In this post I want to describe my visit to South Holland, Utrecht region and Amsterdam during summer 2017, when I attended a one-week-course at Utrecht University. I strongly recommend to visit this area of Netherlands. Unlike other posts, this one will be poor in text, but rich in photos. Enjoy it!

 

Day 1 – Friday

Landing at Amsterdam-Schiphol and train to Leiden. The town is small and in a couple of hours it is possible to walk most of it. Here are some shots I took there:

 

On the same day I went to Den Haag by train, and spent the night there. I recommend to visit the Hague Tower. Panorama is great! Other attractions that cannot be missed are the Peace Palace and the Binnerhof (the Parliament). In the photos below, you can see also the eternal flame, which burns permanently outside of the Peace Palace.

 

Day 2 – Saturday

In the morning of the second day I dedicated few more hours to visit Den Haag, then I started approaching Utrecht, with a stop in Gouda, the town of the famous cheese. Well, this town is really… cheesy, also for a lactose-intolerant person like me.

Then finally I arrived to Utrecht, and dropped the luggage at the hostel.

 

Day 3 – Sunday

I spent Sunday in Rotterdam and Delft. Rotterdam is a great city with many attractions, and a couple of days are needed to visit it properly. Still, in half day I could walk a lot and visit the Markthal (the indoor market), the Erasmus bridge, the Luchtsingel bridge (the famous yellow, wooden, pedestrian bridge), the Cube Houses (which I entered) and enjoy the atmosphere in general. Ah, yes, of course I didn’t miss the Euromast, the panoramic tower.

 

On the way back to Utrecht, I visited Delft. It is a small town, but vibrant.

 

Day 4-8 Monday-Friday

During the course I couldn’t visit other towns if not Utrecht. It is a student town, therefore young, active and full of opportunities and entertainments. Still, it has a lot of history, which melts with modernity. Here are some shots.

 

On Friday afternoon I had time to spend a couple of hours in Amersfoort, a nice town not too far from Utrecht. It was definitely worth the visit, check it yourselves:

 

Day 9 – Saturday

Taking the occasion that I had to leave from Amsterdam airport on Saturday afternoon, I left the luggage at the train station and exploited the morning to visit the city. Do I really need to describe Amsterdam using words? Enjoy the photos.