Archeologisch Museum Haarlem

So there has been a slight lag in my updating the blog these last few days, as a result of my having fallen from my bike and smashing my phone - the only device I have which connects to the internet, to which I tether my other devices, such as my laptop for writing my blog (and studying...). In general I have had somewhat below average luck this week, breaking my phone and spraining my ankle from falling off the bike, smashing my iPod screen (not sure how), sustaining a considerable bruise from a door-related injury, getting burned on the stove, obtaining a cold, and breaking a key in the lock of a bike. Fortunately my luck seems to have changed for the better this week (fingers crossed!) and I am pleased to now have a new phone - a jazzier red phone capable of holding 2 sim cards simultaneously (one Dutch one English), so I can now update you all on the weeks excitements...unfortunately without many pictures as a lot of those were lost in the confusion of the smashed iPod screen, oops...

Last week I dragged our local Indiana Jones to the Archaeology museum on the central square, only to discover that it was in fact closed. So this week, I checked the website, and successfully managed to coordinate a trip on thursday with Indy and my roomie at a time it was open. The museum is in the basement of De Vleeshal, the old meat-hall of the city, built in 1603. The ox heads decorating the extravagant exterior of the building symbolise its use from when it was built until 1840, when it was repurposed as the National Archive and Haarlem public library. The building now houses 2 museums; the Archaeological museum and Museum De Hallen (a modern art gallery associated with the Frans Hals Museum).

uncharacteristically small entrance to a Dutch building

Interestingly the museum space itself was an archaeological site in the early stages, and now hosts a timeline of archaeological history of the city of Haarlem and surrounding areas. Unfortunately our own Indiana Jones' knowledge surrounds the history of South America and not Haarlem so we were forced to read the information provided (first in Dutch, then English when failing to recognise fancy terms) like average museum goers. Indy was however great for explaining the excavation site set up at the back of the hall, and it was really cool to learn about the real life work of a modern archaeologist, and hear some interesting stories about field work and what its like to actually make a significant discovery. Further it was interesting to see the blue-print like maps made to catalog discoveries, and the documentation that takes place after excavation is finished, and it was funny to be told that within the profession this is typically considered tedious and boring work - something which we were also able to recognise in the medical and architectural fields.

with the English translations

case of artifacts 

epic panorama 

Frequently updated with changing exhibits, we were lucky enough to visit at the time of the incredibly glamorous 'Haarlem: ONTLAST, Over poep, pies en de beerput' or 'Haarlem: RELIEF, about poop, pee, and the cesspit'. Updated on all of the bizarre things found in variations of the toilet over the last 200 odd years in Haarlem, we moved on to playing all of the interactive archaeological games by the exit. Completing the games earned us a couple of  junior archaeologist certificates (obviously as valuable as 7 years of higher education!), after which we decided it was time for lunch by the Spaarne. 

Cornelius - skeleton found on the Botormarkt

playing games

Despite being a little anxious about sitting by the river without any protection from falling into the water (would this be ok in the UK??), the feeling of sitting with such stunning views on a bright sunny day with friends was undeniably lovely. We later took a walk to the gorgeous Vissersbocht aan het Spaarne, a strip of grass by the river which is covered in flowers planted by the residents of the area, and learned a little about the plans to create a new community space there.

aan het Spaarne

Vissersbocht

We enjoyed a calm evening of painting and cozy drinking, and had anticipated a similarly calm day on friday, however this changed when we made a new friend at the hostel - a North Carolina yoga statistician. Together, my roomie, new friend, and I took an impromptu trip to the beach to check out Woodstock 69 - a newly opened refurbished beach bar we had heard a lot of good things about. It would have been impossible to miss this brightly coloured eclectic and eccentric bar, the decor of which was equally entertaining and confusing. Despite being unsure about what the actual theme of the place was with its colourful Spanish villa style front, steam punk stage, Church-style toilet block, and Hindu temple come Persian flea market interior, we had a great time relaxing in the chilled atmosphere. I would certainly like to go back to relax again, or attend one of the evening parties rumoured never to be boring.

drinks in the sun

Stolen picture from the website of a day much busier than ours

palm trees

It was on the way back from this fateful trip that I fell from my bike. Cycling in front of my friends, I managed to open my bag, take out my phone, text a friend, put the phone back in the bag, and continue cycling, when my roomie said something along the lines of "I'm really impressed you managed to do all of that", and as I turned around to say thanks, I somehow managed to totally wipe out falling to the cement, spraining an ankle, smashing my phone, scattering change, and bruising and grazing my legs. Combining this with the burn from the stove, the injury from the door incident, and the cold, I had been feeling pretty broken this week - although I'm pleased to say I'm on the mend finally!

before the fateful fall

That evening we went to an Indonesian restaurant which had been recommended to us, to try some famous Dutch Indonesian food and Indonesian beer. We had a warm welcome at the friendly De Lachende Javaan which is cozy and is decorated in a traditional style, and we very much enjoyed the beer, sweet & sour vegetables, tofu & tempeh, and different types of rice. I was happy to head home afterwards, full of food, warm from beer, and ready to rest my ankle.

Indonesian beer

foooood

We somehow overlooked the inevitable business of the following day, despite having been warned about it more than a week before. Usually my roomie and I are working 6 hours (between us) making beds and doing errands on saturdays, while a real employed (not volunteer!) cleaner cleans, however on this saturday there were no available cleaners, so we were enlisted to help out with the cleaning job on top of our own hours, a great opportunity to earn a bit of money. In the morning we made our game plan, and coordinated ourselves, before the newly renamed knights of the nightwatch set to work. Together we were very effective, and somehow managed to finish cleaning all 12 private rooms (and bathrooms), 2 of the 3 dorms (and shared showers...), the guest kitchen, the 3 downstairs toilets, and the 2 upstairs, by 3pm - a new record for us! After showering, watching a couple of films, and devouring pizza, we went for an early night to prepare for the Zomerfruit festival - which really deserves a whole post of its own. Tot dan!