Haarlem

22 September 2017

Haarlem, Netherlands. Set about 15 kilometers from Amsterdam, Haarlem is a more relaxed "village" feel compared to the hustling energy of the bigger city. This is why we came here. Only a few days remaining in Holland, so we wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet and be able to access all that North Holland has to offer without being worried about getting run over by a bicycle!

Haarlem sits on the river Spaarne, and was once a busy port for ships, until Amsterdam grew and became the primary port for North Holland. There is still a lot here predating back to medieval times, like the cool Windmill De Adriaan that(once we crossed the Spaarne River) was quite literally about a block away from where we are staying in our Airbnb rental!

Haarlem is still to this day a major tulip trading hub, but of course we missed this phenomenon by a few months haha! There are amazingly still some hardy tulips growing, but nothing like what I imagine happens here in the springtime.

First lunch, so we have energy for exploring!! Some bitterballen(meat and gravy deep fried) A version of their fast food, made from scratch of course! And a healthy mexican style burrito.

One of Hollands specialties is of course Dutch Apple pie, my bloodsugar level was complying so we thought it was about time to try some- delicious of course!! Now to go walk it off!!

Former city gateway to Amsterdam! One of the last visible traces of the original city wall. A canal was built for towing merchandise to and from Amsterdam.

Tulips or no tulips, autumn here is still beautiful!!!

Mesdag, Den Haag

21 September 2017

A local we met on a train ride recommended to us to check out the Mesdag!

Boy were we in for a surprise!! This art museum went way above and beyond our expectations, and I hope this blog post comes close to the joy we experienced while visiting this gem! More details below.

First, breakfast! I had low bloodsugar, so I was happy to be able to order delicious carrot cake(for breakfast what?!! Yum!) And Ken made a new friend too.........

And proceeded to be taken advantage of by this new friend.

So much advantage taking that the kitty got in trouble, and got kicked out! Whoops!! He is not supposed to beg from the customers, that is the rule!

Onto the museum, we are not big "art" fans, so we really didn't know what to expect here.

We wandered around for a few minutes, looking at portraits and self portraits, and the stories next to the portraits, until finally the story started to come together of how and why the art came to be here.

Then samples of the art, I say "samples" because the main exhibit is still to come!! This art was done before and near the year 1880 and still stands in its original location due to the main Painter: Hendrik Willem Mesdag, purchasing the building and the work and keeping it open, even in times of loss from his own pocket, so that people could enjoy it.

Its really important to notice the brush strokes and the skill here, because it comes into play later!

What do you think, above the dining room table?!!

The artwork is set in the village of Scheveningen in the 19th century. The beach has changed, but is still the same too.

Then we walk up the stairs. And what awaits us at the top quite literally takes our breath away. Nothing like what we expected. A cylindrical painting, also known as a panorama, envelopes us and a few other visitors that are also oohing and aawing at this art!!

14 meters high, and about 40 meters in diameter(120 meters in circumference) We stand in the observation tower set directly in the middle of this beautiful illusion of a beach from the 19th century. I almost expect an ocean breeze to ruffle to hair in front of my eyes!!

The set includes sand from the nearby beach and is mixed with sand that is then painted to resemble a closer depiction of what it is like from the actual beach(because they didn't want to deplete the natural resource) so realistic!!

These pictures only give a small glimpse into what it was like standing there!

They are continuously cleaning it, which they show in a video after you leave the observation gallery, and a few years back they lined the outer canvas to strengthen it to be enjoyed foe many years to come!

I'm kind of glad they had the lift in there for perspective, because my brain did not want to believe we were not actually at the beach!

A self portrait of Hendrik under the blue umbrella that is part of the faraway scene!

Really beautiful, I would for sure encourage you- even if you are not an "art' fan- to check out these awe inspiring local stories. This. This is Europe to us!!!