In August 2023 I flew to Amsterdam, Netherlands then took trains to Brugge, Belgium. While in the Netherlands and Belgium for over 2 weeks, I took some bus tours to see the countryside.
I flew into Amsterdam with a layover in Philadelphia. My flight left Chicago about 20 minutes late and I originally only had about 45 minutes to transfer flights. The stewardess announced several connecting flights and told everyone to stay seated and let the people with those connecting flights deboard the plane first. Shockingly, that really happened. The 10 or so of us that had connecting flights were able to get off the plane very quickly. The stewardess had also made a comment that the airport terminals were straight down from where we were disembarking. What she didn't say was how far that straight stretch of terminal was. It took me about 19 minutes to get to my connecting gate with 1 minute to spare. The gate door literally closed behind me (here's your hat, what's your hurry?).
When I arrived in Amsterdam, I caught a train from Schiphol Airport to the city centre. They depart about every 10 minutes and it's only about a 20-minute ride. The hotel was about a 15-minute walk from the train station. Unfortunately, it was fairly early in the morning and I couldn't get in my room yet. I was able to drop off my luggage however. There was a possibility of a canal view room, but they said I would have to wait to see if one opened up before my check-in. So, I checked back several times and wasn't able to get a canal view room, so after 5 hours of randomly walking around and waiting, I took a courtyard room. It actually was really nice and quiet. They noted in my reservation for next week, when I return, to get me a canal view room. That would be nice, but we'll see... I had been awake about 28 hours so I ended up going to bed about 1800, but slept 14 hours and only woke up once briefly about 2300.
I was last in Amsterdam way back in 2003, but actually saw a lot of The Netherlands back in 2009 (I avoided Amsterdam). I really liked the country of The Netherlands, but I was not impressed with Amsterdam as a city. Unfortunately, it was extremely dirty compared to any other large European city I have been in. I'm talking actual garbage in the streets. All these years later, it's still the same.
I started my adventure by going to the museum quarter. There are a number of museums including the Rijks Museum and Van Gogh Museum. I know we normally say Van 'Go' but the Dutch pronunciation is rougher with a few more sounds, like Van 'Khokh' (and pronounce each letter like you're coughing between each letter). Go ahead, I can wait. As a sort of museum, the home of Heineken beer is Amsterdam. They have the Heineken Experience in the original brewery, which was started in 1873. It's a 90-minute tour with 2 drinks at the end. I didn't drink, I mean, think it was worth it. Along the Singel Canal is the Bloemenmarkt (Flower Market), it's a series of floating florist barges. In season, more like April, they would be selling blooming tulips and other blooming bulb flowers. Right now, they are selling just the bulbs (not quite as pretty). If you want to bring back any bulbs to the U.S. you need to get a certificate they will provide.
It wasn't Saturday or Sunday, but I had a church day. The Zuiderkerk (Southern Church) was built around 1603 and has a very decorative spire (it's also partially visible from my hotel room). The oldest church in Amsterdam is Oude Kerk (literally translated to Old Church) from the 14th century, also with a bell tower spire, it contains a 47 bell carillon. The Sint Nicolaasbasiliek (Basilica of Saint Nicholas) was only completed in 1887, but it is the largest church in Amsterdam capped by a grand dome. Lastly was the Ons' Lieve Heer op Soldet (Our Lord in the Attic). Built in 1663 after Amsterdam became Protestant, many churches had to be hidden. The church was built in the attic of one building, but is only accessible from the building next door through a secret passage. Today it's a museum. Ending my church stroll, I went to the grand Dam Square where the opulent Koninklijk Paleis (Royal Palace) was built in 1648. Across from that is the 22 metre (70 foot) National Monument to commemorate the Dutch World War II casualties.
When in Europe, I often get food from grocery stores instead of just restaurants. I find it saves a lot of time not 'dining' in a restaurant. It also saves some money too. An unusual thing I found in the Amsterdam city centre is the number of large grocery stores. In almost all large European cities I found only occasionally a large grocery store, mostly there are small shops or maybe a 'city' version of a grocery chain. Having the larger grocers is nice, as there's a good selection and variety of food available.
