Posts in category Beyond Delft

“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
― Alan W. Watts

In March, I had the opportunity to visit the theater in Delft (Theatre de Veste). I watched the three dance routines choreographed by David Middendorp. All of them had an element of technology attached to them.

The first routine was ‘Three Rooms’ and was my favourite. In this routine, two dancers were involved and one could see them being pulled and pushed by elements from outside the room in view. The dancers first oppose, then surrender and finally get carried away by the external elements. This was an abstract routine and left the interpretation to the observer. The first stage of opposition gave an illusion of three rooms being involved. One room that was depicted on stage. The other two on the two sides of the stage from whose inhabitants or other elements prevented the dancers from entering. As the routine progressed, and the reaction of the dancers to the push and pull changed, one realises that there is just one room. It is the mind of the observer that creates the illusion. One might wonder what element of technology was used here. The choreographer, David, was a dancer but he doesn’t dance anymore. So he choreographs by using a mobile app and drawing lines and curves on it which act as a cue for the performers.

The second routine was ‘A dark Flirt with Gravity’ in which the dancers interact with the drones during the performance. The idea is to depict the co-existence of technology and humans and depict the positive and negative effects of technology on the society. The third routine was ‘Blue Journey’ which depicts a struggle of a girl with herself and with the world. She has a blue shadow and realizes that she is different from others around her. We see how she and the society deal with her shadow.

“A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of Life.”
-Thomas Jefferson

During my initial days in Delft, I decided to explore the city and trace its history. I found that on the second weekend of September every year, most tourist places in the Netherlands are open for free. This is called Monumentendag and this year it was on 13^th and 14^th September.

During Monumentendag, I visited all the places (except Museum Princenhof and Vanmeer Museum) that I could think of. I took a boat ride on the canals of Delft, visited Molen de Roos and also got a chance to go inside Stadhuis (City Hall). The most treasured visit was to a house where paintings made 500 years ago (estimated) on the ceiling were discovered recently. The weekend was wrapped up by a ride on an old bus which used to ply on the roads more than 30 years ago. I had visited Museum Princenhof in August and felt it is a wonderful museum. The story of Willem Orange was presented in chronological order in a very interactive manner.

In early November, after my quarter 1 exams, I had one week before quarter 2 began. I visited a friend of mine in Paris. I stayed 3 days at his place and went around Paris. Though Tour Eiffel and Musee Louvre are the most famous places in Paris, Musee Rodin and Musee d’Orsay stood out for me. The works of August Rodin, especially the Gate of Hell and the Thinker (which is a part of the Gate of Hell), are marvelous. One could observe them for hours and still miss out on details. Van Gogh’s Starry Night over the Rhone was the highlight of the visit to Musee d’Orsay. The manner in which Van Gogh captured the colours of the night is amazing.

Musee Curie was a small and informative museum about the Curie family and their works. Notre Dame Cathedral with its impressive yet asymmetric architecture was worth a visit. I wrapped my Paris trip with a sumptuous French dinner. I must say that the best thing about Paris is that all places of interest can be visited by foot. The beauty of the city lies in observing the small things that remind you of the good and the bad of the past. Not many talk about the Algiers memorial which is very close to the Tour Eiffel. It is not by accident that there are no modern skyscrapers within the city limits of Paris. Finally a visit to Paris cannot end without a mention of Art Nouveau architecture.