In The Hague: “The Fred” Shopping Street
japra | Jul 28, 2009 | Comments 15
After a morning of “official paperwork”, Roxi and I rode our bikes out to the Frederik Hendriklaan shopping street. Affectionately known as “de Fred” by locals, it’s a interesting collection of boutiques, cafes, and food shops. For us, it was just another excuse to get on our bikes and explore more of The Hague–and to enjoy this beautiful weather. Also, it was a fun way to celebrate my girl’s Half Birthday. Yes, we still do that–haha! Over the years, it’s turned into more of a “girls day out” than a gift-giving excuse. Okay, okay I did buy Roxi some panniers for her bike and fabric markers (to decorate her new bags). And of course, no birthday party would be complete without ice cream. In our case, we enjoyed some gelato at a cafe ;-)
The shopping street stretches 800 meters long and contains over 100 shops. It’s perfect for a half day of browsing. Roxi and I spent most of our time in a large stationery/art store. What a surprise.
We thought this cheese shop looked neat.
Alright fellow expats, listen up. If you are looking for canned pumpkin in The Hague, Thomas Green’s has it. Yes, it’s three times what you’d pay in the US, but it’s cheaper than a plane ticket home! They have a good selection of goodies AND they deliver/ship–you can check them out online. BTW, I am fairly sure I saw “pure pumpkin” on the shelf, but on the website it’s listed as “Libby’s Pumpkin Pie Mix”. So, before you place your order you might want to give them a call to verify.
Filed Under: Blog • Expat Life • Featured • 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.
Canned pumpkin was one of the few things we needed for T/giving dinner that we couldn’t find in London. That and cranberry sauce. My husband had to load up his suitcase so we could make “comfort foods” for our students!
Kathy, during our first year in England, our local Waitrose had Libby’s pumpkin. I bought four cans! The second year, no pumpkin anywhere–luckily I still had a can left. I make my own cranberry sauce, so that hasn’t been an issue. Comfort foods are VERY important in the life of an expat… especially around the holidays :-)
I want to live in that cheese shop. What a fun day of shopping/browsing – I loved doing taht with my mom when I was younger!
Lucy Lucia, those cheese wheels looked so very picturesque. And I love window shopping. Getting around by bike really cuts down on the shopping part of a shopping trip. If it can’t fit in my panniers, it stays in the store. LOL!
So could you smell the cheese shop from a mile away? I once toured Montreal in the back of a Lincoln with a wedge of brie and a baguette…
Julia, the cheese is very mild here. You have to be in the shop to really smell it and even then, it’s not very strong. I think touring any place with a wedge of brie and a baguette sounds divine! Can we have champagne too?
Just had a great idea…we get someone else to ride us around in the back of one of those bikes and we’ll have brie, baguette and champagne – yum!
Thanks for all the wonderful comments you left over on my blog!! It’s kinda fun cross-sharing adventures. Do they grow pumpkins in Holland? I used to make my pumpkin pies from scratch every year and it was pretty easy (no, not easy enough that I still do it!) My daughter fell in love with a tea we had at Harrod’s in London but they won’t ship it over here. Funny how it’s always the little things you miss.
I love how you guys head out on your bikes now, it’s so healthy, built-in exercise and shopping control!
I love cheese! Apparently, I loved Amsterdam when I visited when I was four for precisely that reason. Lots of nice Dutch ladies kept offering me cheese samples in the shops.
Have you seen the United Nations International Court yet?
I’m going to do half-birthdays with Ava! Yayyy!!!
Thanks for your comment on my blog re the Seth Apter-inspired disintegration. What an interesting life you must lead! I just interviewed a once-local woman who now lives in Buenos Aires. ExPats are true adventurers living a global life. Cheers! – Jeanne in Oregon
I am going to be in big trouble with ‘the Fred’.
LOL! Well, there are more dangerous places… Dick Blick comes to mind ;-)
Hey, I recently published an article about “de Fred”, too. We probably were there on the same day? :0) I also took photos of that same cheese shop and of Thomas Green’s :o)
Check it out:
http://fromargentina2holland.blogspot.com/2009/08/hague-getting-to-know-fred-trifter_18.html
or the site where the article was published:
http://trifter.com/europe/netherlands/the-hague-getting-to-know-the-fred/
Cheers!