The Hague, The Netherlands (from our trip in July)
japra | Oct 16, 2008 | Comments 17
This is a continuation of the trip we took in July to Brussels/Bruges/The Hague/Paris. I am trying to catch up on my travel posts since we going on holiday next week. So today, it’s The Hague and tomorrow Paris (finally, Lucylucia, right?)
The Hague (Den Haag), The Netherlands
Counting back, this is the third time we visited The Hague this year. We went in February over Roxi’s winter break, and then again in March when we had to cancel our Munich trip because we all got sick. It was ok, though, because we got to see Amsterdam, Delft and Haarlem instead. We did make it to Munich in June. And so we’re back in The Hague this time, late July, my birthday trip.
My husband has a project in The Hague, by the way. That’s why we’ve been there so often this year. He works, we play. Isn’t that nice?!
We took the inter-city train from Brussels to The Hague. It takes about 2.5 hours. Be sure to watch your stuff carefully as this line is known for pickpockets. The train announcements will remind you of this at each stop.
We stayed at the Novotel Den Haag City Centre and our room overlooked the Passage shopping area. Gosh it was hot (end of July, remember?)! And because our rooms overlooked this beautiful, mostly enclosed area, we didn’t get a lot of breeze (um, at all). Still, it was a great location!
An “iceberg” in the lake in front of the Binnenhof (the Dutch parliament). Wishful thinking.
The courtyard of the Binnenhof. Not too many tourists.
This is the Knights Hall, built in the late 13th century.
This is on top of the fountain in front of the Knight’s Hall.
More fountain details.
A really beautiful family tree. There was another, more extensive one there too.
Inside the Knight’s Hall. This was the only place we were allowed to take photos. The Queen addresses Parliament from this throne.
The modern looking building on the left is where the country’s business actually takes place. It’s around the corner from the Knight’s Hall. This was a worthwhile tour, by the way. Even Roxi enjoyed it.Around Town
I’ve said this before, The Hague is so beautiful! I think The Netherlands is so underrated. If you ever have the opportunity to go, you really should. The people are so friendly, it’s so easy to get around, and there so much to see (the museums of The Hague, for example).
There are pretty streets like this one. Noordeinde street looking one way…
… and then the other.
The Noordeinde Palace was built in the 16th century. This is one of Queen Beatrix’s working palaces.Scheveningen by the North Sea
Scheveningen is a seaside resort located about 15 minutes from The Hague. I wanted to see itin the summer since Roxi and I visited it off season back in February. It’s one of our favourite places and we had visions of art en plein air. We ended up walking around and then heading back into the city. Too crowded!
All of these umbrellas were set up just for the season.
This time, there were restaurants right on the beach. I don’t know if they were extensions of existing eateries on the boardwalk, but the beach was just packed with them.
The beautiful Kurhaus hotel. There’s a annual sand sculpture competition on the beach at Scheveningen, by the way. We missed it this year, but there were some fine examples of “sandcastles” in the The Hague while we were there.
When the sun’s out, everyone is at the beach!And we ate
And of course, my post wouldn’t be complete without some food photos!
Roxi and I split this order of Kibbelingen (fried fish) from the Herring stand near the Binnenhof. No herring for us this time ;-)
We also split this cone of fries (Mimsy, this photo is for you). No sauce on ours, but you can get all sorts of interesting toppings–curry, mayo, ketchup, or satay sauce, just to name a few. These fries are from fresh (not frozen) potatoes. We saw the delivery truck haul in many, many boxes of fresh spuds.
On my birthday, we strolled down Noordeinde street and found this lovely wine bar. We sat at that table on the left and had some nibbles…
…and drinks.
A little way down the road, we found this delightful Asian fusion restaurant–Tao. We were the only customers there for the longest time. We thought that it was because we were eating early (for Europeans), but the owner said that it was the sun that was keeping his customers away. Apparently everyone was at the beach.
But we didn’t mind. Look at this lovely dinner! My fresh salmon hand roll,
and a delicious salad,
And a tray of sushi. I didn’t get a photo of Roxi’s satay and miso soup, though.
But I did get this photo of Roxi’s dessert! Green tea and black sesame ice cream. Gone are the day of Mickey D’s, thank goodness.
