Upcoming Activities, Outings & Monthly Meetings
January:
Monthly Meeting
As you know, it’s a tradition in the IWC that the January guest speaker is always a musical performer, rather than a speaker. This year, we think we have found one of the most unusual and memorable musicians ever!
Rogier Kappers is a movie maker who also happens to possess a rare and ancient skill: he is a “glass organ” player, or “glass turner”, as it’s also called.
It is believed that Benjamin Franklin invented and perfected the glass organ (which he called a “glass armonica”) in 1761. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the glass organ was wildly popular, so much so that even Mozart composed a piece specifically for the glass organ.
Rogier Kappers, the Glass Turner, built and performs on the only glass organ in the Netherlands. Consisting of more than 50 glasses, this organ is capable of playing every note you can imagine, by adjusting the level of water in each glass. Rogier roams through town and country on his organ cargo bike, popping up at festivals, street corners and squares, and always enchants his audience with old and new songs – by the Beatles, Bach and Brel – played on singing glass.
Charity Team Fundraising: Nearly New Household Sale
IWC member, MELINDA GRAPER is sadly leaving Amsterdam in January. She would love to offer a moving
sale with all proceeds going to our Charity, IJM.
Join us for a fantastic opportunity to purchase gently
used household items at unbeatable prices. The sale will take place at her apartment so come and have
a browse, joining us for coffee & cake at the same time.
Tuesday Activity: Our Lord in the Attic
Visit the most unusual Catholic church in Amsterdam, hidden in plain sight on the top floors of a seemingly residential canal house in the Centrum. Our private guided tour will explore the narrow corridors and stairs that lead to historically decorated living quarters, kitchens and bedrooms, ending in a complete church in the attic.
The attic church was commissioned by wealthy Catholic merchant Jan Hartman and was inaugurated in 1663, at a time when it was forbidden to practice the Catholic faith in public. Catholics had to look for alternatives and celebrate mass in hidden house churches.
Diva Outing: Museum Jan, Amstelveen
Museum JAN is a visual arts museum with a special focus on glass art but its current exhibition focuses on Haarlem painter Otto B. de Kat (1907-1995) and his contemporaries. Join our guide Maya on a guided tour of the museum.
February:
Monthly Meeting
Join us for a fun-filled and fascinating presentation by Maud Janssen, stylist and colour expert!
Having your colours analysed is not about whether you can wear blue or purple or brown: it is about discovering which shade of every colour suits you best, and how to maximise your own assets.
Maud Janssen has been working for many years in this field, and she not only understands how using colour can make you look your very best, but she can also recognise your body shape and can help you with amazing tips and tricks to make the most of what you have. Maud counts several IWC members amongst her clients, so she is well vouched for.
Maud will use some volunteers to demonstrate the principles of colour, fit and styling. This will be an enjoyable and light-hearted presentation, perfect for chasing away the winter blues and getting you ready for the spring!
Tuesday Activity: Walking Tour
This is a unique opportunity to listen to a guide who will tell you their personal story, what it’s like to have an addiction and how they ended up living on the streets.
The guide will show you Amsterdam through the eyes of someone who is homeless and needs drugs. Is there a place to sleep where they will be dry? Can they make money quickly for drugs or booze? Where can they find food and where will they be safe? They will tell you how they survived in the raw and unsafe environment of the Amsterdam Red Light District.
Amsterdam Underground supports people with an addiction and living on the streets of Amsterdam to kick their habit and find homes of their own. The guides used to live on the streets and earn their income through working as tour guides, contributing to self-confidence, self-esteem and self-reliance.
Diva Outing: Mauritshuis & former American Embassy
The Mauritshuis is a small museum with a formidable collection of Golden Age Dutch and Flemish paintings, including The Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer and The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt.
The iconic former American Embassy, with its trapezium-shaped windows, was designed by Bauhaus architect Marcel Breuer and opened in 1959. It is now a centre for arts and culture.
Charity Team Fundraising:
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Not to mention many, many more events throughout each week, including our massively popular IWC Walking Group every Wednesday, monthly book clubs, Thirsty Thursday, our lunch group in ‘tGooi, Coffee in the City, canasta, mahjong and much more! See the INTEREST GROUPS section for more details.
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If you are interested in joining one of our monthly meetings or activities, please contact our Membership Officer. membership@iwcamsterdam.nl
Meeting dates in 2025:
Tuesday 7 January: annual musical performance
Tuesday 4 February
Tuesday 4 March
Tuesday 1 April
Tuesday 6 May: AGM
Summer break
Tuesday 2 September
Tuesday 7 October
Tuesday 4 November
Monthly Meetings
IWC Amsterdam meetings take place, as a rule, on the first Tuesday of the month, but occasionally they are held the following week. They occur each month from September to May. We meet at 10:00 in the historic Koninklijke Industrieele Groote Club on Dam Square.
We start with tea or coffee and chat before the meeting begins. There are assigned members looking out for new members at every meeting, so if you are new, they will welcome you and introduce you to other friendly women in the club. At 10:30 we assemble in the Groote Zaal to listen to our guest speaker. After the meeting, from 12:00 to 12:30, the IWC offers you a glass of wine or a soft drink. Members then often meet in small groups and head to lunch in the “Rienstra’s Eetzaal” Restaurant of the Koninklijke Industrieele Groote Club, or to one of the many restaurants nearby.
Dress code: Smart casual: the KIGC does not permit trainers of any style.
Please note: There is a €10 fee for all guests wishing to attend a meeting.
Directions: from Centraal Station, walk down Damrak to Dam Square. The Koninklijke Industrieele Groote Club is opposite de Bijenkorf and to the left of the Gassan diamond shop.
Koninklijke Industrieele Groote Club
Dam 27
1012 JS Amsterdam
Please note that English is the official language of our Club.
