Eise Eisigna Planetarium was a great way to cap off a interesting day in the little Fresian town of Franeker.  Franeker was an interesting city as I was able to compare life in that village to life at home as both Galena and Franeker have a similar population and are relatively similar in their means of economic production.  On a side note, during our free time I had the chance to visit a church that was built in 1421, 71 years before Columbus "discovered" America.  The Planetarium, the oldest continuously operating planetarium in the world, was a fascinating site as it is a forgotten piece of history.  It was interesting that a guy with so little education could build a model of the solar system so accurately and still have it working 225 years later.  The town was definitely a place I would visit again and if I do I will have to stop by the planetarium and see if the model is still up-to-date and if it has changed since our visit.    

Maritime Museum/Rotterdam

As we arrived in Rotterdam, it became apparent to me what Liz meant when she said the architecture was different; the buildings were tall, glass buildings that seems familiar to a city like Chicago. The Maritime Museum was not what I was expecting, at all. I was very impressed with the model they made of Rotterdam; however the new exhibit in the museum, 'Sex and the Sea' gave us an overwhelming idea of what sex and entertainment was like at the sea. Overall, it was a great concept of adding to the museum but I think the tour guide could have used our time a little better than he did. It was nice to see the large difference between Rotterdam and the rest of the Netherlands!

Botanical Gardens

I'm not sure if it was just the really cool guide we had or maybe I was just really cold but learning about all of the different plants and what they did for the development though out the years for medicine really was quite interesting.  Most interesting is how some plants must be taken in just the right ways and it can help quite a bit, but if taken wrongly could cause severe consequences.  It was nice to know that they did not have any dangerous or prickly plants to run into, as far as we could tell, but its definitely interesting to realize just how much nature can evolve to both protect themselves as well as turn into the predator for a change.  It was also interesting to see the tree that had been growing underneath another tree its whole life and decided to grow sideways to get to the sun, as opposed to being underneath the shadow of the other tree, the plant just need there sun.  As far as the guide though, definelty the best one we have had yet, not that any were bad, but he just gave the tour a great sense of humor and you could tell he really cared to be tree and to teach us all about his beloved garden, I would definitely recommend him for any future tours be it on ones own or for a future school endeavor.

Planetarium

I think I could've spent all day at the planetarium in Franeker! It was the oldest working planetarium in the world and Eise Eisinga made it in the ceiling of his house. He did this during the 1700s too. All of the planets and orbits are to scale of each other as well. He did finish this amazing project right before the discovery of Uranus, as it was the first planet to be discovered by telescope. It also doesn't account for leap years, so he made instructions so that when he couldn't do it anymore, someone else could. This incredible model has each planet orbiting the Sun and has the planets moons orbit the planet. The model tells the time, date, and what zodiac sign it is. The time however is off by an hour and 40 minutes from day light savings. We got to go upstairs to see each gear of each of the planets orbiting pattern and it was so detailed and complicated, it was amazing. I really wish we could have taken pictures there. 

Franeker Planetarium

The planetarium was amazing to see, it may not have looked like much because not much is really moving at a pace that is noticeable in the few minutes we were looking at it.  All of the specialized clockwork that was put in place in order to keep the planets in their proper positions, the date and time, even way time the sun is going to rise and set along with lunar and solar eclipse predictions was just astounding.  The fact that it was built in the 18th century and is still working today while being accurate is even more amazing.

Hortus Botanicus

I thought the botanical garden was pretty interesting. I liked the guide and thought he did a very good job explaining everything. He knew his stuff. I liked the facts he gave us about the rare trees and plants and how plants will get stolen if they aren't careful! I had no idea that some plants were so rare and valuable.

European Culture - Sam Downs

There a clearly many differences between the American culture that we are all used to and the European in which we have recently been apart; of all of these differences the clear victor, as in largest difference, is clearly the language barrier, however this is being talked about by so many others I will move on to lesser differences.  One difference that I have noticed is with the customer service, as in waiters/waitresses as well as store attendants and managers, now it was a lot more prevalent in the Czech Republic but even here in the Netherlands the customer is clearly not what comes first as it is in the US.  Now of course this makes sense from a business point of view, and maybe they just know were all tourists (most likely) but it would seem to me that the business should always treat the customer with respect, and clearly that is not what happens here.  That aside, in the Netherlands, both in Leiden and Amsterdam, the amount of bike travel is extraordinary.  And this can be really biennial but also a nucance at the same time, while this obviously saves on all the carbon emissions from cars and can make streets a lot less cluttered with cars and vehicles, the bikes are often forced onto the walking paths and can be quite dangerous to walking pedestrians.  Though mostly bikes, there are also many scooters (mopeds) that generally travel from street to sidewalk ad back without warning or even slowing down in some circumstances.  These are just some of the differences in culture and how things here are different then what we are all used to; some other small examples can be: people here eat sandwiches with silverware, majority don't use turn signals with cars, cars are much more compact, make good use of canals, and definitely enjoy there cannabis... somehow.

