Let's do the Haarlem Shake !!!

My tryst with travel goes way back to when I was a kid. Every moment I would find to travel I would grab on with both my feet. The idea of exploring new places, food, people & cultures have all been very fascinating to me since the beginning. Though I haven't travelled a lot but the little trips that I have made, made me think that I should account some of the details. 

So the place I want to write about is Haarlem - This small iconic town is approximately 100 kms from Amsterdam. You can visit the place by road or train. Coincidentally the first Intercity railway connection in Netherlands was between Amsterdam and Haarlem. The city of Haarlem screams about it's medeival culture and aesthetics. We were lucky to have a friend with us who was equally inquisitive to explore the town and was well versed with the cultures of Holland. Fun fact - “Haarlem Shake” the famous song is actually based in a town in the USA with the same name - Haarlem. It was named by the Dutch when they went from Haarlem to the USA. 

It was an overcast day and we arrived by a car to the town. Since it's a small town we decided to park the car and explore the place on foot. The city is well planned and easy to navigate using Google maps or the city map available in all shops.

Yummy in my Tummy 

When in the market you definitely can’t resist the yummy street food of Holland, first up was Kibbeling, it’s a popular Dutch snack consisting of battered chunks of fish commonly served with mayonnaise based garlic or tartar sauce. My love for fried food just quadrupled after having this one. Next, I tried another popular fish based finger food called herrings. It is a raw herring fish soaked in vinegar, sometimes the marinade may contain cider, wine or herbs. Other than these you should definitely grab your hands at the traditional French fries which are famous across Holland. 

One of the counters of the market serves delicious freshly baked pizza tossed right in front of you. For desserts, you should visit any small cafe, the smell of cinnamon (commonly used in most desserts in Holland) will surely mesmerise you. You must try the apple cake and the Dutch cookie. 

Exploring Haarlem 

St Bavo Church - So right at the centre you come across a must visit gothic styled Protestant church- St Bavo. There is something pleasant and beautiful about this one when you see exquisitely decorated wooden ceilings, stained glass work all across the walls depicting the ancient times and historic artefacts around the church. One of the most interesting facts is the beautiful organ that is placed in the church, it was once played by Mozart himself when he was 10, it is still played at regular intervals. However, the most interesting fact was that the floors of the church were actually graves, where people were buried along the times. Earlier times, people of Haarlem were actually allowed to be buried in the church. Spooky as it may sound but yeah people walk on them and you can actually see the name of the people buried on the floors. Now, I believe due to shortage of space people have started to cremate. 

City Hall - Next up is the City Hall, it’s a very short tour but totally worth your time as they have some nice artefacts from the earlier times of Haarlem and they have a very nicely made movie to show you about the history of Haarlem and why it was an important town for the trade route of Holland. 

Grote Market - In dutch , Grote means Grand. This big market was in the centre right next to the St. Bavo Church. A very popular place and since it was a weekend it had many families who had come there for shopping and eating food etc. Being brought up in India I am well aware of bustling markets called bazaar here, I got to experience a  typical Saturday market in Haarlem. Families were celebrating Saturday afternoon by coming out to explore the market. 

Frans Hals Museums - I’m not a very big fan of museums but this one surely was worth while. So as the name suggests, the museum is named after Frans Hals the famous Dutch painter, after his death he was also buried in the St Bavo church that I was talking about earlier. The museum was home to many famous painter’s works. Depicting paintings and portraits of different ages and time zones p, wars, life at the palaces and much more. 

Teylers Museum - Teylers museum was another popular stop during the visit to Haarlem. This museum had real artefacts from the history of Haarlem and Holland. It housed all kinds of weapons, war & military artefacts and much more. 

Molten de Adrian - Holland is famous for its windmills and this one is a special one. Overlooking the water body it looks serene to be near the windmill. It also has the medieval machines still intact which were used to pull the boats on to the shores. A fascinating experienced for sure. 

Hofjes - These are actually beautiful garden courtyard homes spread across the town. We had spotted an interesting hofjes that was actually an old age home and I can safely say, what a home to retire !!

Shopping - While exploring the cobbled streets of Haarlem, you come across many cool and edgy fashion wear by the local designers. The famous Holland shoes are also available in shops here.

I hope you liked my small attempt to highlight some of the amazing moments I had in my trip to Haarlem. I will see you soon in my next travelogue.

