Whilst on our trip to Amsterdam, we decided to venture out of the city for a day to see a nearby town. Despite initially planning to go to Delft, we decided that the train tickets were just a little too costly for a day trip and so went to nearby Haarlem instead. It turned out to be a very good decision indeed, for though I'm sure Delft is very nice, Haarlem turned out to be a lovely place to explore, even in the rain we had to put up with. Incidentally, it is eternally connected with the artist Frans Hals, but although it gets good reviews, we declined the opportunity to pay to see the gallery of his works.
The Grote kerk (literally 'great church') at Haarlem is hard to miss as it dominates the city's main square. Consecrated as a protestant cathedral in 1559, it is dedicated to St Bavo and although the exterior is striking, it is the interior that really shines - particularly the organ and the timber ceiling.
One part of the church that particularly caught my eye was the wonderfully carved and painted choir gate, resplendent with lions, griffons, heraldic shields and even some characters biting the scenery!
This small museum goes down as the biggest surprise of the entire trip, as I don't think it appears on any tourism material at all - guidebooks, city maps etc just don't acknowledge it exists. So to stumble across it while exploring the market stalls in the main square was a wonderful moment, especially considering that it is free!
The museum itself has only been in existence since 1991 and is run by an amateur archaeological society. The museum seemed very keen to promote the importance of studying and recording archaeology, and it left me with the distinct impression that in a country that promotes its artworks to the highest pedestal, archaeology isn't seen in the same light that it is in the UK. Although the displays didn't cover a vast range of time, they were neat and well presented, and there was a real focus on archaeological technique and hands on activities for kids. A good few of them were in there getting involved during our visit.
Amsterdamse poort gateway
A short walk away from the city centre (for Haarlem is not the largest place) led us to discover the 15th Century 'Amsterdamse poort' gateway, one of the original gateways into the city. Apparently it survived a number of 19th Century attempts to demolish it and underwent renovation in 1985. Although located next to a fairly busy road junction and some rather derelict buildings, and the grass around it clearly being a popular spot for dog 'walking', the tower itself is still quite pretty.
Windmill de Adriaan
The final stop on our wandering tour was to head out to the de Adriaan windmill, built in 1779 but rebuilt after a devastating fire in 1932. It is a smock mill, built on the site of a Medieval defensive tower and on the banks of the river Spaarne. Sadly, we didn't get to go inside to see the mechanisms and museum as it was closed for a private function.
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