-Sam Downs

European Culture

Going to a different country for the first time can be very shocking and many people handle it differently. I have found it fairly easy to get around and not have too much of a problem with the language barrier. I think having some background in Spanish helped me pick up the language quickly. I found that people seemed to be nicer when you started off saying hello and do you speak English in their language then starting off in English then switching. The language barrier is definitely the most frustrating thing about going to a country that doesn't speak English. Although most people do speak English, if you ask, I have run into a few who don't and its frustrating at first but then its okay because they are in the same position. I just think if people respect the language barrier and are prepared to butcher some words everyone will be fine and happy.

it's so inefficient

So when we were at Franeker a few friends and I decided to go to a cafe for lunch. We all ordered one of their sandwiches as they sounded good. I ordered a club I believe, which is also a very common sandwich in the USA. While we were enjoying our sandwiches, we were getting strange looks from other guests at the cafe. Upon observation, the other guests were eating their sandwiches with forks and knives! WHY? Is it not the point to put things between two layers of bread so that you can hold it with your hands and not make a mess? Afterwards I asked the waiter if it was common to eat a sandwich with forks and knives and she replied with "Yes, is that not what you do?" So the next time in you're in the Netherlands, keep this in mind!

Also notice the side of mayo instead of ketchup...

Culture and Influence

One thing that I have noticed is the difference in cultures between Prague and the Netherlands and how their past has dictated the societies that we see today.  The culture in Prague is still very set in the Eastern European way of life and still embrace their Slavic heritage.  However, it was interesting to see the transition that is unfolding in Prague with a generational gap.  The older generation seems to still associate more with Russia as they were once a part of the Soviet bloc.  The newer generation, those born since about 1985 and especially those born after 1989 seem to be much more Westernized.  We went to a toy store in Brno and it was interesting to see that many of the toys were based on American media such as the Simpsons and Star Wars.  In the Netherlands it seems that the Western influence is set and it seems much more like the culture back in the States (minus some parts of Amsterdam).  This is probably a result of the influence the Allied nations had on this region after World War II.  It has been interesting to see the differences between these two cultures.

Max Culture Post

What I have noticed in European culture so far on the trip is that the countries we have visited are more environmentally conscious.  I saw in Germany the house had solar panels on the roofs and the trash receptacles had many different slots for different recycling options.  In the Netherlands people tend to ride bicycles more, and they are encouraged to.  All the cities we have visited have an advanced public transportation system that eliminates the need for automobiles.  Also in the Netherlands there are a greater number of recharge stations for electric cars than there is in the United States.  I can concluded that European cultures of governments are more concerned about keeping a clean environment and cutting down on fossil fuel consumption. 

Culture

Throughout this trip I have noticed many culture differences. In Prague I noticed that people have well trained dogs and not speaking the language has been a struggle communicating; which makes it seem like the people are rude. There was a difference in Leiden with how locals treated me; everyone was friendly and polite. There were also a lot more bicycles than cars. The architecture is more ancient and historical with the designs and material being mostly brick. It seems like wherever I go there are smokers around me. In Amsterdam there are koffie shops all over. I have noticed that they listen to the same music as Americans. The clothing style is more fashionable and a lot more girl clothing stores than guys. So far my conclusion is that Europeans are healthier, more fashionable, smokers, and love their bread. As a whole, they are polite and understanding of the language barrier. I am so glad that I decided to study abroad and got to experience different cultures first hand with an open mind to try new foods and walk around non tourist areas. I have learned so much about how people live here and picking up some of the language.

Would you like mayonnaise with that?

I noticed that the stereotype of Dutch people putting mayonnaise on everything seems to be accurate.  The food here has about hte same ratio of fats carbs and protein as in America but it is less 'fake' and the portion sizes are snaller.  Also the stairs are crazy steep but it nakes sense since everything is packed so closely together. Something that surprised me was that all of the shopping finishes at six here even though it is light out untill ten. I feel thats it is different from how in America clothing stores are usualy open latter its also interesting that things are open latter on Thursdays for some reason.  But for all the differences asside from everyone speaking two languages and how many bikes there are the people dont seem that different.

European Culture

They are very green (not the Amsterdam special kind of green) I see smart cars, wind turbines, recycling bins for people to separate their trash properly, and even the bathrooms usually have hand dryers instead of paper towels and the toilet paper at most places comes out I little squares so you realize how much you are using. We could take some of their ideas and use them in the states to decrease our footprint but there are other things that Europe can keep for its' self like how it seems every one smokes. The front desk worker was surprised that none of us smoked when he was telling us about the smoking policy. Also I like how they don't have every single rule posted like back home. It's just more of a common since thing for example most third story windows wont even open or if they do there are bars on the window so no one will fall out here not so much. there aren't even screens on the window to keep you from falling out.

