leading architects of the world. The building in the photo is the city town hall and library. It is designd by Richard Meier. For those of you who are architectural followers, Richard Meier designed the Rashovsky House on Preston Road in Dallas. He also designed the modern art museum in Barcelona.Guidebook information:
Up until the 13th century the Hague was just a hunting lodge for a count of Holland. But since it was near the sea, it soon became a vacation spot. Then by the 15th century, it became a merchant's town. For some reason, by the 17th century, it became the center of diplomatic negotiations, and today it is the seat of the International Court of Justice, sponsored by the UN, as well as the Permanent Court of Arbitration. There are many embassies and international offices here.
We stayed at the beach, however, a little town called Scheveningen - the Dutch swallow the "ch" - more like "k" and then "gutteralize" the "g" like the German "ach". You try it!
When we arrived on June 14 it was still very chilly, and the beach was so windy we could not believe that people would be out sunning. But it was perfect for the wind sailing and the kites. We struggled up the street to the North Sea, amazed that so many people could stand this weather. By the time we left about a week later, the wind had calmed down, the beach was perfect, and it was wall to wall bodies. You know me, though. I don't like the sun too much, so I was content to leave the beach to others.
The little beach town had lots of hotels and I am sure later on in the summer it was packed with people on holiday. Along with all of the hotels are places to gamble, to eat, to listen to music, etc.
We were more interested in the town of the Hague, however, so we hopped on the tram right outside our hotel and made our way downtown. The scenery on the tram was just beautiful; old mansions, huge trees lining the streets, people on their bikes. It was a great ride. Our tram went right past the Peace Palace, where the Court of Justice is. It is a grand old castle-looking structure; we read in our guidebooks that when they built it they deliberately did not pick just one kind of architecture, so it could be all things to all countries. As a result, it is a hodge-podge of a building, but rather elegant.
When we got downtown, we discovered the same thing as in every other town in Holland: construction in a big way. If they are not renovating their old residences, they are expanding the tram line or widening the streets.
The Centrum
We made our way to the tourist information office. From other cities in Holland we knew that this office would have great city maps and very interesting walking tours. We were not disappointed here. They had three different walking tours, depending on whether you were interested in architecture, historic structures or just sites of interest. As usual, Jack wanted to tackle all three, so we would be busy for the next several days.
We also wanted to find a bus/tram map. In a big city like this, it is almost impossible to get around only by walking, so we needed the bus information for all the spots that interested us. Also, we really learn a city when we have to figure out where things are, how to get there by public transportation, what stop to get off, and where to catch the bus to get back home. In Holland, they have a great bus and tram system: they announce the stop and it appears in the LED readout. Some of the buses have the routes listed, so you can follow along and figure out how many stops until yours.
The first thing we found was a great shopping area called the Passage. It is just like the Galleria in Milan; it is covered and the shops are very smart and expensive. We had a great time window shopping, and I found an Aveda salon just around the corner, so I made an appointment to get my hair done the next day.
We pulled ourselves away from shopping to follow the walking tour. The first stop was the Binnenhof (inner courtyard). This area has many old buildings which are now their seat of government - we just happened onto a crowd who was waiting to see who the new Prime Minister would be. These old buildings house the upper House of Parliament. I wanted to wait until the announcement was made, but Jack was anxious to get to Mauritshuis, so we moved on. I found it fascinating that ordinary people could just walk through this courtyard, where all of their politicians were housed. There was no police or security to remind us that important people were doing important things inside this building. What a different feeling in Holland than in the US of A.
Today was the day that I saw Girl with the Pearl Earring. The Mauritshuis, the city museum, was the house of a rich Dutch tobacco plantation owner in Brazil, in the 17th century. Johan Maurits. He gave his house to the Dutch government, along with his art. It is a splendid little museum, just big enough to be able to saunter around and enjoy the art.
Vermeer's View of Delft is also here - a very large piece compared to his other work. But I must admit, I was there to look on the Girl with the Pearl Earring. The movie, made from Tracy Chevalier's book, with Colin Firth and Scarlett Johanson, is a favorite of mine, and the story of how Vermeer came to paint this particular picture was very clear in my mind. Of course, Chevalier made up the whole story, but it was a very touching one, and I wanted to believe that it was sort of true.
The painting was exquisite. It has a prominent place in the museum; it is in one of the last rooms to view, so the anticipation is there as you walk in the room. She is really beautiful. I am almost tearful when I finally see a painting that I have studied or liked and find the real one, hanging in a special place. I sat there for a long time, just admiring the simple beauty of it.
There were many other beautiful paintings in that small museum, like the Frans Hals Laughing Boy, and the Jacob Ruisdal's Dutch landscapes, and the Rembrandt's Anatomy Lesson. It is truly a gem, and I am not sure how many people really know about it. We went back a couple of times, even on a Sunday afternoon, and there were not many people visiting it.
Well, this was enough for one day, so we headed home to the beach and plan our next day's outing.
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