Cheers !!

Anant

A Vietnamese Escapade

"So much of who we are is where we have been" 

The hustle bustle of Ho Chi Minh City , old town feels of Hoi An and the warm cultures of Hanoi. Vietnam is a perfect mix of experiences that has something for everyone. Its been overdue for a long time, that I wanted to blog about my travel escapades !! I thought I would start with this one. So below I mention a small snapshot of the places that I recommend for every traveler to Vietnam, of course each person has separate interests so your likings may differ from mine but I have just mentioned my point of view. I missed out on a few locations which I also mention briefly. FYI this is my first attempt at blogging so please pardon my mistakes.

Ho Chi Minh City

Since I explored the country from South to North my first stop was Ho Chi Minh City , previously known as Saigon. The city is full of life and bustling with energy. 

Sight Seeing

War Museum: You enter the place all happy seeing actual tanks , helicopters etc that were left over by the US Army after the infamous Vietnam War, but as you progress and visit the museum you are bound to feel extremely sad for the horrific life during & after the war for the people of Vietnam. I felt happy seeing India's name in the list of countries that revolted and more so a Bengali poster showing a protest in Calcutta against the war. It is inspiring to see how the country and its people lifted themselves up after the mammoth war and rebuild Vietnam to such a beautiful country. 

Reunification Palace: We then moved a few metres ahead to the reunification palace which was built to mark the reunification of North and South Vietnam. It gives a great insight of how a president's/king's home feels like. The tour is nice and informative , do not miss the helicopter place on the top floor.

Post office: We then walk further to discover the old post office. The streets around this are buzzing with shops and food. The building itself is quite nice with with colors of yellow & greens. Some people still use the post office to post letters, fascinating. 

Notre Dame Cathedral: Our last stop was the Notre dam cathedral. It is loosely based on the original french Notre dam cathedral. The entire area around the cathedral has a very french colonial feel to it. It is refreshing to walk around these streets and discover the vietnamese culture. 

Bars & Lounges 

Chill Sky Bar , Champions Sports Lounge , Cafe Bulldog , Lots of other bars & lounges in the walking street. The walking street is relatively clean than the other Asian walking streets. The streets are lit with lanterns and lights. 

Places to Eat

Al Fresco's , Bollywood Restaurant ,  The street food is a must try specially the grills & the Vietnamese sandwich. Vietnam is also famous for its coffee, Highland coffee is a popular brand across Vietnam offering amazing coffee, you should also try the various local coffee shops. 

Places to Shop

You should visit the Banh Tanh Market for a good essence of the local shopping. Be ready to bargain well as shops bargain from 20-40% in all items. Around the market you find many local boutiques good for shopping designer wear for men and women. 

Hoi An

Our next stop was Hoi An, a one and a half an hour flight from Ho Chi Minh , you have to land at Da Nang airport first. From Da Nang you can take a taxi to Hoi An which takes around 1 hour to reach. While on the road you see the majestic marble mountains on one side and the clean white beaches on the other. Da Nang is famous for its marble mountains, Bana hills (the one with the famous golden bridge held by 2 giant hands) and sun world (a theme adventure park). But due to shortage of time we couldnt visit these places and straight drove to Hoi An. 

Sight Seeing

Hoi An is the definition of a perfect holiday. Excellent beach side resorts , a small village with colorful streets. The best part is you can travel the entire village in a bicycle which easy to rent from your hotel/resort or outside for as low as $2/day. Another tip, you should visit the various places using the traditional map instead of your smartphones or google maps, its far more exciting and you end up exploring breath taking places. 

You should visit the An Nang Beach , most resorts have a tie up with the beach cafes so it's best to grab a recliner and enjoy the clean beaches. If you are lucky you can actually spot multiple rainbows in the beautiful skies. 

Other than the above there are a series of 7 sight seeing places which showcase different aspects of the Vietnam culture like the silk production, Japanese covered bridge, Chinese temple etc.Each element is a spectacle to watch and learn about. In the night the old town lights up like a fairy tale. The river running at the centre of old town is lit up with lanterns which are actually wishes made by locals & tourists. You can purchase one with the shops along the river and they will float them on the river. You can also try a river boat ride which takes you along the old town. 

