A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went on a weekend break to our beloved neighbouring country… Holland. We love the hospitality and friendliness of the Dutch so when choosing a destination for a weekend getaway, Holland nearly always wins!

This time we stayed in Hotel Postillion in Putten at the Veluwemeer, but before going to our hotel, we made a stop in Amersfoort.

Amersfoort is a beautiful Dutch town with lots of canals which makes it even more cosy and romantic to take a stroll. After parking our car, we were in need of a hot drink, so first of all we stopped by in a cosy bar (Kafé Van Zanten), which we would easily adopt as our favourite pub when we would live nearby.

Coming out of this pub, I immediately stumbled upon ‘Stark‘. I was drawn to the nice handbags I saw in the shop window. I really liked this shop… the jewellery, handbags, scarfs,.. It was al just that bit different than in other shops and I asked the shopkeeper if I could take some photos for my blog, which she kindly agreed to. She passionately told me about the concept behind this shop : Stark works together with beginning and acknowledged artists and sells their artwork. It offers the artists a way to show their work to the public and potential customers. The shop regularly attracts new artists to keep the offer versatile. It is a unique way to bring art to the people in a way that is both positive for artist and for customer. So when in the neighbourhood, I can definitely recommend a visit to this beautiful (art) shop.

After a bit of shopping for my husband (no… I didn’t buy anything!), we had lunch at Observant, a bar/tearoom/restaurant that is situated in a former convent with a cosy patio. We had a tasty sandwich. I opted for the brie/chicken/mango one while my husband chose the mackerel/red onion one.

In the afternoon we continued strolling throught the town, doing a bit of sightseeing : the Koppelpoort (a beautiful double 15th century entrance gate), the birthhouse of painter Mondriaan, Monnikendam (another 15th centry entrance gate) and ofcourse the so-called ‘wall-houses’, houses that are built against and onto the foundations of the ramparts.

To end our afternoon we shouted ourselves to some tea with scones at ‘Theefeestje‘ an extremely cosy tearoom which also has a shop in the next street. The scones were homemade and tea was served in old-fashioned porcelain cups… You felt like in a dollhouse !

After a well spent day in Amersfoort, we headed to our hotel near the Veluwemeer where we were welcomed by a very beautiful sunset…

Love, Kathleen

We often visit Holland… here you can read about our trip to Utrecht…