This restaurant’s name first got our attention, then its French-oriented seafood menu caught our eye. The menu features mainstream choices like lobster bisque, mussels and sole à la meunière and more interesting ones like fishes curry and tempura scallops. After changing our minds a few times, we each opted for the market menu, which consisted […]
Panorama Mesdag, Den Haag
Stepping into this amazing exhibit is like getting into a time capsule and emerging on a 19th century beach. A 19th century Dutch beach, that is. The panorama is a large-scale naturalistic depiction of the sea, the dunes and the seaside resort town of Scheveningen in 1881, as envisioned by Hendrik Mesdag, a Dutch banker-turned-artist. […]
Binnenhof, Den Haag
This is where it all began. Back in the 13th century, William II, Count of Holland, built his fortress here. Through the years, buildings were constructed around it to eventually form this configuration. Since the 15th century, the Binnehof housed the Dutch parliament. The house of representatives has since relocated to a modern structure neighboring […]
Dutch Touches
From what I’ve seen, life is pretty good in the Netherlands. Dutch culture seems to be laid-back and liberal, everyone is tall and relatively happy looking and the flat topography near the coast (the coast, right, that’s another positive point) can’t be beat. As we were walking around, I couldn’t help but noticing some things […]
Mauritshuis, Den Haag
If I were a dead Dutch artist, I would want my masterpiece displayed in Mauritshuis. The small galleries with tall windows, high ceilings and thoughtfully painted walls is an ideal environment in which to spend some time. Mauritshuis is an intimate yet comprehensive museum located in a 17th century mansion on Hofvijver, the city’s main […]
Den Haag/The Hague
The Netherlands is quickly becoming one of my favorite countries (sorry, France!). It’s a tiny country and a collection of provinces (Holland comprises two of the twelve provinces, Noord-Holland around Amsterdam and Zuid-Holland around Den Haag), with many picturesque and culturally rich cities. This weekend, we set out for The Hague and Rotterdam. Both are […]
Keukenhof Overview
Before visiting the Keukenhof gardens, I knew, vaguely, that there was a lot of tulilps in the Netherlands. I knew this because when I thought of the Netherlands, generic images of fields full of brightly colored flowers sprang to mind (thanks, tourism board!). Wooden clogs and a couple of joints are also always in the […]
Colorful Dutch Bulbfields
Although we were a little early for the tulips, we were able to catch a glimpse of some colorful Dutch bulbfields. Reportedly, there are 10,000 growers in this region. Carolus Clusius, Dutch botanist and gardener to the Habsburg emporer, brought the first tulip bulb from Vienna. The flower flourished in Holland’s sandy soil (about half […]
Keukenhof, Netherlands III
Okay, just a few more images for the flower show-and-tell! Keukenhof, Netherlands, Dutch
Keukenhof, Netherlands II
Having spent hours hunched over, gasping at flowers, I really need to show some of my favorite close-ups! I really got a kick out of the creative names. Keukenhof, Netherlands, Dutch
