What is this website mainly about?

History, Media & Communication

"History illuminates reality, vitalizes memory, and provides guidance in daily life", the Roman philosopher Cicero wrote. Having studied history, media and communication, I write essays dealing with these fields of expertise, often combining them.

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Japan

A long time interest in Japan, especially its history and cinema, and several study visits in the last few years have made the land of the rising sun one of the more prominent and interesting topics to write about in the form of essays and (travel) stories.

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Reggae

The music from Jamaica that came from the slums of Kingston as the musical voice of the poor and oppressed and eventually conquered the world. As a uplifting, inspiring and motivating soundtrack to life, reggae and especially Bob Marley and the Wailers are favorite topics to write about.

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Panoramic Photography

One of my favorite type of photo’s is the stitched panoramic photo. These are made by taking a series of overlapping shots and using special software (AutoStitch in my case) to join and blend them together seamlessly. You can shoot anything from high-res non-distorted wide-angle shots to full 360 degree wrap arounds. I do not use professional equipment nor do I (want to) spend hours perfectioning the photo’s. However, with some help of my brother … Continue reading

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Feyenoord Open Dag 2009

As some of you may know, one of my hobbies is football. Besides playing football myself (occasionally) I have been a supporter of Feyenoord Rotterdam since I was a kid. For years I visited virtually every homegame, but I will miss most of the upcoming season because I will be in Japan. But that’s OK, can’t be in two places at the same time Anyway, yesterday (22-07-2009) I visited the Feyenoord Open Dag together with … Continue reading

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Reggae in Japan: Bob Marley in the country of the rising sun

Thirty years have passed since Bob Marley visited Japan to give eight concerts in Tokyo and Osaka, thus popularizing reggae in the country of the rising sun. Today Marley’s star still shines brightly in Japan, where his words and music have been embraced by fans with different predicaments but similar feelings. While the painful restructuring of corporate Japan in the 1990′s was no source of lyricism for Marley his passion to be free against the … Continue reading

Essay: ‘William Adams and the establishing of trade relations between The Netherlands and Japan’

This year (2009), the city of Leiden celebrates 400 years of trading relations between Japan and the Netherlands. These trade relations were established in 1609, nine years after the arrival in Japan of Englishman William Adams. After his arrival, Adams would become a hatamoto (trusted advisor) to shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu, which was a remarkable achievement for a foreigner. The story of William Adams has been written down many times in academic and non-academic work alike, … Continue reading

Essay: ‘Japan. Voorgesteld in schetsen over de zeden en gebruiken van dat Ryk, byzonder over de Ingezetenen der stad Nagasaky (1830)’

A book analysis for the course ‘Image of the world in the popular media’ at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, this essay was written in Dutch in 2009 as an undergraduate student. The book under discussion is ‘Japan. Presented in sketches on the morals and manners of that Empire, in particular about the citizens of the city of Nagasaki’, written by Dutch VOC-chief G.F. Meijlan and published in 1830 in Amsterdam. The book is freely … Continue reading

Essay: ‘De revolutie van 1848. Hoe een conservatieve koning in één nacht zeer liberaal werd’

In 1848 revolution spread across Europe as people massed on the streets to demand political changes. A negative political climate and a economy that was getting worse (while taxes were high) fueled demonstrations in the big cities of Europe. The revolution broke out in the city of Palermo on the Italian island of Sicily on the 12th of March 1848, quickly spreading to the south of France and the mainland of Italy. In the following … Continue reading

Essay: ‘Erasmus of Machiavelli?’

A short paper, written in Dutch, based upon a ‘what-if’ situation about Emperor Charles V, who after defeating the Protestant Alliance in 1547, faced the problem of how to govern and control his lands. This paper answers the question whether either Desiderius Erasmus or Nicolo Machiavelli would be a better advisor for Charles V by looking at the works written by Erasmus and Machiavelli. This essay was written in 2007 as an undergraduate student at … Continue reading