We had a few slip ups just trying to get to the hotel after being given incorrect platform information and got on the wrong train initially, but we still had plenty of time to simply wander a bit. We were staying at a hotel a south of the city center in a relatively quite area of Amsterdam near RAI conference center, which is where my dad would have his conference the following Tuesday that was the source of this trip even existing. As a result, we needed to take the tram to and from the city center. It was a really nice system and worked a bit more like a bus line than a metro as it stopped every couple of blocks and the routes were not particularly extensive.
On the recommendation of the hotel receptionist, we made our way into the city to grab a late lunch at a Haesje Claes. This place was really cozy and it felt as though we were eating in someone's living room, only we were eating classical Dutch food that was fantastic.
My mom's plate of Dutch hotchpotch including spinach mashed potatoes, sausage, a big meatball in a gravy, and a thick slice of bacon
View of the restaurant featuring the dad
Selfie with mother
Now plenty full, we thought we should walk off our meal a bit. We passed by Dam Square where the royal palace is located in Amsterdam and then continued on into the Red Light District. Now, everyone knows that the Red Light District is a pretty popular tourist destination in Amsterdam, but this place was pretty nuts. Not only were there prostitutes down every street, there were also bars, clubs, museums, part of the University of Amsterdam, "coffee shops", a number of beautiful churches, some hostels, and so much more. Bear in mind all of this was lining canals, adding to the incredible contrasts between old and new.
Nice canal view with the oldest church in the city on the right
View of a busier street, the illuminated building on the left is a strip club, most of the signs on the right are for hotels, and somewhat hidden in the back left are a few of the famous red lights used by prostitutes to indicate that they are open for business
Evening bells of a really neat church in the heart of the Red Light District
We wrapped up our first day with a relaxing evening at Rembrandt Square with a couple of pints. The square was pretty busy being a Friday night and is one of the centers of nightlife in Amsterdam. In the center is a statue to the famous Dutch painter whose name was given to the square, Rembrandt van Rijn, however while we were there the city had also installed sculptures of several of the figures from Rembrandt's The Night Watch. Of course many visitors were taking pictures with the sculptures and my mom couldn't resist either.
Blurry picture with a night watchman
Before returning to the hotel, I had been in contact with my friend Pipit. While I was in Indonesia, another exchange student in my city, Romane from Belgium, went to school with Pipit and thus we came to become friends. Shortly following her graduation from high school, Pipit struck out to be an au pair in Amsterdam and so when I found out I would be meeting my folks there we got in contact to meet up. Since my parents were a bit jetlagged and in need of a bed, we thought it would work best for me to just go out and grab a drink with Pipit that night. She had told me that her host mom had recommended an "extreme bar" that we could visit if we were up for it.
It turns out that this host mother has been trying to push Pipit out of her comfort zone quite a bit, an awesome thing for a host to do. After meeting in Dam Square and making our way through the Red Light District, we found the place Pipit's host mom was talking about. Only, from every way I could see, it looked like we were standing outside of a strip club. After a few confused looks and some searching up the street to make sure that was the place, we determined that it was indeed a strip club that her host had suggested for us to visit.
Not really in the mood to just grab a beer and a chat at a strip club, we wondered a bit east until we came across a nice place that Pipit had been to before. It was wonderful to catch up on the past two years and talk about our current experiences in Europe. Even better, we could do it all in Indonesian! It's been a while since I've held full conversation in Indonesian, but after a few hours it felt more natural and it was a great feeling to be speaking again.
Bad quality photo, good quality friends
I happen to be a little bit taller than Pipit (maaf ya mbak, lucu banget ini)
Thanks in part to the black-out blinds, the jetlag, and the fact that I can sleep anytime and anywhere, we wound up sleeping in to about 11am our second day. Having already missed breakfast at the hotel, we went out for food in the city center. Just by chance we glanced down a side street and found a cute little cafe that went three stories high and was about as narrow as your average living room. The bathrooms were up yet another floor and required passing up a severe, curved staircase.
These stairs are definitely out to get you
After finishing our pancakes, omelette, and schnitzel, it was midday and time to meet up with my friend Pipit for a canal tour. Although she had been in Amsterdam for several months already, Pipit hadn't really done much of the touristy stuff, so she was happy to join us for some of our touring. The canals are really impressive in some places, and tiny as can be in others. All along the canals are some fantastic homes, however many have centuries old sinking foundations and are slanted.
The middle building here is one of the oldest in the city, having been built in 1665
View down the canal of the famous Seven Bridges stretch where you can see seven nearly identical bridges all in succession
This is the best picture I have of a slanted building, the bottom floor of the central building is the most obvious as it is tilting to the right
Just some of the many houseboats moored along a canal
One of my favorites: this houseboat has a patio all along the canal side!
