Haarlem

Sorry I haven't updated for awhile (and thanks to those who emailed to make sure everything was okay!) - we have been traveling!!

Last week we took a day trip to Haarlem. Haarlem is a charming old town in the Netherlands that is about a 15 minute train ride from Amsterdam. The kids thoroughly loved the train ride (as usual!). Jagger was his daddy's "train buddy" and wanted nothing to do with me :(

If you'll go back to 5th grade history for a moment, you will remember that New York was called New Amsterdam back when it was a colony. The Harlem area of New York was named after Haarlem, Netherlands. They certainly are two completely different places now!

The land that we travelled across - between Amsterdam and Haarlem used to be a lake the size of Washington DC! Thanks to the amazing Dutch ability to channel water, the land now has houses, farm fields, train tracks, and Schipol Airport!

Haarlem has fewer tourists than Amsterdam so you can really get a sense of Dutch life. The town is rich in history - the town square still looks a lot like it did 700 years ago!!


Grote Markt
The main square in Haarlem is called "Grote Markt" (Market Square). It is a beautiful old area with cobblestone streets, water fountains, statues, outdoor cafe's, historic buildings, the old town hall......and a McDonalds restaurant! :(

The statue in the above picture is of LJ Coster. He once carved a letter "A" from a piece of wood and dropped it into wet sand. He saw the impression that it made and he is the man that the Dutch credit for inventing modern printing.


Haarlem Town Hall
The Haarlem town hall has been at it's current site since around 1100! The hall was rebuilt in 1351 after it was destroyed by fire and the front of the building was redone in 1630. The story goes......the town drunk used to hang out on the bench in front of the town hall. When married couples came out of the hall, the drunk would expose himself to them. Instead of arresting the drunk and putting him in jail, in the typical Dutch tolerant style, they moved the bench!


Haarlem Historical Museum - built in 1600.




Playing in Grote Markt (Market Square)

The kids enjoyed playing with the pigeons near the fountains in the square.




Justice, Journey, and Jagger in front of a fenced courtyard along Kruiswegstraat.