The Amsterdam Historisch Museum and the Spui are among my favourite places in Amsterdam. I also suggested to our cousins to go there as well! :-)
And you? Have you ever been there already? :-)
The Amsterdam Historisch Museum entrance is really, really beautiful, isn't it? :-)
I'm not a big fan of the street where the museum is situated (Kalverstraat) because it's always very crowded due the many stores located there, but I love this entrance! This museum (now Amsterdam Museum) is located since 1975 in the city old orphanage.
Passing by this pretty arch, we are at the AHM terrace. Located at the center of Amsterdam, it's a quiet and charming place, where we can enjoy a light and delicious lunch.
Nearby the AHM is the Spui, the square in Amsterdam I love the most. A book market is held on Fridays and many bookstores are located there, like the American Book Center (ABC) (where I go when I want to buy English written books).The Spui is therefore very popular among book lovers. The entrance for the Medieval courtyard of the Begijnhof is also there.
The Jordaan is one of my favourite districts in Amsterdam. Last Spring I went there a couple of times, once with my husband and then with my friends. If you like art galleries, particularly of modern art, especiality shops and restaurants, theJordaanis the right place to go. Originally a working-class neighbourhood, the Jordaan has become one of the most expensive and upscale locations in the Netherlands.
Let me share with you the suggestions I have given our cousins for a walk in the Jordaan.
I like to start with a lunch in La Perla. They work with the finest ingredients imported from Italy, like the genuine ‘Mozzarella di Bufala Campana D.O.P.’ which is delivered fresh, twice a week, from the Naples area. The pizzas are made with regionally grown, non-industrial products and, in my opinion, they are not expensive.
Baking my pizza in the large wood fueled brick oven.
Generally, I choose Pizza Margherita (tomato, buffalo mozzarella, basil, oregano, olive oil) which costs € 8.50.
The most expensive is the Prosciutto San Daniele (tomato, buffalo mozzarella, San Daniele ham, rocket, parmigiano reggiano D.O.P.) that costs € 13.70.
After eating a delicious homemade pizza, I like to go to Monte Pelmo for a nice Italian ice-cream!
If you take your child with you on his/her birthday, the child will be offered an ice-cream! Really nice, don't you think? :-) You need to bring with you the child's ID card and he/she must be up to 12 years old.
Finally, I like to enjoy a coffee at the T'Smalle, a very cozy café and restaurant with a terrace in front of the canal. A very lovely place to enjoy a pretty Spring afternoon! Inside, take a look at the brown wooden walls, the charming decoration and the beautiful window glasses.
Also next to the Anne Frank House is the Westerkerk, the church Anne used to mention in her diary and where Rembrandt is buried after spending his last years living in the Jordaan (Rozengracht).
This Renaissance style church is the biggest Protestant church in the Netherlands and it was built for the wealthy “ring of canals” area (Kaisergracht, Prinsengracht and Herengracht).
The steeple with its imperial crown was built in 1638. In 1906, in the celebrations of the 300 years of the birth of Rembrandt , the colour of the crown was changed from blue to golden yellow. In the "Rembrandt year" 2006, exactly one hundred years later, the colour was restored to its original blue.
I have promised our cousins to introduce them to some Dutch snacks and desserts. You saw already the post about the poffertjes. Let me show you the other delicacies...
Kibbeling
In Portugal, we are great eaters of dry cod fish (bacalhau seco). We have more than a thousand ways to cook it. In The Netherlands, we have kibbeling, fresh fried cod fish served with remoulade and aioli. Generally, it's our lunch every Saturday and sometimes, when the weather is nice, we invite some friends to join us in the achtertuin (backyard). It was the case last Saturday. These photos were taken then. I forgot to take pics when our cousins were here to enjoy the kibbeling with us. I guess it was all the excitement!
After our lunch, we went to Bart in the city center to enjoy a slice of Vlaai for dessert. Vlaai is a tart consisting of a pastry with filling. Originally created in Weert (Limburg), is therefore a typical product of the southern regions of the Netherlands.However, nowadays, it's available in all the regions of the country, as well as in Belgium and Germany near the border with the Netherlands. There are many different varieties of fruit fillings (cherry, apricot, strawberries, plums, etc.). We can also find it in the options of crumbled butter and sugar mix (greumellevlaai) and cooked rice and custard porridge (rijstevlaai).
If you click on Multivlaai's link, you will see about 40 varieties of Vlaai.