After the tour, Pipit parted from us for a bit while we continued to walk around the city, just stopping into shops that caught our eyes including a really interesting book market where a few vendors had prints of old maps. For dinner we had planned to meet with Pipit again and go to one of her favorite Indonesian restaurants in town. Due to the Netherlands' colonial past with the country, there is both a large Indonesian immigrant population and a lot of Indonesian restaurants, but Pipit assured us this was one of the best.
We were not disappointed. We ordered two, two-person variety menus so we could sample a bit of everything and it was all incredible! It was by far the most authentic and delicious Indonesian food I have had since leaving the country, and Pipit was in bliss having gone quite a while without proper Indonesian food. From the lamb to the chicken, the potatoes to the rice, and everything in between, it was an amazing and filling meal that I seriously cannot emphasize enough how delicious it was.
Four very satisfied customers outside Kartika Indonesian Restaurant
Sunday and Monday were mostly spent at museums, wandering the city, and eating more delicious food. Our first museum was the Van Gogh Museum (which absolutely must be pronounced Van KGHAUKGH! with as much glottal noise as possible). I've always been a fan of Van Gogh, but walking through a huge collection of his works along with a biography of his life really made me appreciate the man he was; his greatest aspiration was simply to be better at painting.
The other museum we visited was the Rijksmuseum, which is the largest state art museum in the Netherlands. This is where many of Rembrandt's, Vermeer's, and Steen's greatest works are kept. We also learned quite a lot about the history of the Netherlands in one of the galleries that housed art from the period of William of Orange (aka William the Silent or William I, founder of the House of Orange-Nassau, ancestor of the monarchy of the Netherlands) who was the principle leader in the revolt against the Spanish Habsburgs for Dutch autonomy.
Later that day, we went over to the oldest church in the city located right in the Red Light District. De Oude Kerk was built first in the 13th century, but has undergone many renovations and additions since. It was originally a Catholic church, but following the deposition of the Habsburg monarchy by William of Orange, there was a wave of anti-Catholic rioting in present-day Netherlands which also led to many Catholic churches becoming Calvinist.
Perhaps the most interesting feature of the church, though, was that the entire floor was made of tombstones due to the fact that hundreds of people were buried beneath the floor tiles up until 1865, including dozens of members of the clergy, wealthy families, and even Rembrandt's wife.
View of many of the tombstones in the choir towards the back of the church
Close up of a rather ornate stone
View of the nave from the choir, looking forward toward the organ
Close up of the organ, the woodwork and masonry are both remarkably ornate
Tuesday morning my dad awoke early so that he could get to his conference before things there started, leaving my mom and I to wander a bit on our own for the day. When we went for breakfast and began reading the news we saw early reports of an apparent terrorist attack at Brussels Airport and the EU parliamentary building. Just 24 hours before making our way to Brussels by train, there appeared to have been a terrorist attack. Without much information and my dad already busy, we decided that we would just meet up at the end of our days and decide what to do from there.
So with that, my mom and I departed for the Anne Frank house, only to be greeted by a massive line. When I say massive, I mean truly massive; this line must have taken at least four hours to get through. It was so ridiculous that rather than wait in the line, we just decided to take pictures of it.
So the Anne Frank house is right about where the flag pole is sticking out up ahead...
Now the house is to the left, while the line goes back along the side of a church square...
Still going back along the square...
Now it's wrapping around the square behind the church...
We've almost rounded the corner...
Still going...
Dear god it just keeps going!
So needless to say, we didn't end up visiting the Anne Frank house this time around; just another reason to visit again another time! Instead we hopped a tram to the other side of town to visit the Dutch Resistance Museum which was all about the Dutch freedom fighters, reluctant administrators, unlicensed radio stations and newspapers, and the day-to-day passive resistance of everyday subjects under Nazi occupation during World War II.
It was fascinating to read about the early years where the Nazis hoped to introduce their "Germanic brothers" to fascism and eventually incorporate the Netherlands into the future German empire. Things didn't go so smoothly, however, and slowly the Nazis abandoned this practice and turned to a full-blown enemy occupation, including the deportation of Jews to labor and concentration camps in Germany and Poland until the end of the war.
In the evening we regrouped at the hotel to figure out how exactly we should tackle Brussels. After some discussion and some updating on the situation, we decided that we should still go on the train we planned for. And so the next day we stashed my parents' large luggage and hopped a train through the beautiful Dutch countryside, past Antwerp, and on to Brussels.
Despite the heightened security, military patrols, and rather uncrowded streets and restaurants, going to Brussels proved to be an excellent choice. The city has a certain Northern European charm with a degree of French embellishment coming together to create a truly unique European city. Just as we had in Amsterdam, we spent our first day just walking around town, taking in the sights and eating excellent food. So our first destination was of course Grand Place, the large square in the middle of the city with amazingly decorated facades lining the square.