As I mentioned, I planned on going to Brugge, Brussels. So, the day before that trip I went to the Amsterdam train station to check on getting my ticket to Brugge. I tried getting a ticket from the machine, however because it was an international train trip, it didn't provide any departure times or other information, the machine just wanted to take my money. This was confusing to me. I knew I couldn't directly get to Brugge in Belgium without transferring in Brussels, but that did not seem like a big deal. I finally went to the Service Center and talked to someone there (yes, a real person). That actually worked out really well, since going online and trying to get a ticket required me to select a ticket departure time from Amsterdam as well as the connecting ticket departure time in Brussels. By going to the Service Center, she gave me an open-ended ticket out of Brussels, so I could leave on any train I wanted to at any time. This will give me some time I can spend in Brussels, which is a special bonus. Based on my past experience with the Brussels train station, I knew I could get a locker and put my luggage away as I'm walking around there. There are trains about every 15 or 20 minutes throughout the whole day from Brussels to Brugge, so I can spend as much time as I want in Brussels. It's only about a 20-minute walk from the Brussels train station to the Grand Place (the city centre). I'm all set for my train ride, cool...
On the Prinsengracht (Prince's Canal), is the Anne Frank Huis (House). Most people know of Anne Frank as part of history and her published diary. The home where she and her family hid is now opened as a museum. They provide a 30-minute introductory program that talks about the history and context of what happened. Then you're able to go through the apartment behind the secret door where they stayed for 25 months. Interestingly, she received the diary on her 13th birthday only 3 weeks before going into hiding. Incredibly, her first entry on her birthday was 'I hope I will be able to entrust everything to you, as I have never been able to do it to anyone and I hope you will be a great support to me.' It was almost a premonition of things to come.
It was time to take my train to Belgium. I forgot to mention, when I bought my train ticket from the Service Center agent the day before my trip, I got a free 1st Class ticket upgrade. She said when 2nd Class starts filling up they offer 1st Class tickets. Strange, but I wasn't going to question it. I got to the Amsterdam Station Centraal (Central Station) about an hour early. The train pulled in about 10 minutes before departure. It's a 2-hour train ride from Amsterdam to Brussels. Once in Brussels, I walked the 20 minutes from the Brussels-Midi (South) station to the Grand-Place (Grand Square) and took some really nice pictures. It's the main square with the City Hall and a number of ornate guild buildings from the 17th century. It's just a panorama of beautiful buildings, albeit rather crowded. I have been to Brussels several times before, so I didn't need a lot of time there. I spent a couple hours walking around Brussels at my leisure before returning to the Brussels-Midi train station. Since I had an open ticket, I could catch any of the multiple trains to Brugge, running about every 15 minutes. I just happened to get there 4 minutes before the next train to Brugge, so I decided to catch that one. It was about an hour ride to Brugge on this local train. The Brugge train station is pretty small and on the edge of the town. Since my hotel is near the centre, it was about a 10-minute walk. I got situated and found some restaurants and stores near my hotel.
Since I planned on spending 5 nights in Brugge, there was no rush to see the sights once I arrived. There are quite a few sites to see in the historic town of Brugge. Nothing that is well known, but just a lot of buildings from the 1600s and 1700s. It really makes for a nice town. So, in addition to the classical churches and public buildings like the city hall, you literally can walk around and see amazing buildings everywhere. That's pretty much what I did when I got there, just walked around soaking in the ambience. I did go into a couple churches and found several nice squares. There are quite a few tourists here because it is so atmospheric. Fortunately, since I have planned several more days, I'm in no rush and am able to grab a bench and enjoy my time here.
Keep in mind, Brugge is not a large town and 5 nights is a long time here to see just Brugge. So, I did a search and bought a day tour ticket to the Flanders Fields World War I memorial area. Near the Brugge train station, there was a big bus stop area, that's where I caught the bus at 1100. When the bus arrived, it already had people on it. I found out the people boarded the bus in Brussels and they had already been driving for about 90 minutes to get to Brugge for the same tour I was doing.
Our first stop was Vladslo, a large German cemetery where over 25,000 German soldiers are buried, of the over 134,000 that were killed. The next stop was the Essex Farm Cemetery, this was the actual spot Dr. John McCrae wrote his famous poem 'In Flanders Fields'. There's a number of World War I memorials scattered throughout the region. We stopped briefly in the town of St. Julien at a Canadian memorial called the Brooding Soldier. Lunch was included with the tour so we stopped in the town of Passchendaele for lunch. It was a simple baguette sandwich with a drink. This also happened to be where the New Zealand monument was.
Cemetery time again. Besides the memorials, there's also a number of World War I cemeteries in the region. The Tyne Cot Cemetery and Memorial covers both. There are about 12,000 buried here and they also have a memorial wall with over 35,000 names of missing soldiers. In order to visit the 'In Flanders Fields Museum' in the city of Ypres while it was open, we drove into Ypres, had enough time to see it, then were back on the bus. We would return to Ypres later in the day. I thought the museum could have had more than it did, but it did have a nice display of items and personal stories from World War I.
