Things have been speeding up a little bit lately. We’ve been in 3 countries in a week or so, which has definitely made for a change of pace!
Amsterdam
What to say about Amsterdam? A city of contrasts – beautiful architecture and sights, and yet somehow also chock full of vice tourists. Marijuana was decriminalized here some 40 years ago, and over time became the preferred location for tourists who want to smoke weed and/or visit the red light district – particularly British tourists. We found it overwhelmingly crowded, overly smoky, and unfortunately in the main areas very tacky, with American candy stores and designer brand outlets everywhere. The city is working on this – they are phasing out the weed cafes, seeking to move the red light district, and not renewing the leases of any businesses that are not Dutch-owned – but I’m curious to see how this pans out, as the income these vice tourists bring must be addictive.
Once you get away from all that though, Amsterdam is beautiful. Winding canals, more bikes than cars… we got in both a walking tour and a boat cruise tour, and I reckon I could have attended a few more tours quite happily. We came across the Anne Frank house in our wanderings which was quite surreal – it books out weeks in advance so we couldn’t enter, but just to stand in front of it and think about all she went through was quite an experience. We were only in Amsterdam a couple of days and I think it would be well worth a longer stay – but we were glad to avoid the weekend where accomodation prices go through the roof, and apparently the vice tourism gets even more hectic.
Rotterdam
Next, we decided to make a brief stopover in Rotterdam. We had heard good things about the city, and I’m glad we made it, as Rotterdam gave us a great insight into more “normal” Dutch life. Bicycles were everywhere once again, even in some rather mixed weather. As the city was largely destroyed in WW2 however, Rotterdam is quite different – it is full of modern architecture and experimentation, which made for a bit of a change from the norm. We enjoyed just taking in the sights, and just taking it pretty easy while we were here.
Brussels
Last on our quick tour of North-Western Europe was Brussels. Neither Charlotte nor myself knew much about the city before visiting, but we were glad to make it there. Home to the parliament of the European Union, full of master chocolatiers, beermakers and comic book art, we managed to pack a lot into just a couple of days here.
We took another free tour of the city which was once again a great way to get a feel for the town (led by yet another British guy – has been a bit of a pattern, not sure what to make of it – guess they all just want to leave the UK?); visited stacks of chocolate shops (more on that shortly), and saw the “famous” statue of a urinating small boy – one of the most underwhelming, yet overattended attractions we have seen thus far. Apparently the statue has some 1100 themed costumes, often related to themed days such as national farmers day and the local beer festival. We got him naked, which with that many costumes seems somewhat unbelievable.
On our last night there, I got the train to Ghent and caught up with an old work colleague – was fantastic and somewhat surreal to see a familiar face on the other side of the world. He grew up in Belgium and only recently returned, so he treated me to a night of local food, local beer and catching up. which made the sketchy ride in the rain on a electric bike from the train station well and truly worth it!
*you may be wondering about the shoe in the above image – one of the bars we attended serves beer in giant glasses on a wooden frame. These glasses are prized as a memento and are expensive to replace, so to stop them being filched… the bartender takes one of the drinker’s shoes to ensure they will return to the bar. Effective and amusing.
Eating our way through the Netherlands and Belgium…
Dutch Fries:
We were walking through Amsterdam of an afternoon when we came across a store with a line going out onto the street. We’re such sheep that there was no question – we had to line up and find out what it was the fuss was. Turns out, it was a “famous” Dutch fries store called Fabel Friet. This was a surprise to us, as we thought it was just Belgian fries that were famous. Both countries actually claim to have better fries – we tried both, and wouldn’t dream of picking a winner – but the Fabel fries were pretty darn good. They use Dutch potatoes with the skin on, and they “double fry” them, first at a low temperature, then again just before they are bought. They are served with a variety of toppings – I enjoyed the curry sauce, while Charlotte got the Parmesan.
Belgian Chocolates:
When in Belgium… you have to stuff yourself full of Belgian chocolate of all types. We must have visited some 20 chocolate stores, enjoying free tasters of everything from cheap pralines through to chocolate made with the “Royal Warrant” of the Belgian royal family. We did pay for some things too – probably the most delicious chocolate mousse we’ve ever had, some great hot chocolate (they actually melt down a cube of chocolate in hot milk in Belgium, so good), and a “Kumo” from Pierre Marcolini, described by them as the “Macron of tomorrow” (at several Euros per each tiny light biscuit, you’d certainly hope so!). Overall, strongly recommend.
Belgian Monk Beer:
While in Belgium I also got the chance to try “Trappist” beers – a strong beer brewed by… monks! Apparently this is actually a proud tradition stretching several hundred years, dating back to a time when it was believed that monastries should be financially self-sustaining, so they branched out into the alcohol trade. On our free tour of Brussels we were told these Trappist monks brew the beer under a not-for-profit model – so drinking this beer is in our guides words “giving to charity”. I’m not convinced on this front, but as a non-beer drinker, I found them surprisingly enjoyable.
Ok, we’re back up to date folks! We’ve crossed the channel into the United Kingdom – it is definitely helpful to be back in a place where the primary language is one we understand. Looking forward to a few weeks in the UK and then back to explore France a little, but there is no denying that the Camino de Santiago is starting to pop up more and more in our minds (starting in May) – need to get our hiking boots on and get super-fit!
Next Stops: Dorking, London, Edinburgh