Cheese, siroopwafels, windmills and canals
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As we were planning this trip, we knew the Netherlands would be on our itinerary. We considered staying in Utrecht, Rotterdam or Delft but our decision to make Gouda our stopping point came about on a bit of a whim after we read a NYT article about the place some months back. Known for its delicious cheeses (we’ve had our share of them from our favorite Cheese Lady shop in Grand Rapids), it seemed right to go directly to the source and check it out.
Let’s launch right into the food portion of the program.
't Kaaswinkeltje (Dutch for “the cheese shop”)
't Kaaswinkeltje was just down the street from our hotel and boy do they have LOTS of cheese. The center pile is mostly variations of Gouda but the case in the rear holds all manner of cheeses from many countries. Tasting is available and encouraged! We ended up with a shrink wrapped hunk of Beemster Gouda, one of our Cheese Lady faves, that would accompany us to Paris. Baguette anyone?
In addition to cheese, another Gouda food draw is the locally produced siroopwafels (or stroopwafels as they seem to be called by most). The Kamphuisen brand claims theirs is the original recipe, but we certainly saw many other labels selling a similar product. A thin, crisp, waffle-like cookie sandwiched with a skosh of caramel syrup and a hint of cinnamon, they’re pretty darn good with a cup of coffee or tea.
There are plenty of bakeries in town too. Curiously I noticed some identified as bakkerij and some banketbakkerij so I had to ask “What’s the difference?”. A quick search told me that the former is likely to focus on the daily breads, rolls, cakes and cookies while the latter will also offer finer pastries, chocolates and confections which require another level of production.
At a nearby banketbakkerij Steve just had to pick up some assorted pâte de fruits, a treat he fell in love with during my pastry school days in Paris nearly 16 years ago.
Our haul
A quick note about the word banket - for those of you not familiar with it, it’s a traditional Dutch almond-paste-filled pastry log that my Mom (and many other’s moms) made every Christmas for many years (always a big hit with the kids and grownups as well!). It can be baked in the shape of a letter signifying the recipient’s initial or made simply as a straight log. Great memories. (None of the shops are currently selling it since it’s a holiday offering).
Other than the items in the photo above, we didn’t indulge at all in sampling some of the other local baked goods. One needs a break every now and then, eh?
In addition to the many shops, the pedestrian and bike friendly central old town is picturesque with churches, the old town hall and market square, windmills, bicycles, canals and boats. It’s decked out for the town’s 750th anniversary too!
Gouda town hall (photo courtesy of Steve Soper)
Worn down from weeks of traveling, we spent our first couple of days in Gouda in a very low key fashion, relaxing, strolling, browsing the Saturday market and, of course, taking to the water. Wherever we travel, if there’s water nearby and a boat trip available, we jump at the chance; seeing a place from the water gives one a wholly different perspective on things.
Saturday market strawberries
Canal cruise in Gouda
Along the canal
We’ve been using Eurail passes for our train travel throughout this trip, and we found it especially easy bopping from city to city in the Gouda area. Steve has become a master of setting the trips up on our iPhones. When we’re ready to go, we head to the train station, scan in the QR code to get us through the turnstiles, find our platform and wait for the train. Slick!
One day we headed to Delft, an 18 minute ride from Gouda to Rotterdam Centraal where we then easily changed trains for a 12 minute leg to Delft. So easy and so much better than driving, finding a place to park etc, etc, etc! If only we lived where we didn’t have to depend on cars all the time. Wouldn’t that be fantastic?
Approaching the Oude Kerk
Delft is a beautiful city - canals, churches, shops, lovely streets and a pleasant vibe indeed. We visited both the Oude Kerk (above - it’s been leaning for centuries) where Johannes VerMeer is buried and the Nieuwe Kerk where the Dutch royal family members are buried. It’s mind boggling to realize how many centuries these structures have been in existence.
We stopped at Stads-koffyhuis for lunch, a popular spot that I had discovered online somewhere. It’s been in business for many years and gets good reviews. Let’s go!
Steve treated himself to a vanilla milkshake and a roast beef sandwich while I went for a perfectly sized bowl of cheesy tomato soup which came with a tasty dark roll. Delicious! Of course, I had to sample one of the offerings from their baking kitchen and, after a bit of thought, chose the strawberry tart - tis the season after all.
The crust was a bit chewy (in a very good way), reminding me of my favorite Breton dough. Filled with a light strawberry cream topped with fresh berries, my expectations were more than met. An equally tasty crisp almond cookie accompanied my cappuccino. Aaaah.
Our last day trip took us to Utrecht, another easy 18 minute train trip from Gouda. The Dom Kerk is usually on the agenda for many traveler’s with the Domtouren a goal. What had once been a connected structure, the church and the tower are now completely separated by an open courtyard space as a result of a severe wind/rain storm back in the 1600s that destroyed a section of the building. The tower is currently undergoing massive maintenance and is covered in scaffolding. We visited the church and were particularly struck by the peaceful calm of the old cloisters and gardens.
Being once again driven by the presence of water, we took another canal cruise which allowed us to view parts of the city periphery that we wouldn’t have seen during our very short visit to Utrecht. It’a bustling popular university town with a lot of territory to cover and we barely dipped our toe in, so to speak.
Utrecht canal
Time to say goodbye to the Netherlands and head for Paris. See you in France!
