travelogue: holland, part 1 / 4 haarlem

i was against not staying in amsterdam (i LOVE amsterdam) but i am so glad stefan talked me into it. in three days we visited haarlem, rotterdam, and kinderdijk. neither of us had visited these places before and guys, we fell in love with each. 

first up, haarlem...

haarlem is an adorable city to the nth degree. it's been described as a mini amsterdam, and i think that is pretty spot on. 

the main square, grote markt, is huge with gabled buildings, cafes and the gothic st. bravo church, its spire jutting into the sky.

we walked along one of the canals where the molen de adriaan is located... the whole scene is picturesque.

cute streets are filled with cafes and boutiques... of note are zijlstraat, koningstraat, gierstraat, warmoesstraat and schagchelstraat. these atmospheric streets are known as the gouden straatjes, which translates to the golden streets and they have an array of wonderful shops. i was happy to stroll in and out of the shops, notably, id, homestock, kloffie, and brand mission. 

on schagchelstraat we enjoyed a delish lunch. i had a quinoa veggie salad while my boys ate fries and frikandel next door, at friethuis. 

and just off gierstraat, on the side streets, we found ourselves in vijfhoek, a neighbourhood with a village feel. we strolled the streets admiring the cute houses with flower boxes and benches. and sweet cats too.

the buildings along the golden streets are of historic beauty too.

we admired a couple of hofjes, lovely courtyard gardens, one on koningstraat and another, the oldest hofje, on van bakenes. 

take a peek...

       

we had such a lovely day, i wished we stayed overnight. there was so much more to do... touring corrie ten boom museum, a house that provided save haven for jews during world war two, visiting the frans hals museum which was unfortunately closed for renovations and biking to the nearby beach, bloemendaal aan zee with its rolling dunes and beachfront cafes. 

but, we were off to rotterdam.