Do you have a favourite Vlaai?
If you never have tasted it before, which one do you think would be your favourite?
:-)
As you can imagine, after such a nice lunch, we needed to go for a walk in the city center... ;-)) Besides, the weather was really nice, perfect to take some photos, such as this one, of the Side by Side buildings. :-)
On our cousins last day in the Netherlands, we went to D. van der Steen stall in Bussum. The surprise? Something truly Dutch: homemade poffertjes!! As you can see by the photos below, they seem (and they are) quite delicious and the place is very lovely. Our cousins just loved it!
Poffertjes are small and fluffy pancakes made with yeast and buckwheat flour.They have a light and spongy texture and typically they are served with powdered sugar and butter. These ones, served with ginger, are really, really yummy and my favourite ones!!!Lekker!
We can also find them in Breukelen, during 3 weeks in the Autumn. This tradition has 97 years! On October, 3rd, the stall van der Steen offers poffertjes to the local school children to celebrate the birthday of the local philanthropist Kees de Tippelaar (1843-1913). This citizen of the world was very caring with the children, especially the poor ones, when Breukelen faced economical difficulties during the last years of the 19th century. Since 1915, through a special fund he has created, the children are offered poffertjes on his birthday. The current owner of the van der Steen stall celebrates also his birthday on October, 3rd.
What do you think of this place? If you have the chance, take a train and pay them a visit! I'm sure you will enjoy it!
(These photos -except for the third- were taken last April when we went there for the first time. )
We took our cousins to Utrecht for a stroll in the Oudegracht, inthe ancient center of the city. There we can find many buildings and structures from the Early Middle Ages.
Until the Dutch Golden Age (17th century), when Amsterdam became the cultural and most populous center of the country, Utrecht was the most important city of the Netherlands.
At a certain moment of our walk, we spotted the Domtoren(Dom Tower), the tallest church tower in the Netherlands.
According to Wikipedia, the tower, designed by John of Hainaut, was part of the Cathedral of Saint Martin , also known as Dom Church, and was built between 1321 and 1382. The cathedral was never fully completed due to the lack of funds and since the unfinished nave collapsed in 1674, the Dom tower became a free standing tower at the spot where the city of Utrecht originated almost 2,000 years ago.
Meanwhile, when we were passing by the Oudegracht, I took the photo below from a tv screen image. Spain had just scored the third goal against Italy and the people in the stadium were euphoric. Later, in the evening, Spain would win the European Football Championship by 4-0.
We ended up our evening in a Thai restaurant in the Oudegracht. The food was quite delicious and also the Mai Tai. ;-) ) We'll come back there again for sure!
" Welcome to Monnikendam! The watergate Monnikendam was built around 1420 as part of the second city walls (1380-1451). The gate consists of two towers which have been connected by an arch. We believe that the port is probably named after the Augustinian monks of St. Andrew's. In 1840, some ancient city walls were demolished and Monnikendam was included in the construction of the new park designed by the landscape architect JD Zocher Jr. "
"I hope you enjoy our town and its many interesting streets. Look carefully at the buildings and you will find signs of our past, like the ones of the ancient guilds..."
Our host also told us that our cousins came during a very special moment for the country: "Many students have finished their high school studies this month and that's why we are seeing so many flags with school bags in front of the windows. These families are sharing with us their joy with their teenagers school achievements."
If you are visiting the Netherlands, Naarden deserves a visit for sure.
Naarden is an example of a star fort, with fortified walls and a moat. So, don't miss the opportunity to visit this 17th century fortress with great panoramic views!
This town is beautiful by foot or by bike. A very green area, situated in the richest area of The Netherlands-'T Gooi- with large villas covered with culm. I'm sure you will enjoy your day!
This is the building of the Stadhuis (The City Hall )
During our stroll with our cousins, we found a store selling very pretty bags. When we came in, we realized that Portuguese music was being played. The Dutch owner of the store has been in the south of Portugal and she became in love for our Fado. She showed us the several CD's she has already bought from Mariza, Cristina Branco and Amália. How nice is that?:-))
This Amália's song- but sung by Cristina Branco- started playing when I was trying to pay for my bag. Tears came to my eyes, I couldn't avoid it. I love this song, and especially when we are away from our country, to listen "If a seagull would come and brought me Lisbon's sky..." it was too strong for me...
" Se uma gaivota viesse
Trazer-me o céu de Lisboa..."