Tyler Edge Culture

This trip, which is more so like an expedition has placed me in a position I may have been unprepared for; that is, culture shock hit me harder than expected. Of course, every trip into uncharted territory for someone may be difficult. Albeit, it has been one of the greatest experiences in my life; in addition, I can brag about my travels to Europe in future conversations. The most shocking thing to me was the larger than expected language barrier. It has hindered my ability to fully experience the attitudes and differences between our culture and their cultures. The problem with my assumption that nearly everyone would speak English has led.me.tocreate two new perspectives. It was naive of me to assume that most people spoke English in foreign countries. Also, how dare I go into a foreign country and assume that they should HAVE to speak the same language as myself. This leads me to the conclusion that it is an assumption of bigotry and means I still have a lot to learn about other cultures. Overall, I have done nothing but learn and become a better person by choosing to study abroad.

Utrecht University Museum

The Bleuland Cabinet was the first exhibit we visited inside the university museum. There were wax replicas of human body parts and skeletons of deformed children with hydrocephalus with large skulls or vitamin D deficiency that cause bones to bend or adults with spinal deformitits that were all collected by a professor. and most if not all the specimens in that room were two hundred years old or more.  The Collection o Curiosities was my favorite because I am a Animal Science major and most of the places we have been visiting don't have much on animals which I expected on this trip but it was nice to be able to see an exhibit focusing more on animals.

Lakisha Clinton-Culture

I've observed and been exposed to so many different aspect of the European culture. The language here seem as if they are bilingual in Dutch first then English a well. As Americans our first language is English, but majority of schoolare requiring students to learn Spanish as well. Another cultural advantage is their food selection they have a variety of options- healthy and non-healthy options; however europenas are not all being identified as obese and over weight like Americans known for. They walk to majority of places or even bike. Which keeps then from a gaining so much weight.

     Another aspect which I have observed in Amsterdam is that their is more diversity individual here compared to all the other countries we visit. European culture seem to accept and adjust to  new things in Amsterdam compared every other counties we've visited. I think it's cool that there is a variety of different ethnicity since Europe can be interpret as an all White-European population. Not only dies having many ethnic groups help europenas with diversity; but also expose our UW-Platteville student to diversity since our university is pre-dominant white culture and lacks a lot of diversity/ ethnicity awareness. 

NICOLETTE

The Netherlands have a culture that is more sustainable.  Their green actions can be seen in several ways.  Most of the people ride bikes or take public transportation over owning cars which drastically decreases emission.  There are also charging stations along the parking spots in Amsterdam for those that have electric cars.  I also saw forms of renewable energy, such as wind turbines and solar panels, when we were on the train.  Finally many people choose to grow their own gardens or support local markets before they turn to large corporations.  Their sustainable actions allows them to support their culture while leaving reassures for future generations. 

European Culture

Getting use to the amount of smoking in the Netherlands is a hard thing to do. Cigarettes are defiantly a part of the lifestyle here and it seems as though no one is offended by the smoke. Not that smoking doesn't happen in America, but we are not use to it in the quantities that are present here. At a young age the children here are exposed to the large amount of smoking that happens on the street comers or the outside restaurants. Not only are cigarettes abundant, but the presence of marijuana is out in the open and not frowned upon here. Being Americans this is a slight culture shock to us, and most of us tend to stare as we walk by the coffee shops. Smoking is defiantly a larger part of the culture here then what we are use to.

Cultural

In Czech, people were very touchy feely with their significant other. It was rare to not see a couple all over each other. Other people that are residents in Czech did not act as if that was out of the ordinary. In the Netherlands, couples are still affectionate but not as much. There are couples holding hands, kissing good-bye, etc. What they are doing is not as bold as in Czech. In the USA, couples are affectionate, it is just rare to see couples making out in the middle of a sidewalk waiting for a bus. Americans usually frown upon that behavior.

The clothing is also very different. In Czech, it was not uncommon to see ladies with see through tops or bottoms with their undergarments showing. Men also had very tight fighting clothes. In the Netherlands, they dress more like Americans. They are more covered up.

Language Barriers

In the Czech Republic it was much more difficult to find someone that spoke English and when you did they really didn't speak too much.  Although this was less apparent in areas that are more "touristy", it was still a bit of an issue.  In Dresden there were definitely more people that spoke English as well as a few more English translations in various areas. Now in the Netherlands it is almost difficult to find someone who doesn't speak English and if you ask them they sometime like to make a quick joke about it saying something along the lines of "Do I speak English? Well of course I do!".  This may have something to do with these areas (Germany and the Netherlands) being more westernized than others.  For instance I noticed that much of the television in the Netherlands is in English and has Dutch subtitles, so learning English may be a bit of a convenience so that they can watch their favorite show or movie without having to read subtitles.

Cultural reflection

I found the trams very interesting and useful. All the public transportation in fact. I liked how everything is so scheduled and usually on time. I think the bells are cool too so at least there's a bit of warning. I enjoy being able to go pretty much anywhere in the city with minimal effort and the pass cards are helpful too.

