I have always called it Holland but my Dutch friend is very quick to remind me that North Holland and South Holland are just two of the 12 Provinces of The Netherlands. It’s a bit like us, in the UK, calling Scotland and Wales Britain..!!!! The Netherlands official name is actually “ The Kingdom of The Netherlands”. It borders Germany to the east and Belgium to the south, and has a North Sea coastline to the north and west. It’s population is 17.9 million people all living in its relatively small area of 16,160 sq miles ( 41,850 sq Km), this makes it the 33rd most densely populated country in the world. It’s quite amazing that with this high level of population it is the 2nd largest exporter of food and agricultural products ( by value) in the world. This is obviously due to its fertile(much has been reclaimed from the sea) land, mild climate and its eco life style.
During the past two years we have enjoyed visiting The Netherlands twice, this blog is the first of our visits which took place at the end of November/beginning of December, we went for 6 nights. The Netherlands has 4 large cities which are Amsterdam Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. We visited the first 3 cities along with smaller towns and Villages. Amsterdam is the country’s most populous city and is known as the capital city though the political national institutions are located in The Hague.
We based ourselves in a village called Hendrick-ido-Ambacht, approx 11miles south-east of Rotterdam. A quaint village with a great network off buses. We stayed at B&B ‘t Ambacht. A boutique Bed and Breakfast which occupies a 100 year old building. The building was the village bakery and the shower in our very pretty bedroom was actually in one of the old brick built ovens. The authentic warm decoration brings back its glorious history. It costs about £113 per double per night, inclusive of a fantastic breakfast, most of which is made on the premises.
From here we took trips out. Although we had hired a car, from the garage in the village, it wasn’t really necessary as we used buses, trains and trams most of the time.
Our fist visit was to the nearby UNESCO World Heritage site of Kinderdijk. Kinderdijk is a small village in the the Netherlands’ South Holland province. It is well known for its iconic 18th-century windmills. Its has 19 mills and 3 pumping stations, plus dikes and reservoirs that control water levels in the low-lying surrounding land. At the main visitors centre you can buy a ticket to take a boat for €19.50 weekend and €18.00 Weekdays. The boat takes you to 2/3 of the windmills which are set up as museums and working museums. It allows you to hop-on and hop-off…..although I expect in the summer and at weekends it sticks to a stricter timetable than when we visited, in late autumn. Many of the windmills are privately owned and lived in. It is a beautiful area, if you don’t fancy the boat there are cycle and footpaths which crisscross the area.
On returning to the visitors centre we warmed up with a hot drink and one of Hollands famous pastries……John of course couldn’t resist trying the clogs on…..
Our sightseeing continued to Delft…the weather was most inclement but we still braved the conditions and had a nice wander around…we of course had to purchase a delft Christmas bauble…admittedly it was about all we could afford, and even that was €25!!!
We continued our sightseeing with a visit to Dordrecht, Rotterdam and The Hague.
The three days passed at speed and it was soon time to return to Amsterdam for 2 more days. We booked a tour with Viator. It was a full-day tour to Zaanse Schans ( another area with windmills), Edam ( the town where the famous cheese originates from and a cheese factory), Volendam ( a seaside town known for its old fishing boats and traditional clothing), with round-trip transfer from central Amsterdam ensuring a hassle-free trip. We saw windmills, waterlands, cheese makers, and clog factories up close, and learnt about the region’s rich history directly from a professional guide, with tasters of cheese and other local produce. The price of the ticket also included a 1-hour canal sightseeing tour right after the tour, ending at Amsterdam Central Station. The day ticket cost £31 per person, which we thought was tremendous value.
We were fortunate enough to have visited just as the canal based festival of light show had commenced for the Christmas run-up……..the photos certainly don’t do it justice…
Our second day in Amsterdam we spent taking the Hop-on Hop-off bus around the cities sights…. My highlight was the diamond cutting company, which I found totally fascinating. We explored the red light area, cathedral, quaint streets, restaurants before finally getting a rickshaw back to our hotel.
Our 6 nights were over very quickly and it was soon time take the train back to the airport for our easyJet flight back to Luton airport. It had been a great 6 nights. Our hotel in Amsterdam was small, expensive and to say it was B&B was a figment of their imagination, unless they think one croissant each constitutes breakfast!! ….Our experiences lead us to believe that this is normal for hotels in countries capital cities….our Amsterdam hotels saving Grace was that it was walking distance to the station and all the main attractions, and if you were too tired to walk a rickshaw could be hailed..
2 J's World of Adventure 