Today the group ventured outside of Amsterdam, heading north to see Dutch culture preserved in Volendam and Zaanse Schans. We met numerous people making clogs, cheese, and woodwork in the same methods of the 17th century Dutch Golden Age (using windmills!). Here are a few photo highlights of our day.
Today, our group woke up at 7:00, ready for a second day in Amsterdam. Personally, I enjoyed a hearty breakfast of some cereal, a couple ham and cheese sandwiches, and some glasses of juice. Feeling refreshed after such a “normal” breakfast after our past couple experiences of waking up to some slightly mushy Scottish Haggis, we started our coach ride to Zaanse Schans, a traditional Dutch fishing village with preserved 18th century life. When we arrived, we were amazed by an astonishing live performance of a carpenter carving out a brand new pair of Clogs (traditional Dutch wooden shoes) within minutes. After this, we eagerly explored the village, excitedly observing the multitudes of farm animals casually grazing the grass while staring in awe at the massive wooden windmills that were so common in this village. To finish off our excursion of the village, we visited the inside of a different carpenter’s windmill, learning about the intricacies in the design and functions of the mill, and understanding how life for traditional villagers in the 18th century really was. Next, we visited the Volendam museum, a recollective imitation of the traditional life within the small rural borough of peasant-fisherman in Volendam. There, we were exposed to many models of life within the households of traditional Dutch fishermen, artists, and merchants. The ending exhibit was a quite breathtaking collection of mosaics composed entirely of 11 million cigar bands, as at the time, smoking was something the prosperous Dutch would have eagerly partaken in. Next, we grabbed lunch in a dockside village, and I tried out some smoked eel along with a classic dish of fish and chips, which I ate near a beach with a view of the seemingly endless blue of the North Sea. After our brief break, we started our coach ride to meet a genuine Dutch cheese farmer on his farm. There, we learned about the secrets of making true Dutch cheese and were even able to taste some of his finest homemade cheeses. A thoroughly comedic and intelligent man, he walked us through the entire process of making cheese and how he keeps them fresh for so long while speaking and joking in 7 different languages! After this, we ended with a dinner that included some very delicious ice cream, and concluded our day with a brief stroll through the park and massive games of ‘capture the flag’ and ‘sharks and minnows’, leaving us utterly exhausted yet unquestionably excited for our next and final day of our euro trip.
Yours truly, Alex Guo
After an exhausting day yesterday, the majority of us slept through our alarms but nonetheless we woke up to eat breakfast. We headed out on the coach bus to go to the town Zaanse Schans. As we looked out the windows we saw windmills and 17th-18th century looking houses and buildings. Once the coach had dropped us off in the town, we made our way to the clog museum where we learned some history on clogs and got to experience clog making. We continued our journey in the small town on Zaanse Schans, visiting cheese making shops, cacao labs, and multiple windmills. Visiting a windmill that powered a saw to cut tree trunks and making them into useful beams in construction was absolutely shocking and educational. We bid goodbye to this historical town and headed off to Volendam, a small town North Sea. Given free time in this town, we got to visit shops, go to museums, and eat the wonderful selection of seafood. We hopped onto the coach bus and headed to a farm run by a crazy farmer. Although the farmer was a bit wacko, he showed us how his family makes cheese and clogs. After tasting samples of the cheese, we all bought a cheese wheel (or two) to share with our families. As we said our goodbyes to the stinky cows, we headed back into busy Amsterdam. We stopped at Mama's to eat nachos and went for a stroll afterwards. We spent our free time playing games in a park, such as Chain tag and Capture the flag. Afterwards, we made our way back to the hotel to get a goodnights sleep.
- Kim
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