Back in Amsterdam

(By Jules Goslinga) In this blog post I would like to write about some of the sporadic thoughts I have had about our trip since we’ve returned. So, we’ve been back in the Netherlands for nearly a week now, and as with returning from any journey, it is easy to slide back into the usual patterns. I’m back in the environment I’m used to, with the people I’m used to, doing the things I’m used to doing. I realize that I have a somewhat less observing attitude compared to last week, paying less attention to signs of peace and conflict that were so prominent in Kosovo. This appears to be because of several reasons. First, here in the Netherlands, peacekeeping is not a daily matter for many people, let alone peace-building. Thus, lessons that apply in Kosovo concerning peace and conflict are triggered less frequently. However, in addition to this, our time in Kosovo was largely spent in a learning atmosphere, whereas the context in the Netherlands may not always be as academic and hence allowing for contemplation of our peace.  Lastly, the past couple of days have been filled with an overload of parties, birthdays, housewarmings, dinners, boat tours and, not unimportantly, Dormfest. The time I’ve had to critically look at our country from a peacekeeping perspective is rather limited.

Nevertheless, I hope that by acknowledging this tendency to slide back into my normal (thinking) patterns, I can also remind myself to become more conscious of the lessons learnt in Kosovo in my daily life. By repeatedly giving recognition to the different ways that the journey has made an impact on me, I hope make these impacts last. Perhaps most importantly is a change in my perspective. I believe that the most inspiring courses at AUC have made an addition to the things I become aware of when I am not actively engaging in the subject matter of that respective course. In other words, I notice more or different things and am able to understand and explain them, when, say, I’m walking through the street.

What also caught my attention upon returning was the apparent ease with which we as students were able to explore the various UN branches, NGOs, educational institutions, etc. On the pretext of understanding Kosovo’s circumstances and by taking an appropriate observing stance to the many debates, it is possible to come to learn about both sides to the conflict. We have experienced a hint of suspicion when talking to the Serbian population in Kosovo after having mentioned that we resided in Pristina and mainly talked to Albanian people. Nevertheless, most difficulties were resolved when it became clear that we did not want to choose a side in the debate, we simply wanted to understand the debate itself. Perhaps, some of the people even feel some responsibility towards students in order to avoid the atrocities that occurred during the war from happening again. In any case, I felt very welcomed by the people we met during our appointments and those we met more spontaneously. Interestingly, there have also been times where it seemed that some people, coming from rather unilateral environments, were more willing to discuss certain topics which were not up for debate within their own circles.

In conclusion, as the very loose structure of this blog entry (or complete lack thereof) may suggest, I believe that in the coming weeks randomly reemerging memories will trigger me to think about what the course has thought me about Kosovo, but also about the Netherlands, and ultimately, myself. I suppose it will take some time to let all the experience settle.