Stroopwafel McFlurry ― only in the Netherlands

Back from vacay and I'm already hittin' the ground running!! By that, I just mean to say that it's back to the daily grind. WAAAH! In less than 10 hours from now to be exact. So to make myself feel better, I'll reminisce on this lovely little guilty pleasure that we tried back in the Netherlands during our roadtrip. Not a huge McFlurry fan in general but the Stroopwafel McFlurry is, simply put, BOSS. Better than (I dare say) the classic Oreo McFlurry as well as Belgium's Speculoos McFlurry (sorry Meg, but it just had more oomph). Don't know what Stroopwafel is? Get educated here.

Groningen, the Netherlands

After a few hours in Bourtange, we decided to hit up the nearest "big" city: Groningen. After having spent two hours strolling around the largest city in the north of the Netherlands, Groningen started to kind of remind me of a mini-Amsterdam. But to be fair, Amsterdam's the only big city I've ever visited in the Netherlands. Schmeh. I just wish there were coffee shops in DE, too! A far-fetched idea, I know.

Bourtange, NL ― A Star-shaped Fortress Village

I always love when we have the chance to visit nearby countries n' get outta DE for a bit. Visiting the Netherlands, for example. I've always felt the vibe to be different there, and unlike other people I think the Dutch culture is definitely different from the German culture.

Sometime during the Xmas holidays, we drove up to Bourtange for a day, as it's only about 2 hrs from Münster. Bourtange is an old fortress village in the northern part of the Netherlands. Kool fact: Because it used to be a fortress (we're talkin' hundreds of years ago), it was originally designed in the shape of a star! Is that coincidental or what?! S-T-A-R-R! Nowadays, tourism is the village's main industry.



Another thing I love is the look of typical Dutch houses. So charming!! Course I had to pose in front of a Dutch house as well as a Dutch windmill, hehe. While strolling through the village, we also stumbled upon a really kool candle shop and spontaneously bought Marlies a neon pink candle. Then, when we got a little hungry, we all had hot chocolate drinks and Pannekoek at a local café. The village also has a "cannon-shooting" every Sunday in the summertime, which def woulda been kool to see, too. Darn.

Ring-tailed Lemur Eating a Leek

I hardly ever (in fact, never) post up anything animal-related on my blog. But this is an exception because it's food-related, heh heh. Watch this little guy gobble down a whole leek righhhtttt here. The precise moment left me in sheer awe/glee! (@ Burgers' Zoo, the Netherlands 27/05/12). Ring-tailed Lemurs come from Madagascar. They have small brains and long wet noses with whiskers. They feed on fruit, leaves, flowers and bark. Apparently, this one prefers veggies. He so HUNG-GEE!

Typical Dutch Intersection

Even the intersections look kool in the Netherlands. Everywhere you look, whether you're in a small town like Arnhem (pictured here), a big city like Amsterdam, or somewhere in the middle of butt&@#% nowhere, bike lanes are everywhere. Having grown up in the suburbs of Toronto, I always envied countries with strong bicycle cultures. But I ain't envious anymore. Nowadays, I don't have a car and I don't need a car. My bike is my lifeline. I can get to work, do grocery shopping or hit up a club with my bike. Everything's within biking distance living in a city of 250,000 people. And boy, do I feel freeeeee!

Kei Hanna Arnhem — Golden Sunset Sushi

Don't they just look like little sunny-side ups?! We spontaneously drove to the Netherlands last weekend and among the many kool things we did, we also treated ourselves to sushi. Why is this a big deal? Because sushi is (usually) expensive and mediocre in Germany, especially in Braunschweig. So we coughed up nearly € 5 for four pieces of Kei Hanna's "Golden Sunset" sushi without regrets. It had salmon, crabstick, avocado and crunchy/salty tempura shrimps in it, all topped off with a sweet mango sauce. Had me definitely craving for more of that umami flavour/taste. Thanks for the tip, sushi man!

I received the biggest surprise of my life earlier this month when we hopped in a car and André drove us straight to Amsterdam! Ill-prepared but super stoked, we spent 3 glorious days in the city and biked our arses around for 2 of them... hittin' up Vodelpark, food/flea markets, little cheese shops, the Anne Frank Museum, the Red Light District, mysterious coffee shops (bahaha)... enjoying every minute of exploring through all the narrow cobblestone streets in the “bike capital of the world!“ It's funky, it's a mixed bag of people, it has a liberal kinda laid-back ‘tude... I've straight–up fallen in ♥ with Amsterdam.

MUST-EATS: Amsterdam 2012

When in the Netherlands, do as the Dutch do and stuff your face with stroopwafels 24/7! André and I shared this Super Stroopwafel* while strolling through Dapper Market (Amsterdam East) earlier this month. Soooo much better than the store-bought kinds. Not too sweet with a hint of cinnamon in it... with a tad bit of bite... served up hot and fresh... a definite market must-eat while in Amsterdam.



MUST-EAT Dutch Foodstuffs* / Foodstuffs that I enjoyed while in Amsterdam

1 — Dutch-style chips/fries* (served with mayo, diced onions & special ketchup) @ 3am on a Fri night
2 — microwaved Poffertjes from Albert Heijn supermarket were disgusting so stick to the fresh kinds
3 — Vanille-ijs from HEMA ‘cause a cone is only €0,50 cents and soft serve is a rarity in Deutschland
4 — Febo fast food just for the freakish fun of buying food out of a coin dispenser contraption thingy
5 — superb praliné-filled (almond & hazelnut) chocolate eggs from chocolate shop Metropolitan
6 — Broodje Haring* (raw herring & diced onions in a bun) is typical Dutch snack food at its finest!
7 — Pindakaas is just peanut butter but I went buckwilddd 'cause I've missed Kraft PB so much
8 — Roasted Duck from Nam Kee was tooooo rad! But PS. They're more famous for their oysters.
9 — Amsterdam cheese* because they're internationally known for it, duh! Shoutouts to Old Gouda
10 — store-bought Stroopwafels* are a must-try in order to really appreciate the freshly-made ones