Nederland
I took a trip with my parent, my sister and her husband, and Tess to the Netherlands in May 2026. Here’s a quick summary of what we got up to.
#Saturday, May 2
We left SFO mid-afternoon Saturday. I went to iaidō class in Berkeley in the morning – my last one for a couple weekends – then we had a quick turnaround at home before heading to the airport. It was a long, but mostly uneventful flight. I played a lot of Opus Magnum and didn’t get much sleep.
We arrived in Amsterdam on Sunday morning…
#Sunday, May 3
Our flight landed around 10:30. We got into Amsterdam Centraal on the airport tram. Having forgotten to tap out our transit passes, we were unable to get out of the station. A friendly attendant walking by let us out the faregate with a “no worries” and a “have a good day, ladies.” It’s nice having your gender affirmed by random strangers.
It was a drizzly day, but we made the best of it. We walked down the Damrak, past Dam Square and across several canals. It started pouring, so we ducked into a pizza place for lunch. We made a quick stop at the Apple Store for some european power plugs, and then headed back to Centraal on the tram to catch the bus to our Airbnb in Broek in Waterland.
Walking down the brick lined streets of this small village, I was struck by the all the sounds of animal life in the town. There is constant birdsong, along with frogs, and farm animals. I came returned to noticing the animal live around me a number of times during our stay.
Mom and dad arrived later in the evening. We walked through down to De Witte Swaen for savory Dutch pancakes.
My sister and her husband arrived later in the evening, but unfortunately one bag short…
#Monday, May 4
We had a quiet day in and around Broek on Monday. We resolved the snafu with my sister’s bag with another trip to Schiphol airport. Tess and I went for a walk in the surrounding fields and met a number of frogs, cows, goats, and birds.
Monday was also Rembrance of the Dead in the Netherlands. The country marks the memorial with a two minute moment of silence at 20:00. Cars, buses, and bicyclists pull over, people walking talk in hushed voices; the whole country quiets down for those two minutes. I found it quite moving to experience this collective moment of meditation, a small interruption of daily life to honor those lost.
#Tuesday, May 5
Our big activity for the day was a trip to Keukenhof gardens. It was a 30-ish minute trip on a bus from Amsterdam RAI to the gardens. We spent the morning out there, admiring the enormous variety of tulips and other flowers. This segment is better told with pictures.
After lunch, we got a bus back into Amsterdam. Our itinerary had us visiting the Rijksmuseum in the afternoon, but we needed to take it easier. We had a light lunch at Bar Café Mankind instead and walked around Museumplein.
We took a canal cruise with Captain Jack in the late afternoon. Our tour guide told us stories about the city and pointed out important landmarks we could see from our boat.
Returning to Broek in the evening, we had dinner at De Drie Noten. Our waiter gave some deserved grief for not making more of an attempt at understanding and ordering in Dutch, but they were overall friendly and helpful.
#Wednesday, May 6
Tess left early to visit a friend in Amsterdam. The rest of us has a slower morning, and caught a bus to Centraal in the late morning. We walked down the Damrak, reading a bit from Rick Steves along the way. We toured the Begijnhof, where the English Reformed Church stands. I got a bagel from Bagelboy near Koenigsplein. And we made our way back to Museumplein and the Van Gogh Museum.
We spent the remainder of our day in the Van Gogh Museum. I learned a number of things about the artist that I hadn’t before, and gained a new appreciation for his personal struggles and perseverance despite them. I didn’t realize, for example, that he was a draftsman before he was an artist, and that he accomplished the entire collection of artwork he’s so famous for in the last decade of his life. He also died a year younger that I am now—at 37—which brought all of this to a fine point for me as well.
.
Van Gogh made this piece in the last few months of his life. The way he rendered
the clouds stood out to me immediately, as if he loses his will to finish them
as he moves across the canvas.](/blog/2026/05/nederland/wheatfields_hu_f675c715b21122fe.webp "[Wheatfields under Thunderclouds](https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0106V1962).
Van Gogh made this piece in the last few months of his life. The way he rendered
the clouds stood out to me immediately, as if he loses his will to finish them
as he moves across the canvas.")
Afterwards, we had dinner near the Overtoom tram stop at a Greek restaurant called Dionysos Taverna. The food was excellent and the staff were friendly. I introduced the group to μαστίχα (mastika) a liqueur Tess and I enjoyed on our trip to Greece in 2021.
#Thursday, May 7
In the morning, we all took the bus into the city and to the Rijksmuseum. Tess, mom, dad, and I took in the museum, while my sister and her husband went their own way. Feeling pretty worn out on museums from Van Gogh the day before, I stayed for only about 90 minutes, just enough to see the famous Rembrandts and Vermeers.
I had lunch on my own at a café near Elandsgracht and walked up through Jordaan to Café de Palm where Anna and Quan were sampling liqueurs from De Ooievar, around the corner.
The three of us met mom, dad, and Tess at the Anne Frank House in the late afternoon. Then we had drinks on the Prinsengracht, and dinner at Shah Jahan in the Jordaan.
#Friday, May 8
Tess and I made plans to visit our friends Alice and Zoë in Utrecht today. After breakfast we caught the bus to Amsterdam Centraal and then a train to Utrecht.
We had lunch at Broei, and then walked to Sonnenborgh Observatory. We toured the observatory, which occupies a portion of the southeastern rampart of the old city walls. There are portions that still show the fortifications and how it was used for city defense, as well as newer parts dedicated to solar observation. Alice and I had fun deciphering the parallel Dutch-English translations and talking about the quirks of the Dutch language.
From there, we walked through the old town along the Oudegracht, down an aptly named Trans street, and into Domplein. The dominating feature of the square is the cathedral, with a complete choir, transcept, and belltower, but no nave. Its construction was abandoned before the building was completed.
The four of us settled into drinks at Talud9 and then parted ways at Utrecht Centraal.
Back in Broek, we picked up chinese from China Garden in nearby Landsmeer. After a full day of train travel and exploration, we were all about at our limit. We had intended to eat at a restaurant in town, but they were full up. (A common theme on our trip – lots of places seemed to require reservations, or else have no table available for a walk-in.)
#Saturday, May 9
Anna and Quan left early today. They caught a train from Amsterdam Centraal to Belgium. They attended the endurance race at Spa in the afternoon. So we said our goodbyes and they left for the train.
The remaining four of us explored the windmills at Zaanze Schans. Though touristy, it was a great activity for a day of beautiful weather. All of us enjoyed exploring the windmills and learning about the industrial center of pre-Industrial Revolution Netherlands.
#Sunday, May 10
We left Amsterdam on Sunday in the early afternoon. The remaining four of us packed up and checked out. We all drove into Amsterdarm and parked below Centraal. Tess and I parted ways with my parents and took the tram to Vondelpark for quick stroll and lunch at a café in the park. From there off to the airport, and on home.
