Europe #2 - Netherlands

From Paris, we went to Amsterdam by the superfast Euro Train. Since my wife has been to the Netherlands many times from her Philips days, she knows the country (not just Amsterdam) very well. In Amsterdam, a huge number of the tourist’y sites are all close to each other (and to the railway station).

 

The Dutch are truly comfortable in English, so communication is very easy. After spending a few hours at the interactive science museum, we went to the street famous for its food and knick-knacks. I ordered the falafel and it was great, spicy as ordered. I also enjoyed the stroopwafels, a type of waffle. While I am not a fan of waffles, the Dutch variant is delicious. I’ve told my 12 yo daughter to learn the recipe and make them for me in Bangalore…

 

The next morning, we took the ferry across the river to the tour office for the bus to the Keukenhof Gardens. My wife had spoken highly of the beauty of the place, and she wasn’t exaggerating. Tulips for miles on end, in so many varieties – it was a riot of color, extremely beautiful, and organized so well. It took us around 2 hours to walk around the place at a leisurely pace. At the end of the garden is a windmill, which we went up for the view. And then we had more of the stroopwafels at another streetside shop. Yummy.

 

In the afternoon, we went to Zaanse Schans, a city known for its collection of windmills and wooden houses that were all relocated here to preserve them. Very pretty, very scenic. Unfortunately, it was drizzling when we went there which made it a cold and wet experience. Oh well, at least the weather had been nice and sunny when we were at the tulips in Keukenhof.

 

The next day we went to the Hague, a little over an hour by train from Amsterdam. We visited the International Court of Justice. It looks like one of those royalty era palaces. Pretty, but since we couldn’t go inside (not a day for visitors, apparently), there was nothing else to do there.

 

What really blew us away in the Hague was Madurodam. That is a theme park consisting of miniature 3D models of famous and beautiful structures from all over the Netherlands, including the International Court of Justice. The level of detail, and the placement of appropriately sized vehicles and human-like figures is gorgeous. There are also motorized boats, cars, trains and even aeroplanes that move on fixed paths alongside the structures. The icing on the cake was this one model where the boat will come to a bridge, stop there, and wait for the bridge to open up. Once the bridge had opened, the boat would pass and the bridge would close. No matter how old one gets, such models are great fun to watch.

 

It was time to move to our next destination at the foothill of the Alps, Innsbruck. By train again, this time an overnight one. Sleeper coaches in Europe are surprisingly tiny, with barely any space for luggage. Strange. On the plus side, they served us champagne as the welcome drink.

 

I loved the Netherlands – it’s now my favourite country in Europe.

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