INFO TEXEL EXCURSION In the first week of your study program International Food & Agribusiness (IFA) you visit the biggest Wadden island Texel. This 3-day excursion is part of your introduction program, and is both educational and entertaining. Visiting the islands namely enables you to learn more about the Dutch agri- & foodbusiness and specifically the local produce at Texel (Echt Texels Product). Moreover, you can get better acquainted with your fellow-students and some IFA staff members at the same time. The teambuilding activities, beach battle & barbecue, and informal drinks offer you ample opportunity to do so. THE WADDEN ISLAND TEXEL In the North Holland province you can find the island of Texel. Texel is the absolute largest Wadden Island and over 13,000 residents call Texel home. This island is a total of 179 square miles in size with only 62 square miles of land. Like much of North Holland, Texel is a major tourism hub. In fact, the economy boasts over 70 percent of its profits come from tourism. While many of these industries also cater to locals, they are often prosperous thanks to the influence of tourism. Texel consists of a total of 7 villages: De Cocksdorp, De Koog, De Waal, Den Burg, Den Hoorn, Oosterend and Oudeschild. We shall visit some of them whilst on Texel. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texel and http://www.netherlands-tourism.com/wadden-islands/ (both consulted: 25 June 2018) Source: DiscoverTexel.nl (25 June 2018) Source: http://www.netherlands-tourism.com/wadden-islands (25 June 2018) TRANSPORT We arranged a comfortable coach to take us from the HAS location in Den Bosch to the island of Texel. The bus joins us on the ferry and takes us to the hotel in De Cocksdorp. The bus company Texel Tours also drives us around once on the island. They also take care of the return trip. Everyone is expected to use this way of transportation, as teambuilding already starts in the bus. Next to that, the costs are already included in your payment. N.B. Should you unfortunately miss the bus, you need to contact the organizational committee immediately. Missing the bus also means that you need to travel to the island by yourself, at your own expenses. You do not get any refund! The train can take you up to Den Helder Central Station. From there you need to take the bus to the ferry. On Texel you can best catch a cab or Texel Hopper (mini-van) to the hotel. N.B. Students are not allowed to bring their own car to the island! ACCOMODATION & FACILITIES During 3-day excursion at Texel, we stay in the 2-star hotel De Kievit in De Cocksdorp, which lies in the north of the island Texel. The facilities are basic, but the rooms are comfortable and clean. The hotel accommodates 80 beds in total, divided over multiple double, twin and dorm rooms. Sheets, blankets and towels are provided for by the hotel. The rooms are equally divided over the students and staff, taking into account that males and females have separate bedrooms. As you all need to share rooms, we trust that you will respect each others privacy and cultural/religious norms and values, and act accordingly. Each morning we have breakfast in the bar/ restaurant of the hotel. You are also allowed to compose your own lunch package then. Please notice that breakfast and lunch (package) are quite simple. It consists of a basic continental breakfast with bread and cereals; butter, cheese, meats, chocolate sprinkles and jam/marmalade; coffee/ tea/ (soy) milk/ orange juice; and some fruits. If you are a big eater, or have any special dietary wishes, please make sure that you buy and bring some extra’s (yoghurts, nuts, crackers, etc) yourself to complete your meals. Also keep in mind that there is very little opportunity in our schedule to do your groceries once we are at Texel. ALCOHOL POLICY The hotel also has a cozy bar & restaurant, where you can buy your own sodas, drinks and snacks. Please notice that in the Netherlands we do have quite strict alcohol legislation which prohibits alcohol consumption below the age of 18 years. As HAS University of Applied Sciences we therefore do not allow our under-aged students to drink alcohol. We also kindly request others not to provide alcohol to their younger fellows. As bar tenders can be confronted with high fines if they do serve alcohol to youngsters, we agreed to hand out ribbons to all students who are allowed to drink alcohol, to indicate this allowance. DAY 1: TEAMBUILDING & BBQ Teambuilding is one of the major aims of the Texel excursion. On the first day we have therefore planned a Beach Battle, in which teams compete against each other in different beach games. We recommend to wear sports clothes and sturdy shoes, and to bring swimming suits and a