Gouda Centrum
This is the second time I am in Gouda. The first time was a few years back when I met a friend here, actually a couple, from New Zealand. We had coffee in one of the traditional café houses on the corner of the market square. I remember being captivated by the beautiful 15th century gothic town hall sitting in the middle of the square. And then it rained. My reverie was ruined.
Well this time around it didn’t rain. I only had great weather, sun and blue skies. And of course fotos!
Gouda market square and the 15th century town hall in the middle. Next foto is a shopping street--notice the leaning buildings?
The medieval Gouda town hall and some architectural and artistic details.
Here are some scenes of Gouda market square.
Left foto: Kaaswinkel or kaaswinkeltje means Cheese shop. Middle foto: in the background is the Sint Janskerk (St. John's Church). Right foto: a peek to the buildings on the market square from the alley that leads to Sint Janskerk.
A (quaint) main road in Gouda and creative ways of advertising Gouda cheese.
Since Gouda sits in the middle of the randstad then I am guessing that the train service from Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and The Hague takes half an hour, maybe less. I took the car here and avoided the highways, weaving through quaint Dutch towns and villages where ditches and rivers crisscross the polder countryside. The whole area of Het Groene Hart evolved through peat cutting and extraction.
Gouda is a perfect half a day destination. During the summer months between June and August, on Thursday mornings a traditional cheese market and trading with cultural activities is held in the market square.
More fotos here: Gouda, Zuid Holland - The Netherlands
Other notable attractions are: Sint Janskerk (St. John’s Church) and its 72 Gouda Windows, a collection of stained glass windows that date back from the 16th century; the unique Gouda town hall of course; the Gouda Museum; De Waag (Cheese Weigh House); the canals that you can explore by boat and for me, the market square—I just want to park myself with a drink in hand while people watching and enjoying the beautiful architecture around me.
.
Well this time around it didn’t rain. I only had great weather, sun and blue skies. And of course fotos!
Gouda market square and the 15th century town hall in the middle. Next foto is a shopping street--notice the leaning buildings?
The medieval Gouda town hall and some architectural and artistic details.
Here are some scenes of Gouda market square.
Left foto: Kaaswinkel or kaaswinkeltje means Cheese shop. Middle foto: in the background is the Sint Janskerk (St. John's Church). Right foto: a peek to the buildings on the market square from the alley that leads to Sint Janskerk.
A (quaint) main road in Gouda and creative ways of advertising Gouda cheese.
Since Gouda sits in the middle of the randstad then I am guessing that the train service from Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and The Hague takes half an hour, maybe less. I took the car here and avoided the highways, weaving through quaint Dutch towns and villages where ditches and rivers crisscross the polder countryside. The whole area of Het Groene Hart evolved through peat cutting and extraction.
Gouda is a perfect half a day destination. During the summer months between June and August, on Thursday mornings a traditional cheese market and trading with cultural activities is held in the market square.
More fotos here: Gouda, Zuid Holland - The Netherlands
Other notable attractions are: Sint Janskerk (St. John’s Church) and its 72 Gouda Windows, a collection of stained glass windows that date back from the 16th century; the unique Gouda town hall of course; the Gouda Museum; De Waag (Cheese Weigh House); the canals that you can explore by boat and for me, the market square—I just want to park myself with a drink in hand while people watching and enjoying the beautiful architecture around me.
.
