Den Haag

Living in The Netherlands was a mixture of blessings and frustrations (like everything closing at 5pm except on Thursdays)... which reminds me everything closes at 5pm! So do all shopping that you wish to do for souvenirs before then because after five you can drink or eat but that is it!

Right back to Den Haag, this is a cheaper, prettier city to base yourself in for your travels and it is also very easy to get to Delft, Gouda, Rotterdam, and Leiden from here (it is also easy to get to Amsterdam with two trains leaving per hour that go via the airport- which is called Schipol, typing in Amsterdam airport at the ticket machine gets you no where).


First up in the sleepy city known as Den Haag would be a list of places to eat (in case you could not tell by now that I love food).

My absolute favorite place in all of The Hague would be this little Indonesian place called 'Jimbaran' (Prinsestraat 10). Try the Otak Otak (fish in banan leaves) or to be super full the goudo goudo. Also the chicken satay which has made its way into Dutch cuisine is pretty tasty. If you are more in the mood for some crepes Will's pancakes (which also has the famed poffertjes). It is located on Gedempte Gracht very near the shopping district on Spui (pronounced Spow).

Meanwhile Very Italian Pizza (next to the Passage) has super cheap and tasty pizza if you are on a very tight budget (be sure to save room for the nutella pizza).

While you are in The Netherlands you must try the fries (frites) but not with ketchup! Instead have them with mayo and curry sauce (soo good) or satay sauce (aka peanut sauce). While different from what most Americans dip their fries in both options are insanely tasty. The most famed fry shop in town is Kleinste Winkeltje on Papestraat (just off the expensive shopping street, Hoogstraat). They also have croquettes and bitterballen if you are in the mood for even more dutch food.

Speaking of Dutch food (which since it is mostly fried and cheese you might be sick of by day five) the Stadsherberg Goude Hooft is the best place I know to get it in The Hague, directly next to the multicolored 'Sting' the service is horrendous (as is all dutch service) but the food is great.

As for drinks there are pretty much two places to go in The Hague for drinks (both will be filled with ex pats and dutch alike). The Plein directly behind the Binnehof has the 'classier' establishments (note some places make you pay to pee even if you are a customer) while in my opinion Grote Markt caters to a slightly more rowdy crowd. Either way going out is a must since you can get loads of fantastic beers that are hard to find back home!


As for the sights there are a surprising number of ways to fill your time in The Hague. If you are in my field (International Law) you can go to one of the several courts in the Hague (although the Tribunal for Sierra Leone, gaining most of the press as of late is wrapping up). Visit one of the Court's websites to get details (ICC, ICTY, STL...)

Perhaps the most famous museum in The Hague is the Mauritshuis which houses the famed painting 'The Girl with the Pearl Earring'. It houses mostly dutch pastoral paintings so if you are not dying to see this particular painting I advise skipping it. Just next to the museum is the Binnehof or the seat of government in The Netherlands. You are actually allowed to stroll straight through the court yard where as getting into the buildings themselves is allowed on Heritage day (early September).

Continuing with the fancy building theme you can also walk by the Queen's working palace (on Noordine) and venture out to the Peace Palace as well. The Peace Palace is also home of the International Court of Justice so one cannot walk up on any given day and arrange a tour, they are done privately instead.

Also one can head out to the beach (Schevenigan) and enjoy drinks and mussels on one of the various restaurants dotting the edge of the beach (just don't expect good weather it can actually be worse than that of the UK!)

But perhaps my favorite tourist trap in The Hague, is Madurodam (aka mini-holland). Here you can stroll through all of The Netherlands in one afternoon, taking in Gouda, Rotterdam, and even the airport. Best of all it is interactive so with a few cents the Mars Bar factory will have a truck bring you a Mars Bar (yum).

As a final note the best way to get around The Hague would be by bike, there are bike lanes throughout The Netherlands (I had friends actually bike from The Hague to Gouda, or Delft, or Leiden) and it is a great way to burn off calories from all the fantastic beer, chocolate, cheese and fried goods in general. Also while you can get around via tram they only come about every 15 minutes. Just be very careful of the tram lines in certain cases when you cycle along side them (one of the five bike falls that secures your Dutch-ness is having a run in with a tram track).


