A long row of Delft Blue mugs adorn the kitchen walls of OD 18, a stately student house on the Oude Delft. Each mug hangs on a hook and differs from the next in shape and painted design.
The mugs belong to the former residents of this student house, which served as Virgiel’s main student association building until 1949. For many years, six or seven students lived on the upper floors, while the ground floor rooms served as the student chapel and chaplaincy. The ground floor however was eventually converted into living spaces, and twelve Virgiel members now currently occupy this ‘Gentleman’s Society’ house, where the tradition is that first-year residents receive a Delft Blue mug as a birthday present. “We go to the Markt to find a nice mug for the birthday boy, and hopefully also one that somehow fits the person”, explains long-time resident, Gerben Smit. If a guy is fat, for instance, he’s pretty much guaranteed to receive a round-shaped mug.
The mugs belonging to those currently living in the house are kept in a corner of the kitchen sideboard, ready for use. Smit: “We all come back from university at 12:30 and have lunch together. We do this every day. We rinse off our mugs and then sit down at the table. We drink coffee and milk from the mugs.” At 13:30 the mugs are placed back in their proper place, ready to be washed, and then everybody goes their own way. When a resident moves out, his mug is hung up on the wall. And should he happen to come back for a visit in a few months or even years, he can just grab his own mug off the hook.
Art and Architecture
‘Antiques and Curiosa’
Northern City Centre, Delft
www.delft.com
Go in search of interesting, odd and fine antiques, items of curiosity, retro stuff and old junk. Every Saturday, 9:00-17:00.
‘Sonneveld House Tour’
NAi, Rotterdam
www.nai.nl
Audio tour tells you all about the Sonneveld House and the family that lived there. The villa (1933) is one of the best-preserved Functionalist houses in the Netherlands. With the free audio tour you can wander around the house and see and hear just how modern the Sonneveld family lived. The audio tour allows you to go deeper into the subject if you wish. Free.
Cinema & Documentary
‘Youssou N’ Dour’
Filmhuis, Den Haaglft
www.filmhuisdenhaag.nl
Concert film documentary of the great African-Senegalese musician Youssou N’ Dour, who his friend Peter Gabriel calls the ‘voice of liquid gold’. Documentary of the music and the man, his work with Unicef and his efforts to lead a ‘technological’ renewal in Africa. Sunday, 18 January, 17:00
Disco & Parties
‘Foute Friday’
Speakers, Delft
www.speakers.nl
No better way to start than with a ‘Foute’ (Bad Taste) Friday, with the comically bad taste music, atmosphere and of course décor. Speakers will be turned into a Cartoon land of funny and bad taste things all around. Saturday, January 16, 24:00, 7.50 euro.
Music
‘Rock Ya Soul Session’
Paard van Troje, The Hague
www.paard.nl
Bboy Maurizio aka the Next One (Rock Steady Crew, Italy), the first European Bboy acknowledged by the Bronx for his true style of Bboying. Plus DJ Chung and Rebel 1. January 17, 22:00, 8.50 euro.
Various
‘Relax night’
TU Delft Cultural Center
Mekelweg 6
www.snc.tudelft.nl
Come and relax at the Culture Centre on Relax Night, where everything inside the centre will be conspiring to help soothe you and help you relax after hard week of studies. January 16, 21:00 to midnight. Free.
‘Winter Circus’
Theater de Veste
Delft
www. theaterdeveste.nl
An annual tradition for 30 years, the Winter Circus Martin Hanson, entertaining the public with amazing and hilarious acts featuring acrobats, jugglers, clowns and animals of all kinds, including dancing poodles. 17 January, 13:00, 15.50 euro.
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