Holland: Small country, big heart.

Holland is a nice country but when I'm here, I'm not really as adventurous as I would be in let's say Italy or Spain, etc. I have an annoyingly large number of family members living here and somehow that downs the fun. Because I'm automatically drowned into the myriad of problems they have created for themselves (which personally I don't give a sh*t about!) 
This was my second visit to Holland and once again a major part of my stay was in Rotterdam. I tried to make the most of it.

Puma the lovely orange cat was a constant companion. He never sat still for a picture but he was always very friendly and liked cuddling up to me. 

 

One is always thrilled to explore with camera in hand. And happy to see a few flowers that survived the bitter winter!

 
 

Winter in Holland is always a delight. Snow is literally everywhere. The entire place is so fresh and clean. You can actually taste the pure air! 

 

 

 I love how the snow fell on ground and created hundreds of white fluffy cushions!

 

 

The adorable winter birds! Holland is never short of ducks, geese, swans and strange black birds that swim in lakes. All the best thing of all they belong to everybody! 

 

 

I tried to capture the Christmas spirit where I was but I wasn't really feeling it and these were the only four pictures I took of the decorations I came across.

When one is in a foreign country, one must try the foods and try to make them as well. Hence one goes to the produce market in Rijnhaven. 

 

You're blown away by how nice vegetables and fruits can look in photos!

 

 

You meet a Moroccan fish seller who's happy to converse with you in French and pose for a photo too!

DEN HAGUE

 

Den Hague is a pretty little city close to Rotterdam. And it's worth a day trip if you're looking for a smaller version of Amsterdam. The city has many lovely restaurants, good architecture, antique shops, and bookstores! It's an old city so I enjoyed walking around, passing quaint streets and shopping there too.

 
 
 

ROTTERDAM

Rotterdam is an open air museum of modern architecture. Since I was staying here most of the time, I was forced to appreciate the various styles of architecture. I actually found myself enjoying the experience. The Dutch have a lot of imagination and clearly enough money to make it a reality. Rotterdam boasts of the Erasmus bridge (Erasmusbrug) which cost an estimated 75 million euros in 1995. The port of Rotterdam is the largest in Europe and one of the busiest in the world. There will always be a thousand boats standing still at a certain point in the city. It's a beautiful sight to take in.

 
 

 

 

 

Amsterdam Revisited

Amsterdam is one of my most favourite cities in the world. There's so many interesting things to discover and the city can boast of some world class museums! I'm so happy I have family there so I can visit any time I want! My mum and me visited together in July and I've taken these pics on my iphone, so the quality isn't the best. I miss the vibrant feel of this city and I'm thrilled to have an invitation for christmas from my uncle! yay.

Delfshaven

Wooden tulips!

Holland reds

Berry Maastricht

Amsterdam

Brilliante

Made of stone

Please return the heart of Rotterdam!

I saw this statue just at the side of the Maritime Museum is Rotterdam and did not think much of it. It resembled all the other abstract statues strewn all over the place. I later read that the statue represents the lost heart of Rotterdam. In 1940, the city was destroyed in a span of 10 minutes because of Hitler's aerial bombing. I think post independence, Rotterdam retrieved its dignity in style but the statue stands as a reminder of a war that should never have happened!

The coloured threads..

What I love most about the open markets in Holland are the different hues you can find there! Graffiti cans and simple threads can be so gloriously colourful!

I see 3 cats!

Winkelcentrum and Olympia

Winkelcentrum is my favorite place. Whats that you ask? Why its only the mall or in other words, an area concentrated with tiny little shops that entice you to pull out your credit card and throw away your hard earned dough! I spent 60 euros on clothes today and thats more than what Ive ever spent on clothes in one go. But I also needed to spoil myself during the season and so Im not feeling too guilty. My uncle bought me a coat, its one size bigger than what I usually wear but its pretty sturdy. Its waterproof, windproof and fireproof! So even God can't get through it! ha! The sales in Holland are pretty sweet and I picked up stuff from Promiss, C and A, Miss Etam and Body Shop.

Later in the evening my aunt convinced my uncle to take us to a Greek restaurant. Great choice! This was my first encounter with Greek food and boy was it good. Below is a picture of what I had. This was called the Thessalonikki Steak. Its comprises of 3 kinds of meat, some fries, some green and a delicious sauce dressing at the side. Greece I like you and the owner's son was pretty gorgeous too. The restaurant is called Olympia and its probably the only one they have in Rotterdam that serves such good food because there were hordes of people going in and out!