And as a final final note, because it is so easy to travel within this particular area, it is worth considering including Belgium or Germany as well. Antwerp is a very very easy day trip from anywhere in The Netherlands (took me about two hours from The Hague via train) and Brussels is only a bit further). Also the airport tax charged to fly in and out of Belgium is actually cheaper than that of The Netherlands so combining the two countries is definitely worth a thought.

Photos from around The Netherlands

Gouda




Windmills at Zaanse Schans






Proffertjes

Traveling to The Netherlands

For most people, a trip to The Netherlands (aka Holland which is actually the name of a region not the country) is really just a stop over in Amsterdam when backpacking at some point in your 20s. Despite Amsterdam being the only city that many people can identify as being Dutch, The Netherlands is actually a very scenic country with loads to do. If you are interested in seeing sights other than the Red Light District and Pot Brownies I have some fabulous recommendations. (Don't worry Amsterdam is included too). Because I lived in The Hague for several months I will divide this into two posts, one on various day trips that you can take and one on The Hague itself....

Amsterdam: While it may be the most recognizable city in The Netherlands it certainly is not the most Dutch. Hoards of drunken tourists walk streets filled with McDonalds, Burger King, and a variety of Argentinian and Mexican restaurants. (Why Mexican restaurants are so easy to find in The Netherlands compared to the rest of Europe is beyond me but if anyone knows why I am dying to know).

Despite numerous trips to Amsterdam I have only ever had two good meals. The first is in China Town near the main train station at a Thai place called 'The little Thai Prince'. It is located at 33-A Zeedijk street and literally almost every person I have taken says it is the best Thai food they have ever had (the exception was my boyfriend when he had the misfortune of eating during boat week- what I took to be Amsterdam's version of fleet week and to be avoided at all costs). The other decent meal I had was in the restaurant of the Eden Amsterdam American Hotel (right by Leidseplein). Here you can get classic Dutch dishes such as chicken satay, croquettes, and bitterballen. http://www.edenamsterdamamericanhotel.com/en/restaurant.aspx

Also Leidsplein itself is a great area to sit at for a drink (although slightly overpriced as is everything in Amsterdam compared to elsewhere).

As for sights, taking a boat ride along the canal is a great way to see the city. You can either do it with one of the standard tourist boat operators or if you are feeling particularly adventurous it is not that difficult to hire one of your own. The tourist boats go from near the museums and near Leidsplein.

Amsterdam also has a plethora of fantastic museums to go to including the Anne Frank house (buy tickets in advance as the line can be absolutely insane), the van Gogh museum (lines can be long but move quickly) and the Rijksmuseum which houses the famous painting 'The Night Watch'. All are worth seeing but please be aware that the Van gogh museum normally does not have Stary Night (that is at the MOMA). There are various other museums in Amsterdam for those looking to do more than the most famous but these certainly are the big ones.

Other sites worth seeing include the beautiful Vondelpark, the three big canals (easily seen strolling down Leidsestraat) and the floating flower market. Of course there is also the red light district (be very careful not to point your camera in a direction that could imply you are taking a photo of one of the girls).


Red light district.


If you arrive early and move quickly, Amsterdam can easily be done in a day but you certainly never need more than two (unless you want to sleep all day and party all night). Because of the speed with which you can see the city (and the ease with which you can move around the entire country) it is wise to have multiple places to visit on your itinerary.

Gouda is a great little city (and obviously where the cheese comes from) which even has cheese wheels floating in the canals. It is a very very small little town so a morning is all that is really necessary.

