Day 12: Amsterdam and Van Gogh

Painterly © 2018 Bo Mackison

The light in Amsterdam is a painterly light, indeed.

Amsterdam Centraal Station was designed by Pierre Cuypers who is also designed the Rijksmuseum. It’s an impressive work of architectural art. We were racing the clock as we walked by Centraal Station, on our way to our timed admission tickets at the Van Gogh Museum.

Van Gogh Museum ©2018 Bo Mackison

And here we are — two buses in busy Friday afternoon traffic — but we all arrived in time to claim our tickets. This museum is BUSY.

Van Gogh’s Sunflowers ©2018 Bo Mackison

No photographs allowed — though their were plenty of visitors taking photos while pretending not to be taking photos. This copy of Sunflowers was one of the few permissbale photo stops.

Van Gogh ©2018 Bo Mackison

Of course, there was no limitations on photos of prints in the gift shop, so I made do with a photo of a copy. But mostly I enjoyed studying the many paintings. There is an extensive display of his self-portraits — so many self-portraits because Van Gogh would not have had the money to pay a model, thus he painted himself. For free.

Bob the Artist ©2018 Bo Mackison

Bob found a “Bob the Artist” book and was more than content to share.

van Gogh Museum ©2018 Bo Mackison

The van Gogh Museum’s new entrance hall opened in 2015. The curved glass structure, positioned between the museum’s two buildings, connects the spaces while providing shelter for waiting visitors.

Mirroring Cube ©2018 Bo Mackison

A mirroring cube between the entrances of Stedelijk Museum and van Gogh Museum, it reminds me of The Bean in Chicago’s Millennium Park with people talking photos in the reflective surfaces.

We walked past the Rijksmuseum  and through its center tunnel. It was designed by Pierre Cuypers and opened in 1885. It consists of two squares with an atrium in each square. In the center is a tunnel with the entrances at ground level and the Gallery of Honour on the first floor.

The Rijksmuseum ©2018 Bo Mackison

The Rijksmuseum is on the Museum Square near the van Gogh Museum.

Amsterdam is famous for its canals and its lovely light. Well deserved.

Painting the Town Red ©2018 Bo Mackison

Painting the town red.

 

Amsterdam ©2018 Bo Mackison

 

Light on the Canal ©2018 Bo Mackison

 

Van Go ©2018 Bo Mackison

A decorated bicycle near the Amsterdam Harbor.

Last Toast ©2018 Bo Mackison

The last toast; tomorrow we fly home.

Contemplative Creatives Journey – Winter 2018-19

JOIN ME FOR THE WINTER SEASON OF THE WORKSHOP THAT EXPLORES – AND CELEBRATES – THE EXTRAORDINARY IN THE ORDINARY

This gently guided journey with Bo has infused my existing practices with renewed energy. Her exquisite leadership is informed by experience, training and soulful instinct. I consider her a modem mystic. ~ Mary Anne Radmacher

If the words contemplative and creative have a sweet juiciness for you and you’re interested in a different sort of online workshop, read on:

  • no schedule, but lots of serendipity.
  • no planned curriculum, but lots of surprises.
  • no expectations, but infinite possibilities.
  • no formal objectives, but an always-available way to engage and interact with your world through art, nature and the written word.

I combine my roles as curator of life experience, writer, artist, Certified Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coach, and Certified Miksang Contemplative Photography instructor to offer you a meaningful and fulfilling online workshop with a well-established active community component.

Nine Square Mandalas © 2018 Bo Mackison

In community and individually, we explore these themes:

word * vision * place

WORD

This practice focuses on how to connect — to the world, community, and self — using words. We’ll play with words, explore words, and connect nature and place using words. We’ll write poetry – tile poetry, collaborative poetry, and poetry art using found words and pictures. You don’t need to consider yourself a writer to enjoy these practices, but anyone with an established writing practice will surely delight in them.

VISION

We’ll create mandalas, individually and collectively. I find this to be an especially beneficial winter practice since the early morning darkness offers me a quiet time to create, but this is a practice that can be done at anytime and anywhere. It’s a pocket-practice — the practice requires only a small container of basic supplies that can travel almost anywhere.

