Before heading to Amsterdam, Matt and I spent a few days in Den Haag, a small Dutch city 30 minutes away by train. I can honestly say that I enjoyed Den Haag more than Amsterdam.
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| Old and new |
The people were amazingly nice. Any time we would even glance at the bus or tram schedule, someone would ask us (in perfect English, of course) if we needed help. Everyone we came in contact with was eager to talk with us and give us advice on what to see and do in their city. The city, while small, was very charming. There are canals everywhere, people riding bikes all over town, and lots of classic Dutch architecture.
One of the highlights of the trip was going to the Mauritshuis Museum. When I was little, I read the book, "Girl With the Pearl Earring", and loved it. I looked in the back of the book and saw that the title painting was housed in Den Haag. Ever since then, I wanted to visit Den Haag and see the painting. We got very lucky, because the day we were there was the last day it was open for a few weeks! Anyone who has seen the "Mona Lisa" in Paris knows how crowded the room is, and how small the actual painting is. Seeing "The Girl with the Pearl Earring" was a totally different experience, because the museum is more like a house, and I got to have the painting to myself, as the museum wasn't very full.
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| Outside of The Maritshuis Museum |
Even though it wasn't beach weather, the next day we headed to Scheveningen, the beach neighborhood of Den Haag. When most people think of beach, they don't think of Holland, but it looked like any typical beach town anywhere in the world. Since we couldn't sunbathe, we had a coffee at a beachside cafe that had individual bonfires at each table. We also played mini golf at a sweet glow-in-the-dark course.
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| Glow in the dark mini golf |
Overall, if you're looking for a more chill alternative to Amsterdam, or if you're looking for a nice daytrip, I recommend Den Haag 100%! The people are nice, there's a lot to do, and it's beautiful. Plus, they don't dub movies there, so we got to see The Hunger Games-in English!
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| Boardwalk |
Originally posted 4.23.12
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