The Chemistry of Cheese: Netherlands and France Study Travel

Written by Kimberlain Williams ’26 (Nisbet Honors)

Jan Term at Converse allows students to expand their horizons with many exciting course options, including international travel. Below, Biology major Kimberlain Williams ’26, of Spartanburg, SC, shares about her “Chemistry of Cheese” study travel experience to the Netherlands and France. This course, along with Art History and Art Appreciation, was co-taught by Converse faculty Dr. Jennifer Hawk and Dr. Ross Brendle. These two faculty members and 24 participating students enjoyed activities for both the arts and cheese courses, as well as cultural and historical activities in both countries.

This Jan Term, I had the opportunity to study abroad through Dr. Hawk’s Chemistry of Cheese course. This was a joint experience with art students, co-taught by Dr. Brendle, allowing for a lot of variety in our travels and a genuinely life-changing trip.

We began our travels in Amsterdam, where we were acquainted with the city via a walking and canal tour, both of which were led by local guides who educated us on the history of the city and gave us a lot of recommendations of what to do during our brief stay. While in Amsterdam, we were privy to a plethora of cheese and art-based activities. 

We visited two art museums during our stay, The Van Gogh Museum and The Rijksmuseum, the National Museum of the Netherlands. Both of these museums greatly reflected the history of Dutch art and the amazing artists from the Netherlands. The Amsterdam Cheese Museum had a multitude of strange cheese varieties such as strawberries and champagne and blue pesto and l’Amuse, a cheese distributor out in the countryside whose generous owner, Ms. Betty Koster, allowed us to have a private cheese tasting. 

The cheese tasting set the stage for many of us to practice some of the cheese-identifying skills that we began honing back in the classroom. There we tasted around 16 cheeses, each with a unique flavor and texture that we recorded and rated in our cheese journals, which we updated accordingly throughout the trip.

“I am grateful to attend a university that provides opportunities to study in the field and travel internationally.”

Kimberlain Williams ’26

Most uniquely, we visited the Anne Frank House in the Jordaan District, one of the most notable and beautiful areas of the city. Visiting this pinnacle of World War II history was incredibly moving and an adventure I’ll always cherish. Our schedule in Amsterdam also provided us with some free time to explore the city on our own. In the evenings, we browsed through vintage stores, and one night we even ice skated at Ice Amsterdam in front of the Rijksmuseum.

After departing from Amsterdam, we made our way to The Hague, which is the government center of the Netherlands. This city houses many popular buildings such as the Dutch Parliament and The International Court of Justice. During our stay in The Hague, we visited the Mauritshuis, the museum that houses the Girl with a Pearl Earring, and visited the cities of Woerden and Gouda, where we tried a multitude of interesting cheeses. 

In Woerden, we went to the only working cheese warehouse that is open to the public and tasted their supply of Reypenaer and Wyngaard cheeses. The following day we traveled to Gouda, where we browsed through the bustling marketplace and visited a local farm. At this farm, we learned about the process of Dutch cheese making and even made our own fresh cheese. When we returned to The Hague that afternoon, many of us traveled by tram to Scheveningen Beach where we watched the sunset.

For our final leg of the trip, we took the Eurostar train to Paris, which was about a three-hour journey from The Hague. In Paris, we participated in a private cheese-making class at Paroles de Fromagers: the Cheese School of Paris where we were introduced to French cheese-making. In groups, we made fresh cheese and butter which we were able to try after all our hard work. The Les Halles, also known as the “Belly of Paris,” had a food tour to taste local French cuisine. 

After these experiences, we were easily able to differentiate Dutch and French cheeses. We had a free day in Paris, and a large group of us decided to visit The Louvre and The Eiffel Tower. The labs we did in class greatly prepared me for our journeys in Europe and allowed me to make the most out of the whole trip. I am grateful to attend a university that provides opportunities to study in the field and travel internationally!