Last weekend we spent a beautiful (and chilly) three days all the way up north in Groningen. It was nice exploring this university city and learning more about the other side of the Netherlands.
Jaap's friend Dave lives in Groningen and we were able to stay with him on Thursday. While Jaap and Dave went to work together at the hospital, I was free to explore Groningen on my own. I had big plans to walk and explore as much as I could. I bought a map at the VVV in the Grote Markt and started my day exploring the city. The Martinitoren was closed until noon, so I strolled through the Prisenhof Gardens, which must be beautiful during the spring and summer. After 45 minutes of walking around I decided to take cover from the cold. I did some shopping and enjoyed a yummy cappuccino at V&D. It was freezing!
Afterwards, I climbed the tower of the Martinikerk and enjoyed some views from the top. And despite my ambitious plans to visit museums and walk through the city park for the remainder of the day, I went to the movies instead. :) Once I lost feeling in my fingers I wanted to hibernate. A 90 minute movie would do the trick.
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| Dinner at t' Pakhuis |
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| Lekker |
Even though pancakes are not a Dutch breakfast tradition, we enjoyed some banana/apple/raisin pannenkoen for Saturday's brunch on one of the canals. Definitely the best pancakes I've had in the Netherlands. :)
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The weekend highlight for me was visiting the Groninger Museum. Right now they are hosting an exhibit called Russia's Unknown Orient with collections of paintings from places like Armenia and Uzbetkistan and other countries south of Russia. For me it was something very new and unique to see. I have not seen a lot of artwork from this 'orientalism' genre.
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| Groninger Museum |
The museum itself is beautiful and houses lots of interesting modern art pieces as well. The Groninger is definitely a must see when visiting the city.
And just when you think you're looking at another medieval crucifixion, you look closely and see that it's a BigMac, Ronald McDonald, and the Hamburglar.
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| BigMac, Ronald McDonald & The Hamburglar |
Our first trip to Groningen was a success. I'm looking forward to returning when it's warmer outside.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the visit! I enjoyed having you over. Great pictures, so despite the freezing weather you seem to have toured some major sights. Of course I can only encourage the "returning when it's warmer outside" part, because Grun'n (city ánd province) may surprise you even more...
Best regards, to Jaap as well,
Dave