Christmas in the Netherlands

Welcome to the new decade everyone! I was fortunate to be able to spend my Christmas in the Netherlands (technically, we were still at the plane though). It was a beautiful and peaceful place, with so much artistic and historical significance. Here, I talk about the different places I visited over there, from art to history to architecture to food!

1. Visited the Van Gogh Museum

The Van Gogh Museum was the first place we visited while we were at the Netherlands. The museum held a lot of Van Gogh's famous artwork, such as the Sunflowers and his self-portrait (they didn't have the Starry Sky, since it was in New York sadly). I was surprised though that Vincent Van Gogh also painted Japanese art in his own style. There was one floor that showcase all of his Japanese artwork, which I thought was one of the most interesting floors (alongside the floor with all of his different self-portraits). The museum also talked about his history, and how he eventually had a mental illness that made him cut off his own ear. That self-portrait was also one of his most famous work. Painting, Van Gogh said, was a sort of therapy for him.

2. Went to a Christmas Market

The Christmas market felt really festive, with multiple stalls offering hot chocolate, sweets, and craft beer. The market also had an ice rink (which I think was a frozen pond, since there was a canoe at the corner). A lot of children skated around, with some using wooden chairs for support.

3. Visited the Hague

The Hague funnily looked like San Francisco, with all its fast food chains and American fashion brands. Nevertheless, you could see a lot of history from the town, such as its old government buildings. As you walk around the town, you could also see some ships docked near the town. Some of the boats even had signs saying "Boat Apartments", which meant that you could actually room in it. That's something I want to try next time if I have the chance.

5. Visited the Zaanse Schans

The Zaanse Schans was probably my favorite destination of the trip. Everywhere you looked was a different shade of green. It had a beautiful view of the lake, and around it were cottages and windmills of different sizes lined up together.

There was also a cheese museum, where you could even do cheese-tasting! My family and I bought different flavors, my favorite being the smoked jalapeno cheese. Right outside the cheese museum is a barn with some chickens and goats (which is a fun photo op).

Other than that, there was also a clogs workshop. They showed a wide collection of clogs in different colors, patterns and sizes from different periods of time throughout history.

6. Went to the Markthal

The Markthal (which means Market Hall in English) is located in Rotterdam, not so far away from the Erasmus Bridge. The hall is dome-shaped, with the inner part of the dorm displaying a wide, electronic view of nature and tulips. They also had different stalls selling cheese, candy, signature desserts and much more. I tried a stroopwafel (a wafer cookie with caramel filling) and a kroket (fried breadcrumb roll with cheese and mashed potato) for the first time.

7. Visited the Cube Houses

Outside the Markthal, you could see the famous Cube Houses. They looked tiny and peculiar to live in, but apparently, it's very popular. You have to book one to two years in advance if you want to stay there!

8. Ate at Corner Bakery

The Corner Bakery is famous for its interesting-looking drinks. The baristas decorated the drink's toppings so that it looks photo-worthy. I ordered the cotton candy drink which literally had a cotton candy on top of the drink.

9. Visited the Anne Frank Museum

We ended our Netherlands trip in the Anne Frank Museum. When I was a child, I used to read Anne Frank's diary where she recorded her time hiding in the Secret Annex. It felt surreal going inside the place Anne Frank has hidden in for several years, especially if you read about it. I couldn't imagine living in secret for several years without going outside. They weren't allowed to be noisy, having to tiptoe around the annex and whisper to each other during daytime. They also were only allowed to light up the annex with candles. We also saw the original copy of Anne Frank's diary. Seeing her handwriting on the actual notebook really humanized the whole experience of WWII. But what's amazing is that Anne Frank was known to remain optimistic despite those harsh and cruel times, saying that she "still believes that people are good at heart." And that's something we all should keep in mind even now.

Those few days were a great trip to celebrate Christmas and wrap up my decade of exploration. I can't wait to see what more discovery awaits me in this decade!