We’ll explore the practice of Miksang Contemplative Photography, focusing on the practices of 1) light and shadow and 2) interacting with your ordinary and personal world. (All types of cameras and skill levels are fine.)

PLACE:

Throughout the short winter days of winter, we’ll continue the weekly observational practice of backyard phenology – the study of nature’s calendar, an ever-present, in-the-present survey of the cycles of plants and animals in your natural world.

We’ll incorporate ideas from “The Book of Hours,” a contemplative practice derived from ancient practices that focus on mindfulness practices, throughout our days.

Bo Mackison is an insightful, talented and inspirational art, photography and writing creativity coach and teacher. Bo’s wide range of artistic knowledge along with her life experiences makes her the artist and writer’s trusted advisor. I highly recommend Bo as a mentor, teacher, trainer and speaker. ~Jeanette Richardson Herring, Author and Artist

MY WINTER OFFER:

YOU WILL RECEIVE REGULAR — AND RANDOM — PROMPTS AND EXPLORATIONS.

Together we’ll explore themes and creative practices that inspire and encourage, elicit wonder and awe, uplift your spirit and feed your soul.

This is a practice that:

  • gently weaves itself throughout your day
  • illuminates the extraordinary in the ordinary, celebrates the uncommon in the common
  • offers ways of interacting with place that highlight the wonder of and connection with nature, no matter where you live, work and play.

We begin December 1st, 2018 as winter approaches and we’ll journey together until March 14th, 2019.

New participants are welcome to join CCJ in the Winter Season. The first weeks of our practice will include introductions to the practices of collaborative poetry writing, creating a mandala practice, Miksang contemplative photography and the study of phenology.

If you searching for a place of sanctuary, a place to recharge so you can show up bright and energized for the demands of living in today’s world, this might be the workshop community you seek.

Whether you have a fully equipped art room or a box of simple supplies you store in a closet, you’ll find new ways to create. Hints on how to see or create in new ways will offer you unlimited possibilities for exploration and are easily incorporated into your everyday routine.

Come along and explore the creative and contemplative life with spaciousness and spontaneity.

WINTER SOLSTICE © 2018 Bo Mackison

WHEN:

The WINTER journey is 14 weeks long.  December 1, 2018 through March 14, 2019.

HOW:

Private community on Facebook. All content is shared on a private Facebook group page and can show up anytime. Surprise and serendipity! You are encouraged to share your discoveries and experiences in the private group however and whenever you choose.

This guided and easily accessible process allows you to engage in the practice in whatever way is best for you.

A handsome PDF booklet featuring content from the 14 week session is provided at the end of the season as a helpful ongoing resource.

THE COST:

I offer you my knowledge, my skills, my presence and my enthusiasm. The cost for this winter journey and an active sharing community remains at the all-inclusive price of $99.00.

TO RESERVE YOUR SPACE:

Registration is now open.

