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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ginza177

A trip through memory lane: Japan 1977 & Japan 2010 (Part III: Ginza)

Today the third part of a trip through a Japanese memory lane, taking us back to Tokyo 1977 and Tokyo 2010 once more. To be more precise: Ginza. Although new shopping area’s have risen to prominence in Tokyo recent years (such as Omotesando), Ginza has long been (regarded as) one of the most luxurious shopping districts in the world. Besides huge Japanese department stores (Matsuya, Mitsukoshi, Matsuzakaya) and fashion clothing ‘flagship’ stores, Ginza is also … Continue reading

Buitenland zoekt loodgieter

Gaan of blijven? Dat is wat wellicht de meeste bezoekers en potentiele emigranten zich afgelopen weekend afvroegen op de Emigratiebeurs. Op zaterdag en zondag vond in het Expo Exhibition Centre te Houten de vijftiende internationale Emigratiebeurs plaats. De organisatie had vooraf via het Internet al een recordaantal kaarten verkocht, wat leidde tot een toeloop van zo’n 11000 bezoekers verdeeld over twee dagen. Willen echt zoveel mensen Nederland de rug toe keren en hun geluk elders … Continue reading

shibamata77

A trip through memory lane: Japan 1977 & Japan 2010 (Part II: Shibamata)

After the hugely successful first installment of A trip through memory lane: Japan 1977 & Japan 2010 – which showed Asakusa, Tokyo now and back then – I today present the second part: Shibamata. Shibamata is one of the few remaining traditional neighborhoods in Tokyo (also called shitamachi) where skyscrapers have not (yet?) arisen and where one can still enjoy more ‘traditional’ types of buildings and styles of living. Perhaps this is also the reason … Continue reading

Lost in society: Tokyo’s homeless

Shinjuku. A major commercial and administrative center of Tokyo, one the most crowded cities on this planet and home to the busiest train station in the world. Every day tens of thousands Japanese crowd its streets. Although Japan’s economy has been in a downwards spiral for a long time – and with a quickly aging society where Japanese youngsters (even university graduates) have great troubles finding decent jobs – the streets of Shinjuku provide little … Continue reading

asakusa77

A trip through memory lane: Japan 1977 & Japan 2010 (Part I: Asakusa)

With January almost over – the month seems to have come and gone very quickly – I thought it would be nice to start something new on my website. Over the weekend I went up to the attic where all sorts of old stuff lies gathering dust. Behind a videocassette recorder, a box full of empty floppy disks, and a yellowish couch which might have been white once I found a album containing photos from … Continue reading

Secrets on the Web 2.0: PostSecret.com

In 2003 Frank Warren – the founder of PostSecret.com – visited Paris for the first time in his life. Upon arrival he bought three postcards which then appeared at night in a lucid dream Warren had. In his dream the postcards had been altered, written upon. After waking up Warren recreated the postcards as he had seen them in his dream, which meant the start of the ‘reluctant oracle’ project what would eventually become the … Continue reading

Ono-san

During a (very) recent visit to Tokyo I saw some flashes of the annual Tennoohai Zen Nippon Sakkaa Senshuken Taikai – also known as the Emperor’s Cup – on the Japanese television. The Emperor’s Cup is a tournament next to the regular J-League competition designed to annually decide which team is the best football team in Japan with the tournament being open to every member club of the Japan Football Association (JFA). Thus, even high … Continue reading

The mediation of media sport events: the 2010 FIFA World Cup

In the summer of 2010 the seemingly impossible happened: for the first time since the lost finals of 1970 and 1974 the Dutch football team managed to get to the final of the World Cup. Although Spain proved to be the better team in the final, the successes in the World Cup meant a summer full of festive television viewing for the Dutch. From a media perspective the World Cup was also a interesting event … Continue reading