Culture Experience

A major change that I have noticed while here in Amsterdam is that it is much more crowded and much more busy every where that you go. There are much more bikes than cars here and that is to be expected because it is almost much easier and faster to travel with a bike than with a car. This leads me to believe this is why they are so much more fit than the average American. They also travel faster here and don't want to wait for traffic if in a car. I have noticed from that (fast pace) they don't yield to pedestrians like some (not all) cars/buses do. The bikes just keep on going even if there is a green light for walking (have to watch out for that)! There are many more that speak English here compared to Prague and Leiden. I believe that is from being much more westernized than the other two places and also because there are a lot more tourists here than the other two as well. This is much different than my little town of 750 people. I expected there to be a lot more rude people that live here, but I have ran into many very nice people, yes there are always those few that bumped into and don't say anything, but the majority, for me anyway, have been really nice.

Musuem Boerhaave

This museum may not be the biggest that were have seen, nor go into the most detail, but they clearly have a Pl; an for what they want everyone to see and understand.  Which I think is a really good idea, most people go into a museum and look a little but don't really pay attention, this museum seems to give people a good sense of why they are there, with a ride through history.  While they are still in the process (or so they say) of creating the rest of the museum to there new plan, starting with the first room with the 3d video (which was REALLY cool), they seem to want tot connect the rest of the museum with this feel of excitement and wonder.  They also had two different special exhibits going on, the body parts and the Phillips exhibit, I find that in a museum where many people will come to having these special exhibits for even a minimal time is really good to try and get more people to come, and with the special ones, people can come and see what else the museum has to offer, which in this case, cane defiantly happen!

Utrecht University Garden

At one of the places we went there where two toe guides free so we split in to two groups. I went with the group that went to the garden to see something different and because I dont know much about plants.  My faforite part of the garden wad the medicinal plant section of the garden and the banana 'tree'.  While some of the plants we know know to have no uses besids decoration some of the plants are still used like one that makes your pupils dilate which is used for eye examinations
And the plant from which advil was originally made.  Some of the plants are no longer thought to have medicinal properties but are now common in the kitchen like dill and cumin.  It was also interesting to learn that the bannas that we eat all have identocal dna because natural bananas have seeds that make them inedible to humans but sometimes a plant without seeds are found and reproduced asexualy by banana farmers.

Concentration Camp

I'm sure that other people have a already alluded to all of the atrocities that the Nazi's committed in both the fort and the ghetto area.  But I found it interesting that the fort was originally used by the Austrian empire to hold political prisoners and prisoners from there own wars. Included in this was the tunnels that we all went through that, which we all went about 500 m, however there was a total of over 30 km of tunnels around the fort itself.  It just seems remarkable to me how long of tunnels they could have created for just this single fort way back before they had modern technology of today.  Whether or not they used slaves, paid workers, or both I do not know; but no matter the workforce, it must have taken years!  Going back to the Germans, this camp was luckily not as deadly or devastating, though there was still much death, as say Auschwitz, going through both the prison and the museum afterword, one can tell just how much these camps drained the lives from people, both the ones who were confined and the ones who were not.

Terezin Concentration Camp

This was my first visit to a concentration camp, but it wasn't really the typical concentration camp that you think of from Poland. Terezin is in the Czech Republic and it didn't have gas chambers and ginormous crematoriums it was mainly a holding facility until the people kept there were sent to a place like Auschwitz. But the people there were treated like any other concentration camp. Terezin was a getto and if people used foreign currency or tried to escape or spoke out that's when they were sent inside the "work camp" area. The facility used to house the Jews and prisoners of war was used as a prison during the Austrian empire before the germens occupied it.

Observatory

I loved the observatory we went to! It had been raining all day and it was a new moon so we wouldn't have been able to see it anyways but I still very much enjoyed it. The old telescopes that had been replicated were difficult to look through to see but it was fun trying. The history behind the telescope was also extremely interesting to me. I really enjoy learning about the beginning of astronomy and how people even thought to make and use the lenses to see the moon and stars. When the roof moved it was a very weird feeling but also so cool! This was definitely one of my favorite parts so far!

Utrecht University Gardens

I have always enjoyed looking at and caring for plants in veritable gardens back home, so strolling through the university gardens was an enlightening experience for me.  It is always interesting to learn how different plants can be grown in areas where they would normally have died or not even been able to start growing at all.  I also enjoyed learning the uses of different plants as a medicine, or food, how poisonous they may be, or why you might only see one variety of them in parks instead of another.

Terezin

We went to a concentration camp called Terezin. It was really interesting knowing it was first a prison camp before it was turned into a concentration camp. While we were there we had to go through the tunnel system they had placed beneath the camp itself and it was very claustrophobic. I now know I will never have to go through underground tunnels again! I found the museum across the town to be very informative about the life style the young boys and girls had to live through and the harsh environment they had. The picture they drew and the poems they wrote were very moving to me as well.

