Aptly named, the day I left Laura's extremely hospitable company, I had a day pass which enabled me to catch any train in Holland for the whole of Sunday. Not wanting it to go to waste, I planned out a hectic itinerary... Haarlem, Leiden, Delft, and Utrecht, all in one day. That gave me only a few hours in each, although I didn't bother planning out a time scale because it was all too depressing. Haarlem was a great introduction to old Holland – a beautiful canal town with similar gorgeous old apartments as could be found in Amsterdam. Then was Leiden, which is without doubt the most beautiful old town in Holland.... the Leiden Leger was especially good for showing you around the city – probably the best tourist walk of a city I've found. I stood in a square where hundreds of years ago, executions were common, and looked up at great churches and castle-like buildings. Delft had many shops with the famous Delft-ware, and looking back having read The Girl with the Pearl Earring, it was an extraordinary place. Utrecht was great – it differed from the rest of the canal towns, as the canal is a level below the rest of the city. As such, restaurants and cafes line the canal down a flight of stairs – it looks really beautiful.
No comments:
Post a Comment