Adventure of the month

On August 17th, we visited Alkmaar, the cheese town to end all cheese towns. On every Friday during the summer, tour buses roll into town so that tourists can watch a "traditional cheese market" in action. Let me let Wikipedia explain: It is one of only four traditional Dutch cheese markets still in existence. The traditional fare of this cheese market are those cheeses made in the local area, as opposed to the well-known brands of Dutch cheeses, i.e. Edam cheese and Gouda cheese . It is not actually possible to buy cheese at the market itself, which is really only a demonstration of how this merchants' market operated in times gone by. However, the demonstration, which takes place in front of the medieval weighing house, is surrounded by many specialized stalls where it is possible to buy all kinds of cheese (and non-cheese) related products. And buy cheese, we did. The market itself was way too crowded (My friend, Nicole and I had to th...

Of all the places I visited in the Netherlands, Utrecht stands out as a particular favorite. It is a laid-back collage town, whose skyline is dominated by the graceful Dom Tower. By joining a guided tour (and climbing 465 steps), you can reach the top of the tower for expansive views of the city and beyond (thanks to good weather, we were able to see all the way to Amsterdam). As with all the Dutch towns, the people were friendly, the food was exceptionally good and there were plenty of architectural marvels to behold so I can't really point to one single factor that made this town stand out as much as it did. Perhaps, it is something as simple as the mood I was in. Or that I liked the sunken canals, which allowed you to descend from street level to quiet water side cafes. Or the side-by-side mix of new and old architecture. Perhaps I was just dizzy from the exertion of those 465 steps. Who knows, but for the rest of...

By August 13th, I was beginning to suffer from the initial symptoms of museum overload. The Netherlands has produced an astonishing number of great artists and I was doing my best to see all their work, a near-impossible feat. That is why the timing could not have been better when my friend, Franz invited me to join him on a day trip to the island of Texel (pronounced Tessel). Texel is a barrier island, reachable only be ferry, which is known for its wildlife, sand dunes and ample camping opportunities. Life there revolves around walking, cycling, and for the truly psychotic, swimming in the Wadden Sea. There is not an art museum in sight. Along with Franz, the indefatigable Christa and her slightly fatigued boyfriend, Tony, I spent a wonderfully revitalizing day. The four of us visited a seal rescue facility, breathed some much-needed fresh air, wandered amongst the massive dunes and ate all the junk food that came our ...

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 f...