Day 113: Zaanse Schans and Amsterdam

Saturday, May 8, 2010:

After catching up on rest from our trip to Marseilles (and all the other trips we had been on back-to-back beforehand), Mateja and I decided to take a short day trip this weekend to somewhere in the Netherlands. Originally, we had planned on going along with ESN on the excursion to Delft, Den Hague and Scheveningan, but due to lack of participation, the trip was canceled the day before.

Mateja and I were determined to go someplace, so we planned our own mini-excursion. Mateja had researched this place called Zaanse Schans that featured windmills, Dutch architecture and museums about everything Dutch! We decided to head north to check out this tourist attraction and stop back by Amsterdam on the way home.

We took the train from Tilburg West to Amsterdam Centraal, where we switched lines to head over the the Zaanse Schans stop. When we reached, we had to walk a bit through the town surrounding Zaanse Schans, but it was a quick walk and well-labeled.

We arrived at Zaanse Schans and marveled at the adorable Dutch architecture. The buildings were all painted a dark  shade of green, which Bali deemed 'Dutch Green'. We walked through and found a large map that showed us where we were. We headed first to the large indoor museum and information center to see where we wanted to begin. At the museum, we got a map and information and proceeded to tour the various exhibits housed in the museum. It explained all things typically Dutch, showing how Dutch  life has progressed over the years. We were mesmerized and soaked in all we could! We enjoyed trying to read the Dutch captions on all the pieces in the museum, as Mateja and I were both enrolled in the Dutch Language course at Tilburg.

At the end of the museum, there was an exhibit that was a mock factory of a famous Dutch chocolate and biscuit company, Verkade. Mateja and I read all about the chocolate and biscuit-making processes and played some games they had (for kids) about working on the factory line. We weren't very good at them! We also got to sample a biscuit each....yum!

After finishing at the museum, we headed out and explored a couple of other smaller museums the park had to offer. First, we went to the wooden shoe (or clog) museum. We got to see a variety of wooden shoes from the past and see how they evolved over the years. We also sat in on a workshop where we saw how a wooden shoe is carved! I was shocked when the demonstrator squeezed the wooden shoe and water just poured out of it! Shows how wet the wood is when being carved!

The next area was a small farm all about Dutch kaas (cheese). We saw a cheese-making area and milled around the shoppe that sold every kind of cheese imaginable! We also went through a long line where we got to sample over a dozen different types of cheese....this made for a nice pre-lunch snack! Mateja and I really enjoyed tasting the cheese, and I think my favorite kind was a pesto cheese that was completely green! It definitely stood out!





We continued walking through the Zaanse Schans area and awed at the numerous windmills that lined the canal. They were so big and real! We walked along all of them and looked at the architecture before deciding which we would ascend to the top. We chose to visit and climb the Kat Molen (paint mill). It was a very steep climb, as we had to climb three series of steep ladders to get all the way to the top. From the top, we had a great view of Zaanse Schans and the true experience of a windmill! After enjoying the view, we braved heading back down. We had to go back down the ladders, backwards, as that was the only way out...not meant for someone afraid of heights!

Our last stop in Zaanse Schans was the Albert Heijn museum. It was very small and kind of disappointing, but we did get to see several old products and packaging from Albert Heijn, which was fun and interesting. There was also a great AH bike outside that we wished we could take back with us to Tilburg....hey, Mateja still needed a bike!

On the way out, we also saw a bride taking wedding pictures in the complex. It was funny, as we had seen a bride in Maastricht and would later see another one at Kinderdijk. Seems to be a traditional thing to go to some place so "Dutch" and get wedding photos made.

Early afternoon, we headed back to the train station and boarded the train to return to Amsterdam Centraal. We got off in Amsterdam and were glad to be back in the big city! I had not been to Amsterdam since my birthday in March, and Mateja had not been since our visit with Polona in early February! We were shocked at the mess that Amsterdam was this time around though! Queen's Day had taken place the weekend before while we were out-of-town and Amsterdam is the central party location during the celebration. On Queen's Day, the sanitation force had decided to go on strike, and they apparently still were on strike! There was trash absolutely everywhere! Bags lined the streets, looking like the garbage had not been picked up  in over a week! It was actually quite sad to see, as Amsterdam is really a nice city...what a shame :(

Our first stop was in an Albert Heijn just near the Centraal station. We walked inside to buy a small snack for the afternoon and were surprised at what we saw. This AH was pimped out! It was very glamorous, featuring chandeliers and decadent floors. We were schocked and took pictures!

After finishing up at AH, we headed over to this great shoppe that we had found before when we were in Amsterdam that sells tulip-shaped soaps and picked some more up for gifts. We also toured the houseboat museum that is just outside the door of the soap shoppe. It was quite small, but very interesting to see how small, yet spacious the houseboats in Amsterdam are.

Afterward, we headed over to the Heineken Brewery, where Mateja wanted to pick up some glasses for her boyfriend, Saso. It was a nice walk, until we reached the straat right in front of the museum. We could not cross the straat to get to the entrance of the museum, because there was a bike race going on that blocked the entire street. We asked an officer how to get across and he pointed us to a small ferry boat that would take us under the bridge to the other side! We got in the queue and waited for our turn to board the ferry.

After waiting about 20 minutes for the ferry, we made it across the street and into the brewery. Mateja purchased the glasses and we were on our way. Our next stop was the Albert Cuyp Markt, where I had been once before with  Ashley. It was getting to be closing time, but we looked around for a bit and found what we were really looking for....the hot stroopwafel man! We each ordered a hot stroopwafel and feasted on the caramel-cookie deliciousness as we walked back through the markt. On the way back, we stopped by our favorite coffee spot in Amsterdam, the Coffee Company. I ordered a Bambino and enjoyed the rich chocolate-coffee drink. We relaxed for a bit, since we were both already pretty exhausted from the whole day.

After finishing our drinks, we went back downstairs and headed toward the Centraal Station, stopping at a great little Mexican restaurant that Ashley and I had been to previously in Amsterdam. We split a nice dish at Pacifico and each ordered a fancy margarita (I had cinnamon apple!). It was a nice, relaxing dinner!

After supper, we boarded the train for the journey home. It is about an hour and a half from Amsterdam to Tilburg West, stopping through Den Bosch along the way to switch trains. We rested on the ride home and spoke to a nice old man that was a professor and interested in our ability to speak some Dutch. As per usual, we were glad to reach home and shower and get to bed! It was a great trip, as we got to see so much typical Dutch stuff. I totally recommend Zaanse Schans to anyone visiting Holland....worth the trek!