Lovely Delft

Yesterday morning I struggled to get out of bed. Lately I've been staying up quite late, not really on purpose but it seems like all of a sudden it is 1:30am and then I head to bed. Friday night I was tired but couldn't really sleep so when my alarm went off at 7am I was having none of it. I knew I had to get up so I could catch the 3 hour train in order to get to Delft at a reasonable hour but it was so hard. I did it, eventually; got out of bed that is. I even made it to my train on time.

Delft is quite near Den Haag (The Hague) and Rotterdam and as previously mentioned, it takes about 3 hours by train.

The prospect of 3 hours on a train isn't a great one, especially not one way for a day trip. It'd be like driving to Edmonton from Calgary for a few hours of sightseeing before heading home. The difference, of course, is that I don't have to drive and I don't have to buckle up. I've taken to reading - a lot - on the train. Its been good for holding my attention and making the time pass.

Delft is primarily known for its typically Dutch town center (with canals), the painter Vermeer, Delft Blue pottery (Delftware), and its association with the Dutch royal family (the House of Orange-Nassau). -wiki

Vemeer Painting you might recognize; Girl with a Pearl Earring

Delftware

Well, enough of the lesson. I arrived in town just before noon and it was lovely out and the city was bustling. I think city centre's tend to be really busy on Saturdays here for the obvious reasons, but on top of the fact that its the weekend, everything is closed here on Sundays so people have to do their shopping on Saturdays.

The town lays out quite small and was perfect for walking around. I took in all the sights, bought a fresh stroopwafel the size of my head, and enjoyed the sunshine.

I knew I wanted to get something 'delftware' to take home and I'd set my mind on finding a set of tea cups and saucers. This was a great idea I thought. I'd love an adorable tea set. From what I've read you have to search and make sure that the pottery has actually been painted there because otherwise it has probably come from China. So I looked and the prices were huge - no surprise really - lovely and the attention paid to each item deserves the high prices. I ended up getting some other things instead of a tea cups and saucers but I'm really happy about them. I am also almost certain that they are from China, but I'm ok with that too. Poor students can't be choosers.

I spent most of my day strolling around or just sitting in the sun watching everyone else stroll around. It was a lovely day. I was glad that I had gone to a small town because it meant that I could get home a little earlier than planned. I have to say the train ride there is always better than the train ride home. I think at the end of the day I'm always tired and just want to be home. I got back to Groningen around 7pm, had some dinner and planned to go to bed early, which of course I did not do.

Today I'll be doing homework, working on a group assignment, tidying my room, etc.

Hope you are having a great weekend.

Here are a few pictures from my day in Delft.