Today was a later start, which allowed for some extra sleep.  After breakfast, we walked to the University of Amsterdam, for a tour of their campus.  The university was nice, and had a good vibe to it.  I learned along the way that university in Europe differs from the US in a number of ways.  First of all, it’s far cheaper, although this gap is probably closed in taxes.  It is also a shorter program, where undergraduate degrees are completed in three years, and the fourth is for a masters.  This is an accelerated but more difficult process.  Our guide explained how the university is easy to get into, but not easy to stay in.  He said that his class size went from 1400 to just 500 in the first year alone.  This is an astounding statistic.  

While taking the tour, I tried to consider what part of the supply chain we were partaking in.  Universities are interesting, because the supplies required to make one are plentiful, but the output isn’t as tangible.  Universities need thousands of different materials, people, and programs to be created.  But the output is knowledge, rather than a specific product.  They are somewhat of a risky supply chain, as it is harder to determine their success.  The tour itself is a marketing tactic within the chain.  

We had lunch in the university cafeteria, and then made our way to Centraal station for a canal cruise.  The cruise was about an hour long, and took us around the canal system of Amsterdam.  Equipped with an audio guide, the tour pointed out important buildings around the city.  At one point the driver hit the tail of the boat onto the side wall of the canal, and then played it off saying we hit a fish.  This was amusing to say the least.  After the cruise we were set free for the day.  A group of us did some souvenir shopping, before heading back to the hotel to get some rest.  Tomorrow we have a free morning to sleep in, so hopefully we can have some fun tonight!