STAN'S BLOGS

After four days in Geneva with our director, a long train ride through Germany and the Netherlands, I'm finally here in Alkmaar. There's a lot I've seen and experienced already in Amsterdam, at the ocean (5 miles away) and just in our town that is one of the oldest and most historic places in the country. I'll share more of that with you later, but I thought you might enjoy hearing about some of the differences. Ha! Maybe everyone speaks English, but everything else is in Dutch (only): street and train station signs, food labeling, newspapers, tourist brochures, my washing machines, et al. I'm going crazy trying to read info on the stuff I'm buying to eat, drink and clean with. I don't know if it's been washed or not (spinach), if you can use it for machine or only hand washing (detergent), or if I'm using something safely or not (appliances). Here are a few more...   Well-made, touring bicycles are everywhere, painted in dark, classic colors and r

After four days in Geneva , Switzerland, sight seeing, eating out, meeting with our European Director and, on one evening, sneaking across the border into France, fellow BVSer Solomon and I are finally here in Alkmaar. The town is like a fairytale land, and living in-town has made it easier to learn my way around. The Dutch are kind people, and I seem to fit in... as some start right-off speaking Dutch when I meet them, ha! I finally have a day off after 9 days of much activity and discussion here at the office. Along with the high-spirited, daily work in the office the Gender Working Group and the Representative Consultative Committee, including IFOR's President, have both been meeting here in separate sessions over the last four days. I have been interacting often with both groups since they arrived and have made some more new friends. The people on these committees and I are all from different countries: Italy, India, Wales, Columbia, Madagascar, Austria, Canada and, of course,

On the 18th of August, 2007 I had fulfilled my one year volunteer commitment with Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) at the AHEAD Energy project, located on the campus of the University of Rochester in New York. At the same time, I was considering committing to another year at the AHEAD project, after receiving an invitation from AHEAD's Director, Dr. Mary Jeanette (MJ) Ebenhack, and already deciding to continue my volunteer service with BVS. A month earlier, I had received an offer through BVS from the International Fellowship of Reconciliation ( IFOR ), a 90 year old peace and human rights NGO, to come to the Netherlands, again as a BVS volunteer, and serve as their Communications Officer. Although I enjoyed my work at AHEAD and living in Rochester, an opportunity to focus directly on human rights was more important to me. I'd had an interest in such issues, since my early days as the Special Reports editor for KFBK.com , and had begun a blog in 2004, where I was reporting