Here and There Blog

Turns out that Haarlem has a beer tradition and one of the old styles "Jopen" is still brewed today.  I tried Jopen Hoppen which as you might guess, is full of hops. My second beer was the Leffe Dubbel, a dark beer and the better choice. This was Saturday afternoon at 2:00 pm and the majority of the pubs and restaurants were closed. The one cafe that was open was packed as it was almost the only place to eat besides McDonalds.

Haarlem is  about 15 minutes away via train from Amsterdam Centraal Station. It's the place to go when you've seen all the usual sights and want to avoid tourism overload. The city has the main square, pedestrian walking, and the usual sights. The Grote Kerk (Great Church) being one of those sights.  The bell tower goes off every 15 minutes and loudly on the hour. It's impossible to not know what time it is.  The church really is this large. Old, impressive, the usual.  Don't forget to look up when strolling the side streets.  Fans of architecture of all styles will have something to look at in Haarlem.

What should one do after flying all night, little sleep, and no food? Go to the Heineken Experience as soon as it opens at 11:00 am of course! For 15 euro you get a fun, self-guided tour, and 2.5 beers! Oh, and the sample of wort.  Don't try it. Trust me. The great thing about going at 11:00 am is that you are not competing with anyone for photo ops. The group tours have not arrived and you can go as fast as you want to get to the beer at the end.  A ride?  "Brew You"? With a warning? Must do. Or not. No Star Tours ride this. A short video with some effects. Fun for kids except no kids on this tour. Skip it if the wait is long and go straight to the tasting room. After the tasting room you can move on and play some games or go to the end of the tour and have your two free beers. It was a great place to relax and for 15 euro, probably cheaper for 2.5 beers than going to a pub. Stadhouderskade 78 1072 AE Amsterdam, Netherlands 020 5239222 www.heinekenexperience.com ...