First buildings you see when entering from the north, most are shops or restaurants
Yes, that is a gilded hotel facade
The most ornate city hall you will ever lay eyes on; the facade is covered in roughly three-foot-tall figures that are mostly Catholic saints but includes some personifications of ideals
Close up of the central tower
The "Breadhouse", so named as it was built on the old cloth and bread market
From there we made our way east to the higher part of the city where the old royal palace is located along with the Palais du Justice, which is the unimaginably massive center of the Belgian justice system. From there we could see over the whole city which was really a sight to see. We got to watch the sun set over the rooftops before grabbing some dinner and returning to our hotel's sauna for some decompression.
The largest palace of justice ever built, fun fact: the scaffolding to do work on the facade has been in place for so long that they had to add scaffolding to support the old scaffolding
View from afar of the tower of city hall at Grand Place
Slightly comical shot of a military transport (one of dozens we saw around the city regularly) just in front of a one-seat, four-wheeled, car-like moped thing that puts even the Smart car to shame
After seeing it on the news in the evening, we decided to visit the memorial that was being formed at Place du Bourse. There we found a large display of candles, flowers, flags, and banners along with a crowd of people. The mood was solemn, but honestly this was the only place where such a feeling was true; the Brusseleir were doing their best to carry on from what I could tell.
We did a bit more walking around, including viewing the Manneken Pis. If you aren't familiar, this is a statue of a peeing boy that has served as a water fountain for well water since 1618. If you are familiar, this statue is tiny; as in two-feet-tall tiny. It's a funny little statue, but really not much of anything given how famous it is and how great of a tourist destination it is considered. One good thing was a group of guys on holiday and one of the friends began providing "tourist information" to his friends despite not knowing a thing about what he was talking about. After a brief description, he asked if it was necessary to translate what he said, and so he dove into a slew of made up nonsense in an effort to give information in Japanese, Chinese, and Spanish.
While walking back up toward the Palais du Justice, we happened across some of the old city walls just tucked away. They weren't necessarily being preserved, but they were left intact right up to modern buildings. In what seemed like an art installation, there were white hoops hung in a closed off gate area with dim black lights along the base. I'm certain it produced a cool effect when dark, but at the time it seemed a bit out of place.
Toward the evening, we ventured into Saint Michael's Cathedral, which is the largest and most elegant of Brussels' many churches. Unfortunately they were just about to begin a service so we didn't get to see very much, but the facade alone was quite beautiful and ornate. That being said, I still found the facade of the city hall to be the most beautiful masonry of the trip.
View of the memorial from the steps of le Bourse
Much of what was left contained messages of solidarity, peace, love, and hope
The iconic, albeit minuscule, Manneken Pis
The best tour guide Brussels didn't even know it had
Secluded walls of the original city
Closer view of the gate, the hoops are faintly visible behind the wrought iron gate
A different section of walls that went right up to the building on the left
Opposite side of the above wall
Front facade of St. Michael's
The simply incredible organ; the organist actually sits up amongst the pipes just beneath the pipes that are sticking out horizontally
Cool little panorama to include the building next door that incorporated a modern church-style facade to mirror the historic St. Michael's
At one point, a group of you Turkish men began chanting something about terrorists while holding a Turkish flag on the steps of le Bourse, Meanwhile, maybe ten yards away, a smaller group of Kurds were chanting while holding a Kurdistani flag. This prompted the Turks to begin chanting rather at the Kurds while the choir simply attempted to continue louder. Eventually someone from the crowd shouted "c'est pas politique (this is not political)" and a few police officers got the groups to stop before tempers rose.
Throughout the time we spent there, an older man on the steps of le Bourse would begin shouting at the top of his lungs "je t'aime! (I love you!)" to the crowd, then individuals near him, then members of the choir, then the crowd at large. People who were silent before began to chuckle a bit, and some even shouted "je t'aime" back to him, which only got him more excited.
The most sobering sight, though, was a middle-aged man sitting cross-legged by himself and just staring out over the memorial in silence. At one point he spoke on his phone with his face in his other hand. At other times individuals would walk past him and quietly say a few words or rub his shoulder a moment. He looked lost and defeated in a way that, it seemed to me, only someone who had lost a loved one could look.
Although somber, it felt like there was a certain life to the crowd there. These people weren't defeated, not entirely, they had simply suffered a temporary loss but intended to carry on. At times, particularly when the choir gained some singers from the crowd, things felt more hopeful than solemn.
Panorama of the memorial from the steps of le Bourse
Close up of some of the items left for the memorial illuminated by the candles
Je t'aime guy spreading love behind the choir
Chalk was left around and people used it to write messages of peace and love on the walls and ground; the small paper on the electrical box to the left is a request for information regarding a missing person
View of the steps, there are clearly many more flags and banners than there were earlier in the day
Friday was to be my parents' last full day in Brussels. We began with a trip to the Belgian Comics Art Museum which was incredible! There was so much to see and learn about, we spent over three hours there. There was an exhibit on the various methods of creating comic art, the Smurfs, Tintin, and Frank Pe's the Zoo.