And before I finish this post, I must say nice things about this restaurant as well. We eat at Restaurant Ramna’s every time we visit The Hague (and we did this time too, but I didn’t get around to taking photos–next time!). The people there are so nice and we just love the Chicken Tikka and the Tandori special.Tomorrow, Paris…
Filed Under: Blog • Destinations • Netherlands
About the Author: JaPRA is an expat Texan living in England with her husband (Mr. DJ), their 17-year old daughter (Roxi), and their dog Trudy.
I’m glad I’m not the only one behind on travel posts!
Love all the photos of the architecture! Especially the detail photo of the fountain. You are so lucky to visit such amazing places!
I believe that fry photo is for me too! :-)
I love the European trains, even if they do have pickpockets.
It’s interesting that you can get Japanese and Indian food anywhere in the world these days. Were these restaurants expensive?
Another great travelogue. Very enjoyable. Just the thing for a cold wintery afternoon ! Many thanks !
Alyson–Absolutely, those “chips” can be for you too! I know I am so, so lucky :-)
Chrisine–They were “reasonably priced”, meaning you don’t want to try to convert while you’re enjoying your meal ;-)
Barbara–Thank you! Isn’t this weather crazy? Overcast and cold one minute, blue skies and gorgeous another.
I cannot wait to see your Paris post! I’m currently reading “The Seven Ages of Paris” in preparation for my trip. I’m hoping that we’ll be able to squeeze in a day trip to Brussels while we are there. Your photos are lovely.
p.s. I’m planning on baking Deb’s “Lemon Yogurt Anything Cake” this weekend – yum.
http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/04/lemon-yogurt-anything-cake/
I have never been to the Hague though Bruges is one of my favorite places.
Thanks for the detailed virtual tour.
Have you been to Delft?
I think that’s on my list.
I’m just laughing at Alyson’s comments about the fries; I’m also a fan. It did annoy me, though, that you have to pay for your sauces (ketchup, whatever). America is just so much more generous that way.
I LOVE The Hague, too — and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing your wonderful pictures.
Lucylucia–Look at you baking away! I hope you’ll let us know how the cake turns out. I love anything lemon. And oh boy! Another book for my reading list. Thank you :-)
Elizabeth–Why yes, I have been to Delft! You can see my post about it here. It’s a lovely town. I highly recommend Haarlem as well.
Bee–Haha! Well, my problem was I really wanted to try the sauces, but I didn’t want to eat the whole cone myself. So I sacrificed the sauce ;-) I also think it’s funny that ketchup is referred to as “sauce” here. Next time I eat a cone of fries, I will think of you, Alyson and Mimsy :-) If I’m eating for four, that should help with the calories, right?
That’s what I love about posts like this – they make me want to go somewhere I might not have gone otherwise. Knight’s Hall was my favourite of the places you went to. I think I would enjoy Holland though, because Afrikaans is so similar to Dutch.
What a wonderful tour. You really captured the loveliness and flavor of the city as I remember it. We lived in Wassenaar, outside den Haag, in the late 80s.
I love reading your blog! Oh, and the little trip through Nottinghill was fun, too.
Emm–I wonder if you would be able to understand Dutch? Some of it I can make out, but most of it… well, it’s too bad for me. I remember looking at the tram sign for the first time and wondering how in the world am I ever going to be able to figure out where I am and where am I supposed to go!
Your photography really is amazing.
I can mostly understand it when it is spoken – to me it sounds like Afrikaans with an English accent which is what people in South Africa said I sounded like anyway. But Dutch people really struggle to understand Afrikaans in return.
I will be happy to share your fries, even with the calories! And please let me have some of your chicken tikka! Sorry to be behind in reading; I’m on another deadline. Now I see that reading this in the wee hours of the morning was a mistake…I’m starving from all the pretty food photos…xoxMimsy
Ginny–I’m glad you enjoyed the post. I guess you can tell I love The Hague. I actually held back about 1,000 photos… Haha!
Laurie–Well, it helps to have photogenic subjects :-)
Emm–That is really interesting. You and your husband ought to go if the opportunity arises.
Mimsy–Oooh, those dread deadlines (DD, get it?). Yes, reading about food at any time is a dangerous thing.
I loved the family tree picture. I stayed in a house in Dordrecht that had a family tree of everyone who had ever lived there.
see ya soon!
You really have done some lovely posts with beautiful photos since your post on Oxford. I have not been to the Netherlands so did enjoy those. Also enjoyed the ones of London as it is interesting to see what fascinates another person. Such artistic photos.
Popped over to our other blog too and aren’t the sand photos something else.