Delft is also an absolutely adorable Dutch city which is well worth half a day as well (and very near Gouda so it is easy to combine the two). It is possible to climb the church in Delf (Nieuwe Kerk) but note that the stair case accommodates people going both up and down, is very steep, very narrow, and two giant Americans simply cannot pass at the same time). My friends and I actually had an amazing afternoon on a boat in Delf. Using Canal Hopper (http://www.canalhopperdelft.com/) we secured a boat for super cheap, it came with a driver and we were allowed to bring our own food and drink on (you can also have them cater for you). It was a fantastic way to see the city. There are also plenty of restaurants that allow you to sit on barges in the canal as well. All in all a great afternoon out in the city. Also my friend claims that the best poffertjes (small pancakes) are in Delft and a must as well. The place is called Ijssalon Van Bokhoven and it is on Boterburg.


The poffertjes.

Rotterdam: This Dutch city is unlike most others you will come across, famed for its architecture it is pretty nifty but not nearly as cute as the other towns (because it is not a sleepy little town it also has much better night life). Scope out the bridges that stretch across the river, the cube houses, and the giant market while here.

Leiden : is another city not very far from The Hague. It has a university frequented by many scholars of international law and is a pretty fantastic place in general. The best time to go to Leiden is for Leiden day (everyone wears red, celebrates getting rid of the Spanish, go on rides, and get drunk) this usually happens in late September and is a very festive time to go!

Also, while not a town Zaanse Schans is a great place to see a bunch of dutch windmills on the river (I was obsessed with taking photos of windmills). It is more reachable from Amsterdam so if you are splitting your time between staying in The Hague and Amsterdam while traveling around I would recommend including this while based in Amsterdam. It has loads of little reenactment shops you can pay to go into, or if you prefer you can just stroll around without paying. Cafe's on the other side of the river allow you to eat with a fantastic view!


Last but not least, the famed dutch tulips. The most famous place to see these tulips would be the Keukenhof Gardens: http://www.keukenhof.nl/

The best time to go would be April if you want to see the tulips (you really should) and it is worth a whole day if not at least half of one. If you are not renting a car it is a bit tricky to get there (you take a bus from a bus stand outside the airport, making it equally accessible from both The Hague and Amsterdam). Please know that the gardens are not open all year round, so if you want to go please check the website before planning your trip!

Most depressing news ever..

I found this article on CNN the other day and as a lover of travel, it broke my heart.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/02/04/americans.travel.domestically/index.html?hpt=C2

The article does have a point, there are many places left in the US that I am absolutely dying to go and with skiing, beaches, history, and huge cities you could spend your whole life traveling the 50 states.

But that does not mean you should!

I have been to many places that make most Americans incredibly queasy but it is this ignorance that stems from not going anywhere that is such a large part of the problem.

For example when I went to Zanzibar which is a luxury resort island of the coast of Tanzania all of my American friends offered words of caution. Meanwhile most European friends who had heard of Zanzibar and could locate it on a map were simply just jealous. Since only 30% of Americans have passports that means only 30% of Americans can only have hoped to travel to Africa. This means a majority of Americans are getting any information they have on Africa from the media- and the media only covers what sells- the conflicts. Africa is a giant continent and while some parts of it are currently unstable, this is not the case for every country (there are over 50 of them!) So with less Americans traveling they had no idea that I was simply going to paradise.

This ignorance that stems from not traveling creates additional problems as well. When Americans don't travel they are not exposed to new cultures and therefore any misconceptions they have developed from one sided stories are not rectified. America has a significant role to play in the international community, how can we expect to make a positive impact if we are operating based on misconceptions? The only way you can really get to even hope to understand a culture is to be a part of it, and if Americans are not traveling they are remaining completely ignorant of what the rest of the world is actually like.

My dad is a pretty good example of how beneficial traveling can be. While it was easy to get him to places such as Ireland and the UK getting him to places more out of his comfort zone has been a tremendous task. However each time he has gone (dragging his feet the whole way) he ends up having an amazing time and talks about going back. My dad has formed his opinions based on the limited information he has received from the mass media, however once he has actually experienced the culture he has realized that there is more than what is exposed in the American media.

If you don't have a passport, go out and get one. Once you begin to experience the world outside of America you will be glad you did!