beach towel. If the weather allows, you can namely also enjoy a swim in the sea afterwards. As we cannot predict the weather conditions, it is however advised to also pack a warm sweater, long trousers, raincoat or jacket. In case of warm and sunny weather, please bring enough sun cream! As the Beach Battle involves physical activities, we would like to inventory upfront which students have physical injuries or other problems which prevent them from participating in (some of) these teambuilding activities. If so, please inform your coach and notify the Texel organizational committee asap, so we can inform De Zandbank Teambuilding about the exact number of participants and/ or possible physical issues that might interfere. After the teambuilding activity we have a very luxury Beach BBQ at beach pavilion Paal 17 aan Zee. They offer a very nice and tasteful barbecue, with salads, bread and fries on the side. They also offer a variety of vegan and vegetarian options. The restaurant also serves delicious alternatives in case of specific dietary needs or allergies (e.g. lactose, gluten-free). Again: please inform your coach and notify the Texel organizational committee asap, so they can indicate this when confirming the reservation. N.B. The restaurant usually serves (free) table water. Other drinks can be ordered at the bar and are at your own expense. Again: the ribbon we provide indicates if you are allowed to drink alcohol or not. DAY 2: COMPANY VISITS & ASSIGNMENT On the second day, you visit various companies in the food & agribusiness. The island of Texel namely offers a unique opportunity to see how agricultural businesses survive and succeed within a fragile ecosystem. We kick-off with a visit to the Salt Farm Texel and Waddenwier. They will explain more about their research in saline crop production, and seaweed cultivation. They will also present some of their international projects in e.g. India and Pakistan. Next to that there will be ample opportunity to visit their test fields and greenhouses on the premises, to see, feel and taste theory in practice. Afterwards, the group is split up in three subgroups, which all visit different companies and locations. You shall be asked to indicate your first and second preference for a certain subgroup (and thus a certain combination of company visits) on Day 1. Students are allocated to a certain group by the IFA staff members. During your visits we want you to gather information about the company and their product (Echt Texels Product), and how they promote local production and sustainability within their operation. You will be required to prepare a report on your visits. More information about the Texel assignment shall be handed out to you once on Texel. DAY 3: SUSTAINABLE FISHERY Texel is also very well-known for his fishing fleet, which mainly catches flatfish, sole, cod and shrimps. However, the Dutch pulse fishing methods are controversial. Next to that, the Dutch fishermen also strongly oppose to the landing obligation which comes into force in 2019. To learn more about sustainable fishery including the challenges the (Dutch) fishermen face, we have arranged a presentation by VisNed. This is a Dutch fishing cooperative, which representing their members on national and international level regarding issues related to sustainable fishery and international trade. After the presentation, and hopefully lively discussion, we shall again put theory into practice. We shall embark the trailer boat Emmie-TX10, which sails out to catch some shrimps. You even get to peel and taste the fresh catch, as the shrimps are cooked and served on board. If we are lucky, we can even spot some seals… COSTS & MEALS The following costs & meals are included: Transport Den Bosch – Texel and vice versa, by bus (incl. ferry crossing) Accommodation in 2* hotel De Kievit (incl. bedlinen & towels): 3 days - 2 nights Simple continental breakfast on day 2 & 3 (included in price accommodation) Simple lunch packages on day 2 & 3 (you can make you own lunch packages at breakfast) Beach BBQ at Paal 17 aan Zee (N.B. also vegetarian/ vegan options & diet/ allergy alternatives!) All excursions and company visits on day 2 & 3 NOT included are: Breakfast & lunch on day 1 (please bring your own) Dinner on day 2 (in Den Burg; at your own expense) All drinks & snacks (at your own expense), also at the hotel/ BBQ PACKING LIST Please do not forget to bring: Clothes (incl. warm sweater and long trousers, as it can be pretty cold & proper clothing for company visits) Bathing suit & beach towel (Beach Battle) Sportswear & sturdy sports shoes (Beach Battle) Comfortable walking shoes (e.g. sneakers) for excursions day 2 Toiletries Medicines (if applicable, please inform staff; N.B.