We left Ypres to go to Hill 60. Keep in mind, in Belgium there is not much elevation in the country. So, any kind of higher elevation, no matter how small, during wartime was a key advantage. This area was heavily shelled, and the 2 army's front lines were almost on top of each other. A British family bought Hill 60 in 1920 with the stipulation the land remained untouched. Despite all the battles in the area, all of the land in that area has been farmed and flattened. But, because Hill 60 is untouched, it is riddled with mortar craters and you can see what it looked like after the battles.
The last stop was back to Ypres for dinner and a couple hours of free time. Ypres was completely destroyed during the war, then rebuilt after. Some of the old town centre buildings were rebuilt back to pre-war specifications, the rest of the town was built based on 1920s style. Everyday Ypres has a memorial service to those lost in World War I (trumpets, marching, flowers presented, and brief speeches). I stayed to watch that at 2000, then caught my bus to return to Brugge shortly after 2100. It was a nice tour even though it ran late into the evening.
After the long day tour of Flanders, I had an easy day. I saw a couple of the sites I planned for on my Brugge map, but mostly wandered and enjoyed the town. I found several park benches to sit and people watch. One of the sites was the Hallen (Market Halls). It's a colonnade structure (think, built with Roman columns) from the 13th century and still in use today as a market. Nearby is the Markt (Market Square), a large square that has been holding a market since the 10th century. Around the Burg square are a couple important buildings, including the Stadhuis (City Hall) built in the 14th century. Tucked in the corner of the Burg square is the Heilig-Bloed-basiliek (Basilica of the Holy Blood). Built in 1534, this chapel contains a relic of Holy Blood said to be Christ's blood. Believe it or not, they actually let you touch the container the blood is in.
My last full day in Brugge, too bad it started out in the morning as cloudy and some rain. I walked to the train station to get my ticket for return to Amsterdam the next day. Even though I bought a 1030 ticket, with a transfer in Brussels, she said I could catch any train at any time. I guess they are pretty flexible. I did get a ticket for the local train instead of the express (I had the express coming from Amsterdam to Brussels). I found out the express train is only between Brussels and Amsterdam, but costs $40 more but only saves 45 minutes. Good news, by the time I left the Brugge train station with my tickets for the next day, the sky already started clearing. I walked back to the hotel and dropped off my umbrella, hope springs eternal.
I walked around what was the old 13th century medieval city wall, it is now the Ring Canal Park and only the ramparts and gates are standing. There were 2 old gates into the city. The Gentport (Ghent Gate) is a surviving original medieval gate. The Kruispoort (Holy Cross Gate) was originally built in 1297, but the current gate was built in the 15th century and resembles a small castle with turrets. Along the city wall walk in the Ring Canal Park, there were also a couple windmills. Originally there were 29 windmills surrounding the city but today there are only 4, mostly for decoration. However, the Sint-Janshuismolen (St. John's House Mill) is a working grain mill opened as a tourist site.
Heading back towards the town centre square away from the Ring Canal Park was the Jeruzalemkerk (Jerusalem Church), it was built in 1428 and is mostly preserved from that time. Lots of old buildings around here, but couldn't pass up the opportunity to see the first stone bridge built in Brugge in 1294, Augustijnenbrug (Augustinians' Bridge). It held up under my weight, they built things to last back then. A surprising pretty square was the Jan van Eyckplein (Jan van Eyck square), named after the 15th century artist (1390-1441) that lived in Brugge. All around the square are 13th to 15th century ornate buildings, a canal, and a statue to him. To whet your appetite and after a long day of walking, there is the Choco-Story Museum of Chocolate History. There was a long line and I didn't think it was worth waiting for. As far as chocolate history - you buy it, you eat it, and its history...
It was time to get back to Amsterdam. I used the reverse route as before (Brugge to Brussels to Amsterdam), however, this time I didn't spend any time in Brussels. Also, I took the local train instead of the high-speed one. This had an advantage; it stopped at the Brussels-Nord (North) train station. This station was really quiet compared to the Brussels-Midi (South) station I came through before. I only had a few minutes between my connections, but the connecting train was easy enough to find. I had some more things to see in Amsterdam, so the day I returned I saw the Museum Het Rembrandthuis (Rembrandt House Museum). Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606-1669) moved in there in 1639 and lived there for 19 years. They have restored the home to when he lived there. Later I had dinner and a snack. I got sweet chili shrimp with rice and from The House of Fries (HOF) some fries with mayo. OK, I know you have been excited to find out about my Amsterdam hotel room on my return. Did you get the canal view? Did you get the courtyard view? Who shot J.R.? Well, as they promised, they provided me a beautiful canal view room on my return back to the hotel. To be honest, I thought the courtyard view was fine, but once I saw the canal view, it was much nicer.
