Haarlem

One of my son’s friends reminded me about the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem. DH was up for a day trip, so off to Haarlem we went. Less than 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam, we came to a bustling central market square. Cafes spilled out beer-drinkers, merging shoppers and people watchers under the warm sun.

Frans Hals was an important 17th century portrait painter, typically known for emphasizing the merriment in children and the warmth in the sitter’s soul. The museum was small, yet had a special exhibit on Dirck, Jan, Joseph and Salomon de Bray.

Afterwards, we were ready to eat our picnic lunch (extras from our breakfast, need to stretch the Euros where we can.) We asked the museum guide for a recommendation, and she pointed us to a park outside the city center. It was indeed a lovely spot, which happened to be having an antique market. It was fun to look, but I just couldn’t buy anything knowing that I would need to haul it around for three weeks.

While the picnic was good, there was still room in our stomachs to sample the local fare. We were happy to find these:

We snagged these happy Belgian Fries, five minutes before the stall closed. Now if your mind is thinking “Eww… McDonald’s fries and Miracle Whip?” I can tell you that it is nothing like the aforementioned (vile) combination. First of all Belgian Fries are made from fresh potatoes, and fried twice, once at a lower temperature, and then at a higher temperature. The result is a crispy fry, with a tender, fluffy interior. The mayonnaise is a creamy contrast. Reflecting cultural influences, there are other sauces as well, including ketchup and curry; but I like to keep with tradition. And if you’re thirsty after the fries, then you need to drink this:

Local Beer. DH had a darker larger, I had a “white” beer with lemon. The Dutch, like so many European cultures, have mastered the café life; drinking a beer (or wine, or coffee), meeting with friends, and watching the world go by. I will admit that it was almost hard to “just sit there” and drink a beer. My mind was still easing into vacation mode. Shouldn’t I be doing something? (I really wanted to break out my knitting, but I knew this would not be blending in.) I think this is something I’ll have to work on.

We wandered some more, finding a windmill, and later getting lost on the way to the train station.

We can now say we’ve walked the streets of Haarlem at 11 pm, totally unafraid and unharmed.