08 March 2013

A red rose

Red rose closeup photo

A red rose.

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06 March 2013

Orange rose

Orange rose closeup photo

A single orange rose.

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04 March 2013

01 March 2013

De Bazel

Detail of De Bazel, Amsterdam

The last photo in our two-week series of Amsterdam. We're looking at a building called De Bazel. It was built in the 1920s as head office of the Netherlands Trading Society. Nowadays it houses the Amsterdam city archive.

Apparently De Bazel is a good example of an expressionist architectural style called Brick Expressionism. I don't know enough about architecture to comment on that, though.

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28 February 2013

Prinsengracht

Prinsengracht canal, Amsterdam

We're still at the Vijzelgracht street in Amsterdam, walking in the direction of the city center. We cross the Prinsengracht canal. On the bridge we pause to enjoy the view and maybe take a few photos. Note the beautiful canal houses along both sides of the canal.

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27 February 2013

Work in progress

Building a metro station at the Vijzelgracht in Amsterdam

We're at the Vijzelgracht street now. They are building a brand new metro line in Amsterdam, and there will be a station here at the Vijzelgracht.

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26 February 2013

Skating rink

Skating rink, Museumplein, Amsterdam

On the Museumplein square in Amsterdam, right in front of the Rijksmuseum, is a temporary skating rink.

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25 February 2013

Van Baerle Street Amsterdam

Concertgebouw and Van Baerlestraat, Amsterdam

We continue our visit of Amsterdam that we started last week. We're still at the Museumplein, looking towards the Concert Hall. To the right of the concert hall we see a couple of buildings with beautiful gables, on the Van Baerlestraat (or Van Baerle Street). The lawn on the foreground is part of the Museumplein.

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22 February 2013

Amsterdam Concert Hall

Amsterdam Concert Hall

Yesterday we were standing on the Museumplein square, looking towards the Rijksmuseum. Let's turn around (so that the Rijksmuseum in our back). In front of us we can now see the 19th century Concertgebouw, or Concert Hall, of Amsterdam.

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21 February 2013

Museum Quarter Amsterdam

Museum Quarter Amsterdam

We continue our visit of Amsterdam at the Museumplein (Museum Square), the museum quarter of Amsterdam.

In the background of this photo we can see the monumental Rijksmuseum, home of many Dutch golden age masterpieces by Rembrandt, Frans Hals, Vermeer and their contemporaries. Though the museum is famous for its golden age paintings, it has a lot more to offer. It is the main arts museum of the Netherlands.

The round building on the left is a wing of the Van Gogh museum. Another important art museum with great paintings.

The Stedelijk Museum, a modern arts museum, is also here but not visible on the photo.

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20 February 2013

Vondel Park

Vondel Park, Amsterdam

It's still winter, as you can see on today's photo - there is no snow or ice, but the trees are bare. We're still in Amsterdam, but we left the hustle and bustle of the city and stroll through Amsterdam's largest park, the Vondel Park. We're not alone, though: Dozens of seagulls joined us and are now resting or strolling on the small island.

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19 February 2013

A canal in Amsterdam

Singelgracht, Amsterdam

This week we are visiting Amsterdam. Yesterday we were at the Leidseplein square, today we walk from the Leidseplein towards the Stadhouderskade street and enjoy this view while we cross the Singelgracht canal.

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18 February 2013

Stadsschouwburg

Stadsschouwburg (City Theater), Amsterdam, Holland

Join me for a visit of Amsterdam this week. Today we are at the Leidseplein square, and we look at a detail of a monumental 19th century building called the Stadsschouwburg (City Theater or Municipal Theater), the main theater of Amsterdam.

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15 February 2013

12 February 2013

Kasteel van Antwerpen

Hotel Kasteel van Antwerpen, Utrecht

Former hotel Kasteel van Antwerpen (Castle of Antwerpen), along the Oude Gracht canal in downtown Utrecht City. I'm not sure what this building is now, but I don't think it's still a hotel. A century ago it was a hotel and restaurant of some renown, but I was unable to find out much more.

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11 February 2013

Spire

Spire of Dom church, Utrecht

The spire of the 13th century Dom church in Utrecht city. The church was once St Martin's Cathedral, but is a protestant church since the reformation.

The church tower, the highest in the Netherlands, is not connected to the church. The nave of the church, unfinished for financial reasons, collapsed during a hurricane in 1674 and was never rebuilt.

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08 February 2013

Downtown Utrecht

Steenweg, Utrecht

We're at the Steenweg street, a busy shopping street in downtown Utrecht. It's not busy on the photo, but I took that early on a Sunday morning. In the background you can see the tower of the Dom church.

