In case you haven’t been following me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook (now is a good time to start) I wanted to let you know that I’ll be writing to you for most of the month from The Netherlands, aka Holland. We’re visiting Frans’ family as his parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. Also, it’s been five years since we’ve been back and it was definitely time to return. One of our first stops was Scheveningen.
Visiting the Netherlands Again — Scheveningen
I love reconnecting with my parents-in-law. Unlike many people, I actually love my in-laws. But, I have a hard time communicating with them over the phone or through video calls due to the language. In person, we can also use gestures and the language flows easier when there’s no online delay. Plus, we can do things together and enjoy shared experience.
After sleeping (a LOT), we spent our first full day at Scheveningen to take a leisurely walk by the beach. Scheveningen is a cute seaside town and there’s an interesting bit of history behind the area’s name. Dutch and German are fairly similar languages but, during the World War II, people needed a way to differentiate between who was who. Since, German people had a hard time pronouncing the “sche” sound of Scheveningen, it was a dead ringer to identify them.
Walking along the beach, regardless of the weather is a pretty common Dutch pasttime. It’s known as strandwandeling (beach walking), and is second only to boswandeling (forest walking). The coastal part of Scheveningen is much more built up than the last time we were here and we got a kick out of the funny sculptures. A couple were kind of disturbing but the others were so cute and full of character.
Het Haringhuisje in Scheveningen
We also got a bite at our stand-by seafood place, Het Haringhuisje. This place has the best raw haring (herring) and kibbling (deep-fried cod) with knoflook (garlic) sauce. Of course Frans, his dad, and Munchkin ate the haring the traditional way – throwing the head back and eating it while holding the tail. There are plenty of other seafood restaurants in Scheveningen but we have been going to this place for years.
Frans’ parents are already aware of his gluten allergy and have taken special care to adjust the food. Fortunately, his mom is a fantastic cook and the stores here have a good amount of gluten-free items in stock. I’m loving having someone else cook 🙂
I’ll keep you updated during the rest of our trip, which includes a totally non-work and non-family related trip to Italy!
2 comments
When it comes to The Netherlands, how would you compare it to the US safety-wise? For comparison sake, let’s say compare it to Nashville, TN. (If you haven’t been to Nashville, then how about somewhere that you have been in the US.)
I loved watching your Instagram feed. I SOOOOO wanted to be in Europe. The pictures were fabulous.
Never been to Nashville but I feel pretty safe. It’s still good to have a crossover bag with your wallet right next to you and not to walk alone at night (common sense these days). It also depends on the areas. Amsterdam is very touristy and, while there are nice areas tucked here and there, it is a tourist spot so there’s more danger. Plus, you won’t get a real good feel for the culture. I absolutely love the Hague and Delft but other areas that are nice to visit are Rotterdam, Maastricht, and Marken. If you want the traditional clog-making and windmills, Zaanse Schaans is always fun.
Thanks! So glad you like the photos. I still have more to share but most of our time was spent with the family 🙂
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