Den Haag
This weekend i jumped on a train to Den Haag to stay with another of Mums sisters Els, and her husband Hans. It was great to get away again. Not much time left in Holland, i feel like im hanging on my last strings here in Utrecht. Knowing theres only one week of 'study' left, im getting restless and just want to move on and go travelling!
I arrived in Den Haag about 8pm and took a tram in the direction of Kraayenstein. Uncle Hans picked me up at the last stop. I had some really good Nasi goreng for dinner (way better than my mothers) and spent the evening watching a really cool DVD. The DVD consisted of two of my Oma and Opa's wedding anniversarys, one in 87 and the other around 92. I remember watching these before, but i think the last time was when i was about 10 years old. It was great watching my first visit ever to Holland as a child of 2yrs, and seeing my brothers as cute little kids and laughing at my mothers antics. It was also great to be able to recognise all my cousins who ive been meeting this semester as little children. It was good laughs all around.
Saturday was a huge day! the weather wasnt so great, but we filled it in really good. We drove into town and walked through Den Haag parliament buildings to the Maurits Huis. The Mauritz house is a seventeenth century urban palace, its interiors are beautiful, and on its walls hang world famous paintings from the Golden Age. I usually find paintings from this period really boring, but i got to have an audio tour so was able to access interesting information about nearly every single painting there at the press of a button. I looked at the 'Dreaming of Italy' which i loved, but I think my favourite thing about the museum is that i got to see the painting 'girl with a pearl' by Johannes Vermeer, voted this weekend as Hollands favourite painting. Honestly its amazing, this painting actually gave me goosebumps.
We then took a walk to the MC Escher Palace. This was absolutely amazing. While Van Gogh inspires me to paint and be spontaneous and daring, Escher totally speaks more to the 'perfectionist' side of me, and makes me love Printmaking and want to make really amazing, precise, beautiful works. I saw all his great works, and even got to wear one of those cool virtual reality masks as well and explore his world in 3D. It was amazing. We also got a photo taken, in this room that totally screws with perspective. Amazing. I rate this museum , even more so than the Van Gogh museum!
After we had some lunch together, Els went off to work, and Hans and I carried on with our mission. Our next stop was Madurodam. Ohhhh my goodness, if you loved things like dolls houses and micro machines and minuture train sets as a child, you would love Madurodam. Its like nearly the entire country of Holland made on a scale of 1.25. I wandered around, awestruck, recognising all the landmarks of Holland and watching little cars drive past on motorways, and Boats putting up canals etc. (photo - standing next to a dutch windmill)
We went to another museum after this. The Photography museum. I had heard that Loretta Lux was having an exhibition, and i desperately wanted to see it. Im glad i did, it was amazing. If you have never heard of her work, she makes these really beautiful works of children that cross painting and photography. The children look like dolls. She shows childhood as a paradise lost.
We then headed out to Scheveningen, a beach resort. Oh it was sooo great to see the ocean again, but i didnt really enjoy Schaeveningen that much because it was really really ridiculously windy, and the beach is really really commercialised, the beachfront is covered from end to end with bars and shops etc. We walked out to the end of a pier, and also got an icecream. That was nice. (photo - view from pier)
Then absolutely shattered, we returned home for some Pizza and a night in front of the TV watching the Eurovision song final. Good times, but this really satanic rock band from Finland won.
I slept in this morning, i was really shattered from yesterdays events. I spent the morning looking at some photo albums from when my mother and her sisters were children. We then went to visit Hans and Els' son Paul (my cousin) and had tea and applecake, and checked out their babyroom, cos they have a baby due really soon.
I lazed around in the afternoon, and watched this cool DVD called The Mission. Then caught the train back to Utrecht.