Register here through PayPal.

~~~~~

BO MACKISON is an artist, poet, photographer, certified Kaisen-Muse creativity coach, Nalanda Miksang Photography Instructor, hands-on workshop presenter, and a woman who has spent her entire adult life surviving and thriving with the help of the creative practices she now shares with others. She is the founder of Contemplative Creatives Journey, an Online Seasonal Workshop. Bo has been offering creative and contemplative programs for women since 2014. She’s been told her workshops have changed people’s lives for the better. She believes this to be true.

Day 12: Celebration Buffet on the Viking Sky

Buffet Cocktails ©2018 Bo Mackison

While we sailed our longest leg of our cruise at sea — 23 hours from Hamburg to Amsterdam — this delightful buffet offered us sustenance of the finest quality.

No words are really needed…

All the Fine Chefs in a Row ©2018 Bo Mackison

…except for commendations to the many chefs aboard the Viking Sky that made the food a cruise highlight.

©2018 Bo Mackison

Who’s that looking at me? Gah!

Dessert anyone? How I wish I had just a single sample now!

Cheers!

Day 12 Sailing from Hamburg to Amsterdam

Hamburg on the Elbe ©2018 Bo Mackison

October 5, 2018

The trip from Hamburg to Amsterdam is a half day plus all night plus another half day affair. We leave Hamburg around 2 PM on October 4 and we arrive in Hamburg around 1 PM on October 5. It’s a quiet time after many days of constantly being on the go. We cruised the Elbe, past homes terraced along the banks of the river.

Lighthouse on the Elbe ©2018 Bo Mackison

Lighthouses dot the shore at frequent intervals.

Sheep on the Shore of the Elbe ©2018 Bo Mackison

Near the mouth of the Elbe, sheep graze on the river’s flood plain.

Tidal Chart of the Elbe

There was a conversation in the Explorer’s Lounge about tides in this part of the world, so I looked up tides and took this screenshot. The red dot on October 4th signifies the tide is going out and will be at low tide at 8:35 PM.

We were happy to sit back and enjoy some down time, not that there is ever any “nothing to do” time. Just a look out of any nearby window proves there is always something to see of interest. But Bob read a book — his second on the cruise — and I worked on my travel journal. Then we toasted to a “cruise well enjoyed.”

North Sea Sunrise & Netherlands in the Mist ©2018 Bo Mackison

By the time the sun was rising, we were approaching the Netherlands.

North Sea Channel, IJmuiden, Netherlands ©2018 Bo Mackison

IJmuiden is the newest city in North Holland, and was christened a city in 1876, when the North Sea Canal was officially opened, connecting the Amsterdam harbours to the open sea.

IJmuiden is located at the mouth of the 27-kilometre-long North Sea Channel that links Amsterdam with the sea.

Locks ©2018 Bo Mackison

 

All ships traveling between Amsterdam and the North Sea must pass through the locks at IJmuiden. The four sea locks form a barrier in the mouth of the channel, which offers protection against flooding from the North Sea.

New Lock Construction ©2018 Bo Mackison

New locks are being built to accommodate the newest generation of large ships.

Forward on Deck 10 © 2018 Bo Mackison

 

Entering the Locks ©2018 Bo Mackison

 

 

Botel on the Elbe ©2018 Bo Mackison

Wanna stay near the water? How about on the water? Here’s what the Botel’s website has to say about its boat-hotel.

“The Amstel Botel is Amsterdam’s floating hotel. Stay in our hotel with unique design in appearance. We are located in the center of Amsterdam just 3 minutes walk from the Central Railway Station and 18 minutes ride from Amsterdam Airport, which offers a splendid opportunity to discover Amsterdam’s history, culture and beauty. The Amstel Botel has 175 rooms, smoking and non-smoking rooms available, all with toilet/shower, hot/cold water, safe, AM/FM clock radio, writing desk, telephone.”

Yea or nay?

Canal ©2018 Bo Mackison

A’Dam Lookout is an observation deck with a panoramic view of Amsterdam. Visible is the city’s historical center, the port, the surrounding landscape, and the famous canals which are listed on the UNESCO world heritage list.

Amsterdam Canal ©2018 Bo Mackison

 

Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands ©2018 Bo Mackison

The white low slung building is the EYE Film Institute Netherlands, a museum that preserves and presents both Dutch and foreign films screened in the Netherlands. The museum’s extensive collection includes 37,000 film titles, 60,000 posters, 700,000 photographs and 20,000 books.

And soon we will be arriving at the terminal of Amsterdam.

Day 11: Red Chairs in Hamburg

Red Chairs Formation © 2018 Bo Mackison

I shop in my hometown’s shopping malls as infrequently as possible–perhaps three times a year. So why was I enjoying myself while spending a morning in Hamburg’s Europa Passage shopping mall?

Europa Passage in Hamburg ©2018 Bo Mackison

Yes, we were waiting for a large book store to open so we could indulge in some board game purchases for the game players back home. But I also spent a long time admiring the mall’s furnishings. Just look at these tables and red chairs!

And since it was raining, this was a great way to stay dry.