Afterwards, already a bit museum-ed out, we poked into a number of chocolate shops to find the best Belgium had to offer. After a few stops and some deliberating, we had amassed enough for some late night snacking and souvenirs. Just by chance we passed by a Syrian pastry shop where everything looked beyond amazing. There was such a variety of colors, nuts, smells, fruits, and shapes, we could have eaten just about everything in there. Instead we took three to go with us to munch along the way to the hotel before dinner.
Boerke was one of my favorites, there were a whole bunch on the wall and some were even made into digital shorts; part of the charm of Boerke is that they are actually a Dutch-Belgian cartoon, but due to the absence of dialogue, everyone can enjoy them
Sketch of the layout by a comic artist
Final product from the above sketch
What Belgian comic museum would be complete without some Smurf stuff? Including, but not limited to, a model Smurf village
Some of the characters from Frank Pe's Zoo
Artwork from Zoo; Frank Pe's work was definitely some of my favorite illustrations I have ever seen
Delicious, delicious pastries
More!
For our final dinner together, we managed to arrange a meeting with a friend of mine. Remember that Belgian exchange student who was in my city in Indonesia? Well after seeing each other only by skype, Romane and I finally managed to meet along with my parents, her mother Christine, and Christine's partner Stijn. It was excellent for everyone as we had all heard so much about each other, we felt as though we had already met, only now we were actually given the chance.
After a lovely dinner full of duck, oysters, chicken, wine, beer, cake, creme brule, and mousse, the six of us took a stroll through Grand Place to see the buildings lit up at night. It was sad to see such a lovely night come to an end, but I was lucky in that Romane and I would be meeting the next day after my parents departed for home, and after I would be able to spend the night with her family.
Gold trim is even better when illuminated
The city hall in all of its glory
The long-awaited meeting, finally in Brussels
Saturday morning I saw my parents off at the train station back to Amsterdam where they would be flying home. It was nice to be able to spend a whole week with them while abroad, a luxury I didn't have while abroad previously. After hanging about the hotel a bit, I made my way back up toward the Palais du Justice where I was meeting my friend and co-worker from UW for lunch. Gabbi was on exchange in Brussels just outside of the city center. It was wonderful to catch up and share experiences of our semesters abroad over a delicious salad and sandwich.
After we parted, I met once again with Romane. We walked around a bit just chatting before grabbing a few pints and continuing to catch up; a lot had passed since we last saw each other! In the afternoon, we were joined by Romane's boyfriend Stefano. The three of us wandered around a bit, mostly just chatting about what we were up to, the recent attacks, the American elections, and all sort of other things.
We watched the sun set over the city from the outlook by the Palais du Justice before grabbing a bite to eat. We ended the night at a colossal bar called Delerium which supposedly has more than 3000 beers between its taps and bottles. By chance they carried a few bottles of Mikkeler beers, a famous high-end brewery in Copenhagen!
A tad past midnight, we caught the last train home to Braine-l'Alleud, a small town just south of Waterloo. We walked slowly from the train station and parked on the curb in front of her home until the wee hours of the morning just talking. It was just like the many times we met in warungs or cafes in Yogyakarta, Indonesia only a few years earlier.
Sunday had a very lazy start of coffee and pastries as Romane, Christine, Stijn, and I just conversed for a few hours. In the afternoon, Christine took me over to the site of the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon's great defeat that turned the tide in the Napoleonic wars. It turns out that the battlefield doesn't lie mostly in Waterloo, but rather in Braine-l'Alleud. In fact the lion statue dedicated to the battle can be seen down Romane's street and is only a ten minute walk away!
We visited the museum there, which was full of information and we couldn't possibly see everything and get me to the airport in time. As we were preparing to leave, we ran across some reenactors on horseback, dressed to the nines in Dutch and Prussian cavalry gear.
Parting in front of the train station
Soldiers on horseback near the entrance of the museum
I actually just wanted a shot of the statue, but these guys happened to be on their way to make a lovely photo
By the time we got back I needed to pack up my things and be on the way out. It was sad to see Romane for such a short time and then leave again, but we agreed to meet once more after we finish our classes this summer and I'm holding you to this Romane!
Huge thank you to my parents for an awesome trip, I probably wouldn't have seen Amsterdam without you guys; Pipit for the laughs and recommendations, especially Kartika; Christine and Stijn for hosting me for the night and providing a lot of support for our trip to your wonderful country; and Romane for everything you are and will continue to be, I've missed you dearly and I will miss you once again, you truly are my sister from halfway around the world and I wouldn't trade that for anything. Thank you all so much.
