After another amazing hotel breakfast, we walked toward the waterfront in Scheveningen to the old, classic, grand Kurhaus Hotel, a typical old resort hotel straight out of the 30s and 40s. It is a beautiful old dowager and very elegant. One can just picture the people there long ago, dressed in formal attire for the evening and in bathing costumes for the beach during the day. It is still quite grand, and we would like to stay there some time.
It was also funny that on our walk to the old hotel, we saw, in a restaurant strip area, a Burger King, a Ben & Jerry's and New York Pizza all in a row!
We retrieved our car and drove a short distance to place called Madurodam, Wayne's surprise for me. It is a not-to-be-missed unique place where the country of Holland is all laid out in 1:25 scale down to the tiniest detail. The cathedrals, palaces, airport, ships, railroads, cars, hotels, office buildings are all perfect and landscaped with bonzai'd trees and bushes. I overheard a mother who was with her children at a water dyke designed to illustrate leaks that children were supposed to try to stop with their fingers. "Try to stop the water with your finger, Jamie...NO, don't drink the water, try to STOP it." Hillarious! We felt like Gulliver in Lilliput. A wonderful, imaginative place which makes one smile and feel very, very good.
After "tiny town", we drove to Keukenhof Gardens, an extraordinary place that is a MUST, if one is traveling in the area of Den Hague. It is a beautiful landscaped property with approximately six million tulips, daffodils and other bulb flowers covering many acres. We spent several hours wandering the gardens in amazement. It was so incredibly gorgeous. Obviously, we took lots photos and will remember the Gardens with great pleasure. Every year, the gardens are open only from late March to mid-May. After that, all the bulbs are dug up and the preparation for the planting design for the next year begins with hand planting done in the fall over about a 3 month period. Simply a wonderful place.
By four o'clock, we were driving North to Harlingen, a small Dutch village along the North coast of Holland. We are staying a the Hotel Zeezicht, where we have stayed before. It is a quaint old hotel with tons of charm. Our room looks out on the harbor to the sea and the canals running into and out of the town.
The town is surrounded by dykes and water and is a simply charming place. More exploration tomorrow.
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