In the evening, I went to see Aefke, my friend whom i havent seen since we flew the whole way from New Zealand to Holland together in January. It has been a pity that i havent been able to see her until the end of my time here, but we have both been really busy, and she has been really sick with glandular fever. We had a lovely evening though, Her flatmate Des, and a guy from Tim from New Zealand were also there, i had met these guys at the Christchurch airport before i left. We got takeaways for dinner, and spent the evening watching one of those dancing competition reality TV shows. It was such a good night, Im really glad i was able to hang out with Aefke again before i leave. I hope we keep in touch. (photo - Aefke, Des and I)
I arrived in Den Haag about 8pm and took a tram in the direction of Kraayenstein. Uncle Hans picked me up at the last stop. I had some really good Nasi goreng for dinner (way better than my mothers) and spent the evening watching a really cool DVD. The DVD consisted of two of my Oma and Opa's wedding anniversarys, one in 87 and the other around 92. I remember watching these before, but i think the last time was when i was about 10 years old. It was great watching my first visit ever to Holland as a child of 2yrs, and seeing my brothers as cute little kids and laughing at my mothers antics. It was also great to be able to recognise all my cousins who ive been meeting this semester as little children. It was good laughs all around.
Saturday was a huge day! the weather wasnt so great, but we filled it in really good. We drove into town and walked through Den Haag parliament buildings to the Maurits Huis. The Mauritz house is a seventeenth century urban palace, its interiors are beautiful, and on its walls hang world famous paintings from the Golden Age. I usually find paintings from this period really boring, but i got to have an audio tour so was able to access interesting information about nearly every single painting there at the press of a button. I looked at the 'Dreaming of Italy' which i loved, but I think my favourite thing about the museum is that i got to see the painting 'girl with a pearl' by Johannes Vermeer, voted this weekend as Hollands favourite painting. Honestly its amazing, this painting actually gave me goosebumps.
We then took a walk to the MC Escher Palace. This was absolutely amazing. While Van Gogh inspires me to paint and be spontaneous and daring, Escher totally speaks more to the 'perfectionist' side of me, and makes me love Printmaking and want to make really amazing, precise, beautiful works. I saw all his great works, and even got to wear one of those cool virtual reality masks as well and explore his world in 3D. It was amazing. We also got a photo taken, in this room that totally screws with perspective. Amazing. I rate this museum , even more so than the Van Gogh museum!
After we had some lunch together, Els went off to work, and Hans and I carried on with our mission. Our next stop was Madurodam. Ohhhh my goodness, if you loved things like dolls houses and micro machines and minuture train sets as a child, you would love Madurodam. Its like nearly the entire country of Holland made on a scale of 1.25. I wandered around, awestruck, recognising all the landmarks of Holland and watching little cars drive past on motorways, and Boats putting up canals etc. (photo - standing next to a dutch windmill)
We went to another museum after this. The Photography museum. I had heard that Loretta Lux was having an exhibition, and i desperately wanted to see it. Im glad i did, it was amazing. If you have never heard of her work, she makes these really beautiful works of children that cross painting and photography. The children look like dolls. She shows childhood as a paradise lost.
We then headed out to Scheveningen, a beach resort. Oh it was sooo great to see the ocean again, but i didnt really enjoy Schaeveningen that much because it was really really ridiculously windy, and the beach is really really commercialised, the beachfront is covered from end to end with bars and shops etc. We walked out to the end of a pier, and also got an icecream. That was nice. (photo - view from pier)
Then absolutely shattered, we returned home for some Pizza and a night in front of the TV watching the Eurovision song final. Good times, but this really satanic rock band from Finland won.
I slept in this morning, i was really shattered from yesterdays events. I spent the morning looking at some photo albums from when my mother and her sisters were children. We then went to visit Hans and Els' son Paul (my cousin) and had tea and applecake, and checked out their babyroom, cos they have a baby due really soon.
I lazed around in the afternoon, and watched this cool DVD called The Mission. Then caught the train back to Utrecht.
In the evening, I went to see Aefke, my friend whom i havent seen since we flew the whole way from New Zealand to Holland together in January. It has been a pity that i havent been able to see her until the end of my time here, but we have both been really busy, and she has been really sick with glandular fever. We had a lovely evening though, Her flatmate Des, and a guy from Tim from New Zealand were also there, i had met these guys at the Christchurch airport before i left. We got takeaways for dinner, and spent the evening watching one of those dancing competition reality TV shows. It was such a good night, Im really glad i was able to hang out with Aefke again before i leave. I hope we keep in touch. (photo - Aefke, Des and I)
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