Den Hague

When August rolled around, I was shocked how fast the previous month had passed. We had been in Amsterdam for all of July and I still could not navigate my way around its bizarre streets without the help of a detailed map, I had all but given up on learning the Dutch language and I was appalled at how little of the country we had actually seen. I declared that from here on out, sleep was not an option. We had to take this thing into overdrive, if we were going to hit all of Lonely Planet's "must-sees". Caught up in this whirlwind, was my good friend Betty, who had come to visit for a relaxing European holiday. She happened to be there on the day we visited Den Hague (or "the Hague"), a city overflowing with museums, parks and assorted attractions. The itinerary for the day was an accordingly packed one: we would visit the Mauritshaus (the museum that houses the famous Vermeer painting, Girl with a Pearl Earring), then following the book's suggested walking route, we would pass through the Parliamentary area on our way to the MC Escher museum . Next, we would stop for a late lunch if there was time (there wasn't), before hopping on a tram to the beach side resort of Scheveningen in time to grab some drinks and watch the sunset.

Although I will admit that we were a bit rushed throughout the day, and perhaps that the ice cream and french fry vendors did not provide us with an actual lunch, per se, I was willing to declare the day a success. The Escher museum was truly excellent, with works ranging from his early days when he was focused more on traditional landscapes to his better known, later-day trippier prints. Each of the rooms was adorned with a specially commissioned chandelier in different quirky shapes. There was a 3d virtual reality chamber where you could place yourself inside one of his painting (or so I was told since, despite all the rushing, we didn't make it to that part of the museum until after it had closed). Scheveningen, a beach so unpronouncable that the Dutch used its name as a means of testing WWII German soldiers who were trying to pass themselves of for Dutch...try as they may, the Germans could not pronounce it, is now referred to as the European equivalent of Coney Island (minus the cool rides, which I believe are disappearing from the real Coney Island, as well). I could kind of see it. They both have a long boardwalk, full of bars, restaurants and t-shirt stands. And to belabor the NY comparison, there is also a whimsical collection of sculptures by Tom Otterness, a Kansan artist, whose work can also be found at the 14th St. ACE train station in Manhattan. After strolling (ok, maybe it was power walking) through the sculptural area, we had just enough time to grab a quick dinner, down a beer, watch the sunset (which I should point out takes place around 10 pm during the Dutch summer) and jump on the last train back to Amsterdam. I imagine this is not what Betty had in mind, in terms of relaxation, but the time, it was a-ticking....