Places to Eat

Another must try in hoi an is the street food - Vietnamese Sandwich at Banh Mi Phuong. It actually got famous when super chef Anthony Bourdain covered it in his show and since then it has been visited by many celebrity chefs. The place actually has queues of people waiting to have a bite of this Vietnamese wonder.

2 places I recommend to dine are morning Glory and Mango Mango (The Craft beers are a must try). The Vietnamese mango and the Vietnamese platter are food experiences worth trying. The ambience in both these places are serene with Chinese lanterns, soft live music and Riverside experience. Other noteworthy restaurants are Bahn Thien, Soul Cafe.

Places to Shop

The old town is on the other side of the village, famous for it's shopping from fashionable clothes , cotton wear, beach floral wear, home decor and much more. One of the unique shopping points is the tailor made suits & dresses which you can order and receive within 24 hours. The must try is the Bebe store , they have some exquisite collection of suits for men and women and is a very popular joint for tourists.

Hoi An is a UNESCO world heritage site and was easily one of the best destinations I visited for a long time.

Hanoi

My last stop in the trip was Hanoi the capital city of Vietnam. The best place to stay in Hanoi are the old quarters. The place has small lanes and is very busy. The metropolis of Vietnam has a very distinct French colony due to a long term rule and influence of the French. One distinct sight seeing which you just should not miss when you visit Hanoi is the Halong Bay. We again missed this one in this trip but we surely will make a visit to this place the next time. 

Sight Seeing

Hoa Lo Prison: This was a one of a kind episode in our Vietnam chapter. It was the first time I was visiting a prison museum. Built by the French for political prisoners , it is now converted into a museum. It showcases all aspects very well, from the way prisoners were kept during those times, the way they ate, used the toilet and so on. Some exciting write ups are placed in various walls of prison breaks. They also show a special area where prisoners who were sentenced to be hung to death were placed. Its an hour tour and surely is worth visiting. 

Hoan Kiem Lake: So this is a popular lake in the centre of Hanoi. It is surrounded by bustling shops and eating places. In and around the lake there is a park where you can spot people doing all sorts of activities like playing a popular street sport - Shuttlecock which is basically badminton with feet , you play with a birdie. There are people doing zumba , or just enjoying an evening walk. 

Ngoc Son Temple: It is a temple in the centre of the Hoan Kiem Lake, you have to cross a wooden bridge to enter this temple and is a popular tourist and local destination. 

Places to Eat

We tried our hands at Khazaana which is a popular Indian restaurant in Hanoi, Old Quarters. The restaurant is popular and the flavours & preparations are very close to food back home in India. You will surely feel at home away from home at this junction. 

Another exciting place we visited was Trung Nguyen Coffee Shop. They claim to be one of the best coffees in the world and rightly so. Firstly, it is fascinating to see the menu card with so many types of coffees each with a specific purpose. Like, they have coffee for lifting your spirits, for enhancing creativity etc etc. Next, once you select the coffee it comes in a fascinating cup where you can see it brewed to perfection in front of you. And lastly, the taste is one of the finest enriching coffee experiences. 

Avalon BBQ Garden was a perfect choice for a dining feast. It is next to the lake and situated on the 5th level, so you can see a beautiful view of the lake and enjoy live barbecue cooking on your table. So they have each table fit with barbecue sets and the cooking for the most of the food items of the menu happen in front of you on your table itself. 

Places to Shop

Again street shopping is wonderful in Hanoi with shops open till late at night. Be ready to explore some exquisite silk and cotton wear. Do not miss the funky Vietnamese tshirts available at less than $3. 

For high end shopping you should try the Trang Tien Plaza close to the Hoan Kiem Lake which houses the most popular brands like Burberry, Gucci etc etc. 

The currency that works in Vietnam is the Vietnamese Dong and US Dollar. You can carry US dollars and get exchanges in the airport/hotel for best exchange rates or use a forex card. Getting currency exchanged from local unauthorized shops can be risky. Traveling in Vietnam is convenient, most of the in city tours can be done on foot. For distances you can use the taxi app Grab (similar to Uber) for the most affordable rides. 

Overall, the vietnamese trip was mesmerizing and had a little something for every day. Its hard to imagine that just some decades ago the war had devastated this country. Hoping to visit again very soon and continuing my new found love in blogging. 

Cheers, 

Anant