Phillips Exibit at Muesem Boerhaave

This Exibit was incredibly amazing to me, even though I ended up going through it backwards.  I really enjoyed looking at all the little advancements that were made and then how they were able affect the different technologies such as the radios and telecisions.  For instance they invented a smaller transistor and soon after had a much smaller computer than was possible before that small transistor was made.

Lakisha-Museum Boerhaave

             I really enjoyed the of Museum Boerhaave in Leiden, this expereience have given me greater perspective on science and tecjnology. Just being able see how history and technology has progressed so much since the Early 17th century to a whole different level today. This just makes me really appreacite what I am able to see, understand, and analyze.espeacilly being able to not only look at the progress we have made and being able to test it out. This was the best way to help me understand and expose me to a glimpse of what life, science, and tecnology was back them. Before attending so many muesum in a such a short period of time I belived that i understood the importantance history had on my views. Going to this museu and seeing so many amazing and historical intruments, electronics, and telescopes from the Netherlands area. Really gave me a well-rounded expereince of science and technoloogy that took so many errors before being anything to show or present to the world. Attending this particular museum had many cool and educational aspects, which in class I have read on and received in classes, however I did not get the full, broader, and detailed understand until now.
             Learning that a larger amount of their exhibitons where temporaray and very exciting. Which, made me want to learn more about the historical aspect of the museum. By having a vareity of options will get  more people interested in wanting to visit this national museum. This options also, gave them an advantage to get more peope engaged, talking about this museum, and would have a better chance of attending. Esecially, since the museum have both english and non-english descriptions while reveiwing the objects, telecsopes, books, scientifiic objects, hands on observations, and objects.

NICOLETTE

On Wednesday we went to the Observatory. I enjoyed looking thought the Galena replica telescopes. It would have been more fun if it wasn't raining so we could look into the sky but finding the lights on the building was interesting and challenging. I expected more precision from the telescopes and was amazed that past scientists made such huge discoveries with such limited information.  Walking through the observatory building itself was also cool.  Learning the history of the building and seeing how it has been used was intriguing.

NICOLETTE

Today we visited the Boerhaave Museum. I was really excited about their new addition of the movie explaining the history of science and technology.  Sitting in the replica anatomical theater brought the show to life.  The projector on the ceiling and body were so real.  I also really enjoyed the interactive section in the Philips exhibit.  I learned that I am a decider and a thrill seeker through the cloud interactions. 

Observatory

Last night, we went to an observatory. It was fun to look through replica telescopes. There were three different sizes to look through and see the difference. Although we could not see the moon, and it was very rainy, we were still able to use the telescopes to look at building signs. We also saw a giant telescope that was mounted to the floor. In order to change to use the telescope, the walls moved. Although it was a late night, it was worth going to.

Terezin: Concentration Camp

On Saturday, we went to the Terezin concentration camp. I was very surprised how big the place was. I also did not realize that it was built by Austrian emperor Joseph II. I learned that Gavrilo Princip was imprisoned there and saw the cell he was placed in. The building itself had so much history. We also went into a tunnel were ammo was once stored. It was also mind blowing how little the rooms were and how many people were placed in holding. Seeing it in person put a lot of things into perspective.

Utrecht Observatory

The adventure my group had getting back to the Utrecht Observatory was one with a very windy path and multiple wrong turns, but we made it there with a hour to spare. So, we stood outside in the rain and waited. This was defiantly not a great start to the night, but things would soon change. We went inside, dried off, and the learning process began. First, we learned a brief history about the telescope and how they came to be. We found out that recently a new telescope was discovered and it is the oldest one in the Netherlands history and possible all of history. My favorite part though was when we got to use the replicas and we had to focus on the blue and red writing across town on a building. It would have been better to look at the stars, but as already stated it was a rainy day and clouds filled the sky. Overall though the observatory was still a cool experience to have and to learn about the history of the building itself.

Terezin

Its hard to describe a place like Terezin because everywhere you look there is some unsettling piece of history waiting to tell its story. The Terezin camp was mainly a holding camp for the Nazi troops, but that doesn't mean that violence wasn't prevalent. The guards and S.S. soldiers at Terezin could still march the prisoners off and through the tunnel that was the gate to their death. Many prisoners were shot at point blank range and then their bodies may have been put in one of the two mass graves that we learned about while at the camp. Although this type of history can be hard to take in, I find it important that we learn about it and visit the camp since we are in the area. I liked this tour and found it very informational, even though it is not the most pleasant thing to witness.

Magic Plants

At the university museum I had the opportunity to take a tour of a garden with medicinal herbs. While there were many different useful plants, one that stuck out was the belladonna plant. Apparently, women in older times used to take droplets from this plant and place them in their eye to dilate their pupils. It was said that when you're with someone you desire, you're pupils widen. Women would dilate their eyes so it would appear to the men that they were being adored. It was an interesting little story but in the future I'll pay attention to pupils!

