i am visiting yet another new part of the world for me – Amsterdam in the Netherlands!  While technically speaking I have been in the country before it was at an ISAR (International AUdit Research Sympoisium) which had as many Anglo Saxons at it as many smaller Noth American audit conferences have .  Hence, my first real taste of the Netherlands and the Dutch in their natural environment!

My impressions are extremely positive with excellent attendance and engagement at both the paper workshop and the craft workshop!  The later was especially fun as students from three Dutch universities as well as two prospective students attended!  I only hope the no holds barred look at the craft realities did not deter the young folks!

Learning tacit knowledge ( if it can be taught at all) takes more than one workshop by an outsider but at the same time just hoping students will ” get it ” by observing you as a faculty member is not enough in this day and age.  We need to do all we can to help our younger colleagues in training move down the learning curve as fast as possible!

Finally I cannot resist a bad pun.  It appears the colour  theme of my sabbatical has been clearly orange!  First in the orange capital of North America – Florida – and then in the home of the House of Orange – the Kingdom of the Netherlands!