The Steenweg has a long history that goes back to at least the middle ages. The modern shop fronts don't give a medieval feel to casual observers, but if you look up to the gables you will enjoy the many old, monumental buildings

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07 February 2013

Leidse Rijn canal

Leidse Rijn canal, Utrecht

Yesterday I showed you a major Dutch canal, heavily used for transport over water. Today an old city canal, hardly used anymore.

We are now in the Lombok quarter of Utrecht City, looking at the first part of the Leidse Rijn canal, once Utrecht's connection with Leiden. The ducks in the water are always there, the seagulls in the sky visit from time to time.

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06 February 2013

Amsterdam-Rhine Canal

Amsterdam-Rhine Canal

The Amsterdam-Rhine Canal connects our capital Amsterdam with the river Rhine, one of Europe's main rivers. I took this photo from the bridge I showed you yesterday. On the left is Utrecht, on the right Nieuwegein.

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05 February 2013

Bridge

Jutphasebrug, Utrecht

A detail of a bridge over the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. This bridge, known as the Jutphasebrug (Jutphaas Bridge) connects the former village Jutphaas and Utrecht City. Jutphaas is nowadays part of the larger town Nieuwegein, a suburb of Utrecht.

I took this photo early on a winter morning.

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04 February 2013

30 January 2013

Oude Gracht

Oude Gracht, Utrecht

The medieval Oude Gracht canal in Utrecht, with the tower of the Dom church in the background.

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18 January 2013

University Hall

University Hall Utrecht

Next to the Dom church in Utrecht is the University Hall. While most of the university moved out of the city to a campus on the outskirts of Utrecht, the University Hall is still there. It is used for academic ceremonies - graduations, inaugural lectures and the like.

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17 January 2013

Herb garden

Herb garden and arcade, Dom church, Utrecht

Yesterday I showed you the arcade around the herb garden that is part of the Dom church in Utrecht. On today's photo you can see the garden, as seen from the arcade. It's winter, so the garden looks a bit dead now.

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16 January 2013

15 January 2013

Lepelenburg Park

Lepelenburg Park, Utrecht

Yesterday I shared a view from the Lepelenburg Park in Utrecht, in the direction of the downtown area. I have another one today, with a different viewpoint. The background is the same, with the tower of the Dom church. In the foreground you can see part of the park itself.

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14 January 2013

Utrecht

Servaasbolwerk, Utrecht

I took this photo on the Lepelenburg park in Utrecht. The buildings on the foreground are on the Servaasbolwerk street. On the left you can just see a part of the Leeuwenbergh church. In the background is the tower of the Dom church in the heart of downtown Utrecht.

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11 January 2013

Paved road

Zonstraat, Utrecht

During a city hike through Utrecht I came across the Zonstraat street, more or less by accident. A beautiful old paved road. Note the advertisement on the wall of the higher building, for a former laundry shop. Very old (1920s?), though probably recently restored to its former glory.

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10 January 2013

St Anthony Hospital

Former St Anthony Hospital, Utrecht

This used to be St Anthony's hospital, the catholic hospital of Utrecht City, the Netherlands.

The hospital still exists, but it moved to the town Nieuwegein, a suburb of Utrecht. It's not a catholic hospital anymore, though. I shared photos of it in the past, here and here.

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07 January 2013

Stream

Minstroom, Utrecht

The Minstroom, a little river in Utrecht. I took this photo from the corner of the Rembrandtkade and the Prins Hendriklaan streets.

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04 January 2013

Soestdijk

Soestdijk Royal Palace

The last photo of Soestdijk, for now. A frontal view of the palace against an autumn sky. I hope you enjoyed the photo tour of the palace (that started here), and please join me next week for a new daily photo.

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03 January 2013

Soestdijk Royal Palace

Royal Palace Soestdijk

Until 2004, Soestdijk was the home of Queen Juliana and her husband Prince Bernhard. And this is how you could see the palace: from outside the gate. When the former Queen and her husband passed away in 2004, the palace, state property, became vacant. Since 2005 and until a new destination for the palace is found, it is open to the public.

I visited both the palace and the palace gardens this fall. Photography in the palace is, unfortunately, not allowed, so I only have photos taken in the gardens. Most of those photos were impossible only a decade ago (unless you were a guest of the royal family).

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02 January 2013

Fountain

A fountain in the gardens of Soestdijk Royal Palace

A fountain in the pond of the palace gardens of Soestdijk Royal Palace, against a backdrop of autumn leaves.

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01 January 2013

Elephants

Elephant statues in the palace garden of Soestdijk

At the back of Soestdijk Royal Palace in Baarn are these two statues of elephants. They belonged to Prince Bernhard (1911-2004), who lived at this palace from his marriage to Princess Juliana (who later became Queen Juliana of the Netherlands) in 1937 until his death in 2004.

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