I like big books and I cannot lie..

The Bibliotheca Thysiana was one of the most interesting libraries that I've seen. The process of checking out a book is quite different that what we are accustomed to. First, the books are not organized by their subject but by their physical properties. Therefore you have to look in a catalog to find the topics and retrieve the call number of the book you wish to read. Next, you have to ask the custodian to go beyond the gate and retrieve the book for you. Lastly, you prop the book on one of the reading desks that are basically only exposed to the natural light from the windows as there was usually not much artificial light in the room. The books were to remain in the room so you would have to do your research there. This makes me appreciate how convenient our libraries actually are and how nice it is to just use Google!

Dresden Museum(s)

Dresden has such an interesting history to it. As is with most of Germany, it has constantly been under conflict before and after Germany's reunification in 1871. While there, my colleague Max and I discovered upon black marks on the rooftops of the buildings; we soon realized, that this was not paint but instead it was fire. This fire was caused by the firebombs done by the Americans in 1945. Dresden was a beautiful place that I recommend anyone to go to. The museums housed some of the best clocks, compasses and porcelain.

Observatory

The Sonnenborgh Observatory was an extremely interesting place to visit. On the outside it wasn't very appealing, but the inside was spectacular. We got to see exact replica models of Galileo's telescopes. They were difficult to use but they worked great. I could read the signs of a building across town. It is amazing that someone could manipulate lenses to see distant objects further than the human eye can see. We also got to visit one of the giant telescopes that could see the moon, but it was cloudy out so we got to see a chapel far away. This telescope was interesting since it was made of wood and the image was inverted. The historic history of this observatory was also interesting, since it was built to defend it's city, so it had cannons and an experiment garden.  

Sonnenburg Observatory

The Sonnenburg Observatory allowed us to broaden our understanding of early astronomy and how difficult it really was to see the stars during the time of Galileo.  We were able to use replica telescopes of the one's that Galileo used to survey the night skies.  It was difficult to see through the telescopes because of the early technology of lenses.  We also went into the observatory and saw the large telescope.  The telescope was made out of the original wood it was built with.  The observatory gave us a hands on view of how Galileo and other early astronomers observed the stars.

Sonnenborgh Observatory

The Sonnenborgh Observatory in Utrecht was one of the most fascinating experiences so far on this trip.  The evening began a little dreary as the rain came down before we entered the building.  However, by the time we had to go outside the rain stopped.  The observatory visit began with a lecture about Galileo's telescopes which was fascinating and we also learned about a new discovery of the oldest telescope in the Netherlands dating to the early 16th Century.  The telescope was discovered by Timon who helped out at the observatory and who was our tour guide at Museum Boerhaave the following day.  Timon created three near-perfect replicas of Galileo's telescopes and he allowed us to go on the roof and use them to see how difficult they were to use.  Unfortunately, the sky was overcast and we were unable to see the moon or the stars, however everyone had a fun time and it was a good way to end a day in Utrecht.  We finished our visit by touring the rest of the observatory and we were able to look through a 19th century telescope and touring a 17th century fortress that was used to protect Utrecht, a surprising historical addition to an already fascinating building.  The site impressed me and was one of the most interesting sites during the first half of this trip.

Rare Books

I really enjoyed looking at the rare books. To know that books from that long ago are still in pretty good shape (some better than our books that are made now) and they used them much more than we do now. I mostly enjoyed the anatomical book. To see how detailed that they could get even though they don't have all of the technology that we do now. It was really interesting to see that each "person" (skeleton/dissected body) was posed in a very interesting way to act as if they were still alive. I also really enjoyed looking at that really small book. Compared to some of the more massive books that we looked at it was so tiny. I could still make out the print, but it was on the boarder line of being able to read. Overall I really liked seeing all the different books that most people don't even read anymore let alone purchase.

Terezin

Terezin Concentration Camp was a unique and interesting site to see. I have only seen videos and read about the life in a Concentration Camp; and actually visiting the site made me realize how awful life would be. When I first entered the camp, there were blocks of buildings and one road that connected everything. I could not imagine being forced to live with at least six people in a college sized dorm room for years. Having to share one shower area with thousands of other people; and one shower head with five or six people would not make me feel clean.

Terezin

Terezin was a site worth seeing. It is not often that someone can go and actually see the atrocities that occurred at a concentration camp. We also visited the museum that correlated with the ghetto (ethnic camps inside the city) nearby the concentration camp. The concentration camp was placed inside a former fortress built by the Austrians in the middle 18th century.

Terezin Small Fortress

The Terezin Small Fortress and Concentration Camp tour was an emotional and interesting tour.  I really enjoyed learning about the history of the fortress before it was used as a concentration camp under the Nazis.  It was amazing to see the tunnels and canals that the Austrian's had built which was a large construction project during it's time.  Then to see the additions that the Nazis added was emotional and intense; as they added barracks to house Jews.  We also saw the gallows and execution site that the Nazis used to kill Jews that attempted escape.  It was amazing to see that the camp and fortress were still under good condition after centuries of use and many floods.