With all the time I had spent in Amsterdam, I really was wrapping up the sites I planned to see in Amsterdam. I went to the Verzetsmuseum (Dutch Resistance Museum). It describes the history of the German invasion into the Netherlands during World War II and the formation of the resistance movement. They provide an audio guide and you use this at the multitude of stations. Some areas were related to the war activities, but they also have a lot of stories from the people that were in the war as resistance fighters. One of the few remaining windmills left in Amsterdam is the De Gooyer windmill and was built in 1725, incredibly, it is now a private home but still very photogenic. Nearby, along the Oosterdoc (East Dock), the former old dock area of Amsterdam, there are a couple museums. The NEMO Science Museum and the Het Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Museum). The maritime museum has a couple old ships docked outside. The highlight of the science museum is the large sloped rooftop terrace providing dramatic views overlooking the city.
Since I pretty much wrapped up all my Amsterdam sites and I was still in Amsterdam, I booked a bus tour to Rotterdam, Delft, and The Hague. I had been to these places before, but it had been a while. These locations are all within about an hour drive of Amsterdam. They would be accessible by train, but it was a lot more convenient having the tour driver take me. Much of Rotterdam centre was destroyed by bombing during World War II. When they rebuilt, they had a lot of special architecture put in place, needless to say, there are some strange buildings that were built there. One of the weirdest are the cube houses. One of them is open to walk through, and from the outside you can only imagine how irregular the inside shape is. They are about 1,000 square feet on 3 floors with no flat surface to be found. Next stop, the town of Delft, world famous for its white and blue porcelain. We went to the factory and museum for an audio guide tour. I'm not exactly thrilled by it, but people generally seem to like and collect it. The town of Delft itself was nice with a couple old churches and a really nice Stadhuis (City Hall) Square. Surrounding the city centre are numerous bridges and canals. Lastly on the tour was The Hague, the center of government for the Netherlands. It also is the home to the International Court of Justice, the judicial branch of the United Nations.
On my last full day in Amsterdam, I decided it was finally time to see the 'best' the Netherlands had to offer. I decided to book a 'best' of Netherlands bus tour, it covers everything Dutch you would expect. It also got me out of the city and went to several smaller typically Dutch towns.
First stop was Zaanse Schans (Village of Windmills) in the small village of Zaandam. It is like an open-air museum with houses, shops, and demonstrations from the 18th century. There are also lots of working windmills, including a tour of a sawmill windmill. Sadly, here is where my traditional digital camera died (yes, I have a digital camera I still use, thanks in part to its' long zoom and great picture quality). I use the cell phone for selfies and panorama, but a regular digital camera for all my other pictures. It has a real nice zoom as well as wide angle, especially when you do scenic landscape photos. I noticed it wasn't focusing when I was zooming, and then I noticed I couldn't turn the camera off and have the lens retract. Incredibly, I was looking at purchasing a new camera just before this trip but no one had anything in stock, I assume because of Covid. I'll try again when I get home to see if I can get a new long zoom traditional camera like I have today. Good thing the trip is almost over, so, I will persevere though this adversity with only the mobile camera.
Next stop, the town of Volendam on the Markermeer Lake. The town is known for its colorful wooden houses and the old fishing boats in its harbor. There is a nice walk along the water, albeit with a lot of tourist shops. Here we went into a shop where they demonstrated making Gouda cheese, it was a Gouda demo. We had some time to walk around the town and up and down the waterfront. But before leaving, we also saw a demonstration of how to make the Dutch stroopwafel. A stroopwafel is a thin, round waffle cookie made from two layers of sweet baked dough held together by a syrup or caramel or other filling - sweet! I also had for lunch an order of fish and chips fresh from the sea, the fish not the chips.
We then hopped on a boat to go across the Markermeer Lake to the little island of Markem. This fishing village on the island has some nice shops on the water, and was a lot less crowded than Volendam. Here we saw a demonstration on how the Dutch klompen are made. You're probably more familiar calling them clogs or simply Dutch wooden shoes. On the island of Markem, we caught up with the bus again to get to our last stop of the day, Edam. This town was where the Edam cheese was originally created, however, they basically lost the patent to the Edam cheese name and other towns started making the same cheese. So, it eventually did not become profitable enough to keep making the cheese there. So, any Edam cheese you eat can come from anywhere. Edam does have a museum on the history of Edam cheese. Then it was back on the bus back to Amsterdam, where I would catch my flight home the next day.
My flight home was uneventful, with a brief layover back in Philadelphia. All in all, a lot of stuff, but it was fun...
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