den haag, netherlands - part 2

sorry. this was a long time coming. will get caught up. promise.

our second day in den haag started with us visiting one of the local markets. (actually, it started with a little adventure of us trying to ride a bike 'dutch style' - one person riding with a second person balanced on the pannier rack above the back wheel. we gave up shortly after and took a tram instead.)

as you may have already determined from reading some of our other posts, we've discovered that we absolutely love markets. and so far, the market in den haag is definitely one of the best ones we've ever been to. it's kept healthily away from anywhere tourists would venture to, a true local hangout. this was a small taste of what life in den haag is really like.

the first thing you notice about the market is how many stalls there are. the market stretches across a few blocks and spans two stops on the tram. the market generally has a food section (both prepared and produce) and everything else, encompassing clothing, household goods and general knick-knacks. that we spent most of our time in the food section goes without saying.

we really enjoyed the opportunity to try some local specialties. for breakfast we had haring, a dutch snack that is basically salted raw herring, doused with onions and pickles. we also had a broodje speciaal (special sandwich), which is fried fish on a bun served with more onions and a spicy mayonnaise. i guess since everyone's got onion breath, it sort of evens out.

we saw a few cheese stalls, which was only natural, seeing how much the dutch love their cows. cheese, particularly of the gouda and edam varieties, is one of their more well-known national exports. we also saw the largest fish stall we had ever seen, with just about every manner of sea creature available to be bought (and eaten).

still a little hungry, we then tried a stick of surimi. in the window, it looks like deep-fried shrimp, which looked quite appealing and appetising. however, our first bite revealed that it was not, in fact, shrimp that we had bought, but essentially the same stuff used to make chinese fish balls made into the shape of a shrimp. still tasty, but a little disappointing given what we were expecting.

finally, we had a snack enjoyed worldwide, with a dutch twist: patates met pindasaus, a cone of french fries with peanut sauce. the sauce was very similar to one that accompanies a popular chinese snack - the combo of peanut butter and hoisin sauce that comes with fried dough fritters wrapped in rice noodle.

from there, we walked (cheapest method) back into the city centre, stopping by the buildings of parliament and the escher museum (although we didn't actually go in). we took a break at a cafe and sampled some poffertjes, mini pancakes, and an apple gebak and a pint of grolsch. the cafe was conveniently located next to a shoe shop called 'cinderella' so naturally, we spent a fair bit of time there. until dinner time, actually.

for dinner we took a tram out to the seaside to a cute little seafood restaurant. we started with kroketten, the dutch version of croquettes made with shrimp-meat. for mains we had baked mussels au gratin and grilled trout in a rich shrimp brandy sauce. after dinner we strolled next door to the pub for a pint and fresh mint tea.

we would have strolled along the pier, but it was chilly and windy so staying inside was definitely the better option. we topped it off with some dessert and headed home, again, thoroughly exhausted. not very exciting, we know, but we figured some rest would do us some good before we traveled to amsterdam the next day.

to be continued...