Thereseinstadt

Terezin and the Thereseinstadt Concentration Camp was a very humbling and powerful experience.  It was my first visit to a concentration camp and it was overwhelming to step in the same footsteps as the thousands of Jews who suffered and died in the same spot.  The site was more of a transfer station for those going to Auschwitz and the other death camps.  It was interesting because at times you could feel the suffering that occurred in the camp.  Another interesting aspect of the camp is that the Austro-Hungarian Empire built the camp originally as a fortress and then used it as a prison.  The camp was the site of the imprisonment and death of Franz Ferdinand's assassin who nearly single handedly began World War I.  The camp was interesting and one of the best days on the trip so far!

Terezin

I really enjoyed Terezin Concentration Camp. WWII was my favorite thing in history to study so finally being able to actually see a concentration camp! It is much, much different than what I  expected. There was a feeling while there that you can't get from a class or textbook. It was really nice that we were able to go into the tunnels even if they weren't used when Terezin was a concentration camp. Just imagining how many people were crammed into those small spaces was crazy (I thought it was bad on the train) I can't imagine having more people that you aren't even able to lay down to sleep. So far this was my favorite thing I have seen on this trip.

Boerhaave

I really liked today's museum, especially the multimedia presentation. I was very impressed with it and I think it was the coolest and most intricate presentation I've ever had the pleasure of watching! I was amazed at how well everything lined up and I think it did a very good job of introducing the main points of the museum. I definitely plan on including it in our project.

Terezin

I thought the Terezin concentration camp was pretty interesting and it made WW2 much more real to me than a textbook. I'd never been to a concentration camp before so it was a full and shocking experience. It did seem different than other camps I've learned about like Auschwitz, mostly because it wasn't constructed by the Nazis and didn't yet include death chambers like many or the other camps. I also really liked the way the ghetto museum was set up. It was easy to follow and I liked the pictures and actual quotes that were included.

Lakisha Clinton

This study abroad trip has provided me with a broader perspective; and a well educated experience about their museums. I have learned so many amazing, unexpected, and cultural aspects from the three museums— Kelper Museum, National technical Museum, and Mendel Museum previous tours and tour guides. Especially, since the way their museums are set up compared to the ones in United States. It was a great cultural experience since the Kelper Museum tour guide was not as fluent in English, which made the tour somewhat difficult to follow; however being opened minded allow me to be interested in the information he was providing us. The Kelper Museum was very small but, provided enough information. I thought it was great that the museum was in Czech as well as in English so that we could actually have factual evidence to support the information the tour guide provided us with outside the museum. The other two cites were so much bigger and very detail oriented. 

This is NICOLETTE

The first day we were in Prague we visited both the Kepler Museum and the Czech National Technical Museum.  I though both were interesting but the Czech National Technical Museum was my favorite because there was so much to see.  Each floor had a different theme such as Transportation, Architecture, and Astronomy. I learned the most in the "spy" room. There were interactive activities such as using a metal detector and testing your memory.

National Technical Museum and more!

I really enjoyed our tour the national technical museum regardless of how hot it was in that room and the fact that our fearless leaders had planned on toeing a different exhibit.  My favorite part of the toe was during the automobile section when or type guide who had already given us permission to take photos without paying the extra fee walked I'd or in to the middle of the exhibit to tosh one of the cars. The car he  showed us was a bullet proof car driven by a Czech official. I'm ashamed to say I can't remember who the official was or why he was important but it was still pretty nifty seeing the one inch thick bulletproof glass and trying to open the heavy bulletproof door.  Also at the Kepler museum we went to the day before I learned about how a sextant was used to chat the stats. Oh and there was a V2 combustion chamber that I got way too excited about. I think Trent's love of space exploration is wearing off on me.

Mendel's Home

I found it very interesting that when going to the Mendel museum that we were actually standing (or sitting) in the place that he worked, lived, and experimented while cementing his place in history.  Comparatively when going to the Keller museum, yes he may have worked there, but they told us that they do not know where he actually lived, but with Mendel it is known, and with what the tour guide said that the window is always left open there because this is where he stayed and lived his life was just very interesting to know that we stood in the place where he did all those years ago. 

Kepler Museum

The thing that most excited me about the Kepler Museum was the absolute professionalism and enthusiasm by our guide. For example, the guy (who was older and had poor English) was trying so hard to explain in a heavy Czech accent why Kepler was important. This man gathered us out into the courtyard and told us to form a solar system. We did and then he used us as planets to show how Kepler hypothesized his thoughts. I thought that this experience was both a fun and educational one.

