Last Saturday I went on a day trip to three traditional Holland towns: Volendam, Marken and Zaanstad.You can find the pictures here.
The first stop was Volendam. It is in the northern part of Holland, about 1 hour from Leiden by bus. It is a quaint fishing village with lovely old architecture. The town is small enough to see most of it in an hour of walking. The town backs onto a water front with a perfectly picturesque fishing habour. My tour group had lunch in town (sandwiches with milk) and we also took a large group picture in full traditional dutch dress.The town is a popular tourist destination, and had a higher density of souvenir shops than any other town I had seen.
From Volendam we took a tour boat to the small island of Marken. Marken is an even smaller and more traditional town than Volendam, stock full with sheep, churches and plenty of pleasant looking old fashioned buildings … and of course more souvenir shops. Pleasant shopping.
From Marken we took a bus to Zaanstad, and were dropped off at a very pretty tourist trap called Zaanse Schans. Lots of “traditional” Dutch novelties, like windmills, tulips and wooden shoes. Naturally, lots more shopping, though much more expensive than the shopping in Volendam and Marken. It was nice to see the windmills, but if you can get your windmill fix elsewhere, then Zaanse Schans essentially reduces to a town of overpriced souvenirs.
Here are some highlights:
This is on the Volendam water cost, behind me is the fishing harbour.
Volendam fishing side
Volendam buildings
Marken sheep. Baaaaawwww. They are cute.
Bridge in Marken. They are all named. It is a cute town.
Buildings in Marken. They are dedicated to maintaining the old fashioned image.
This is me and Marken is in the background.
A windmill at Zaanse Schans.
Me in a wooden shoe at Zaanse Schans.
