At our last meal on our “Trip to Amsterdam” with my American colleagues, I suddenly realized that we forgot to try some major Dutch treats. How could I! We had “Poffertjes” and “Bitterballen”, but what about “Herring/Matjes” or a fresh and warm “Stroopwafel”!! What are we going to do? I offered the idea to go to the “Albert Cuyp Market”, which is the biggest outside market in Europe. The weather was NOT looking good, but hey, that’s part of the Dutch experience. I was also NOT looking forward to say good bye to my colleagues in the afternoon…. but I had to;( They were going back to the US and I was taking a train to the south of the Netherlands to spend another week with my family and friends.
Albert Cuyp Market
With more than 260 stands, this market is the largest day market in Europe. The market is open every day from 9:30 AM till 5:30 PM, except Sunday’s. From our apartment it was a trip to the other side of Amsterdam. There are different ways to get there. Albert Cuyp Market is also known as the Quartier Latin of Amsterdam.
We went with an Uber van. It was raining and we had some hail, off and on. The “Albert Cuyp Market” is known to be a very busy place, especially in the summer. But as we were walking down the market, a lot of the stand owners were talking about a big storm that would hit soon, so not many people were out and about. We had to get more information about this storm. When is it going to hit? Are flights going to be cancelled tomorrow? A few weeks ago, the Netherlands was hit by a storm also, with a lot of damage. No fatalities. But what about this one?
What to eat at the Albert Cuyp market?
One of the first stands we saw was a fish stand. Maybe it was a strange idea to eat raw fish in the morning, but this would be the only time before our travels back to the US and the South of the Netherlands. You can ask to cut the herring in pieces or you can eat it the Dutch way. I had to show my colleagues what the the Dutch way was. It was time for the Americans to try. I knew not everyone would like it and most of them tried the safe and most common “kibbeling”, which are battered pieces of cod fish.
We moved on, to look at more things, like shirts, cheese, bread, fabric etc. Then, it was getting cold and one of us found a place, which looked like a Moroccan restaurant or at least a place we could warm up, have some warm coffee or tea to drink and use the bathrooms. It had beautiful lanterns and tiles on the wall. It was very inviting.
Before we went inside I saw a stand with warm, fresh “stroopwafels”. A few months ago we watched a program called “Street food around the world” where someone traveled around the world to try street food from different countries. One time he went to Amsterdam and tried these “stroopwafels”. My kids were in awe, because they only know the little ones, but these were WARM and HUGE!
So after trying that monster, we walked back to the beginning of the market. It was still raining off and on. Too bad we were on a time schedule and we could not see more of the market. Next time….but there was still a little room for one more herring!
On my way home.
We came back at our apartments. Now it was time to say goodbye. I wished one half of our group a great trip back home to the US. We had to stay connected, because I wanted to know if the flight would go even though a storm that was predicted. But, hey….Iceland Air are MONSTERS!
It was time for me to pack my suitcase and head to the “Centraal Station”. I would meet my cousin and her daughter at the station, who came from Haarlem. We were having some coffee and chatted a while before my train would leave to the south of the Netherlands. I almost missed my train….running with a big suitcase is not easy. A nice gentleman helped me and carried the suitcase into the train. The whistle, a quick bye and there I was, all by myself, in the train….
I would meet my brother at the train station in Eindhoven, which is the second to last station on my journey. He just came from work and we took the train to Weert, where we took my brother’s car to his home. My parents were there and my sister-in-law made us dinner. It was so nice to see everyone again. I gave my 3 nephews some typical American presents, I thought. The Hotwheels are always a big hit with these boys, but a lot of presents they knew already and were not that American anymore… Have any of you noticed this too? A few years ago some typical things like a game, toy or shirt which would be considered typical American, isn’t that special anymore.
It was time to go to my parents’ home and get a good night rest in my own childhood bed….. More to explore in the south of the Netherlands! Keep reading!
Hello everyone,
Welcome to my Crafty Dutch Girl blog! Grab a cup of “koffie” and browse through fun blog posts about our Dutch family expat life in the USA, Dutch history, Dutch recipes, Dutch things to do in the USA and all kinds of crafts and activities. Don’t forget to connect with me for new ideas! “Groetjes en tot ziens”.