Kepler Museum

I found the Kepler Museum really interesting. It was a very small room but packed with information on all types of ideas Kepler had. I loved reading about the astronomy he studied and the math behind it all. The guy that explained everything to us, taught himself English and he spoke it very well! He knew so much about Kepler as well. Kepler came up with the most efficient way to stack cannon balls, and the equation to prove that it is the most efficient! I also thought the building itself was pretty, they had some awesome paintings on the ceiling of the different star formations and horoscopes. It was just a cool museum to see.

National Technical Museum

At the National Technical Museum, it was really interesting to see the different automobiles the Czech Republic had been using and making throughout their history.  You could see the changes from the first automobiles to the cars used during the Soviet sphere of influence.  Also the architecture section gave a great insight on Czech buildings and how the style of buildings was different during the early 20th century from the buildings built during the Soviet influence.  The museum offered us magnificent look inside Czech technology throughout history.

Top Secret

Well, I thought that the "Top Secret" section of the National Technology Museum was pretty interesting. They had an RF scanner there that would allow someone to scan for "bugs" or hidden microphones hidden in the house. They used one of these in "Gangster Squad" to detect a bug hidden in Mickey's living room. I also saw a pair of sunglasses that had mirrored edges. This allowed the user to see behind himself inconspicuously. There was just a lot of neat gadgets for security or surveillance uses.

Kepler and Technical Museum

At the Kepler Museum it was neat to see how each of the astronomers view of the solar system was different and how they were able to figure out how to measure distances and patterns of the sun, earth, and other planets. At the National Technical Museum, it was interesting to see how European automobiles were similar and different than American automobiles. It was also interesting to see the architecture they used. In the astronomy section, it was interesting to actually see how the instruments Kepler used looked like and how they worked.

Walking in Mendel's footsteps

The Mendel Museum in Brno, Czech Republic was an interesting museum and one that transported us into the time that Mendel lived and the place that he worked.  It was interesting to see how the city of Brno expanded around the abbey and the influence that the communists had on the museum as they were forced to bring the statue of Mendel from the park to the garden.  It was also interesting to see how small of an area he actually worked in as the book Monk in the Garden made it seem like a much larger area.  The museum was very interesting as it helped to reinforce all that we learned while reading the book and added a real world experience to the book and helped me to visualize what we have been reading about.  The fact that they are able to identify the spots where he worked and that they are still able to be viewed by the public is amazing.

National Technical Museum

 

The first day of the trip we visited two museums and walked around a lot. It was fun to be in a different culture setting. My favorite part of the first day was going to the National Technical Museum. Seeing the old cars and the history behind them was fascinating. The one car that the tour guide allowed us to touch and get close to was unbelievable. I could not believe how thick the window was and how heavy the door was! It was definitely a bullet proof car! It was also interesting to see how their automobiles were not so different from ours as time went on.

Bullet proof car

My favorite academic part of the trip so far was probably the Mendel museum. I liked learning about it because of my biology background. I was a little disappointed that we didn't really learn anything that we hadn't already learned from our book. It was nice to learn more about his meteorological and beekeeping work though.

So far the two out of the three museums (Mendel&Kepler) have been really small and focus only on one person which I find rather odd because most museums that I have been to have completely different rooms with different topics ranging from history of the local area to dinosaurs . But most museums like the national technical museum have multiple rooms with different areas of interest.What I like most about the technical museum was seeing how weird or odd some of the cars were that are now making luxury sport cars of the wealthy like the Mercedes Benz, Audi, and Bugatti.

Technology Museum

I found it very interesting to see how all of the technologies involving trains, planes, and automobiles (also bikes) progressed over the years in the Czech Republic, and a bit throughout the world.  It was also nice to learn about the history behind some the specific cars and planes on exhibit and how they had so many of them from such a diverse background of people, times, and places that are significant to the history of this area.

National Technical Museum

In the National Technical Museum I went into the Technology for Households room. Many of the appliances the United States was a couple of years ahead in making them. Which I thought was interesting because now I think that we are behind in that area. It was really interesting to see all of the older appliance and how they looked. There was a kitchen set up for that need s wheel chair to get around, which looked very modern to me and pretty handy for those that aren't able to use the normal height for countertops. Another room that I went into was the Printing room. The Printing room was very interesting. I loved to see many of the older books that were printed by had. The printing presses were very large and elaborate designs. After seeing that room I appreciate how fast things can be printed now compared to back then.

Mendel

I really enjoyed the going to the Mendel museum today. Although the train ride was long and we didn't get to go into the actually library or other parts of the monastery, it was a neat experience to go to the place where genetics was founded. I enjoyed seeing some of the original documents that Mendel himself wrote, but was a little shocked that non of the descriptions were in German because even though we are in Czech Mendel spoke and wrote mainly in German. And the pea plants outside were a nice addition.

Welcome!

Welcome everyone! Here is where you will post your informal write-ups while we are abroad. You are also free to post other things here (photos, comments, etc.) that your family and friends back home might be interested in seeing. Link to this blog on your facebook page, tell your folks about it, etc.

Looking forward to traveling with you all!

Liz