NETHERLANDS - Government and Art

Half an hour north from Rotterdam by train is The Hague, which although not the capital of The Netherlands, is the seat of government, the home of the King and where most embassies are located.

There were three main things to visit today - The Binnenhof, home of the Dutch Parliament - The Mauritshuis, the King's art gallery - and finally the Panorama Mesdag.

The Binnenhof

I hadn't really got myself organised with the Binnenhof as I should have booked the full tour online (but then I probably would not have had time for other things), however, I was able to get a tour of the Ridderzaal or Knights' Hall which is where King Willem-Alexander performs the state opening of parliament.  Judging by the film that is shown as part of the tour, it is much the same as what happens in London, complete with golden coach and lots of people on horses.

Nearby is the Mauritshuis, a not too big, easily managed art gallery which principally contains works from the golden age of Dutch and Flemish painting - Holbein, Rubens, Van Dyck, Rembrandt - with the most famous painting being Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring" I personally was rather taken with "Old Woman and a Boy with Candles" by Rubens.

 The highlight of the day was a visit to the Panorama Mesdag which was recommended to me by Geoff. This is a huge 360 degree painting of Scheveningen in 1880 painted by Hendrik Willem Mesdag. It's housed in a purpose built building and you come up stairs into the middle with the painting all around you and the aim is to make you feel that you are indeed standing on a sand dune in 1880. It's amazing, difficult to explain but if you go to The Hague, you should make time to see it.

Just around the corner from the Panorama is the Peace Palace, a building paid for by Andrew Carnegie and opened in 1913 which is home of the International Court of Justice. So when you see the judges in The Hague on TV, you now know where they are. Guided tours are available at certain times of the year but have to be booked online.

I haven't got enough time on this trip for a day in Delft. However, as I saw a tram in The Hague that was going to Delft I thought it would be nice to have an evening wander and dinner there before returning to Rotterdam. And so I end today's report with a couple of evening pictures of Delft. The canals were covered in duckweed which I think has something to do with the hot weather recently.