The Netherlands Archives - sateless suitcase

Life Snippets of 2019: The Before, the C-Word, the After

I was sitting outside the doctor's office waiting for my husband who had an appointment upstairs. It was an unusually warm February day and I had taken off my winter coat to soak in the early spring sun. Steffen was supposed to get some test results back. He had been having strange pains for a couple of weeks. At first I had thought he was just making up excuses to get out of our Sunday morning yoga class routine, but as the pains got worse I asked him to get checked out. It was taking long. Too long. I rolled [...]

By Julika|2021-12-12T17:45:57+01:002019/09/19|Categories: Specials|Tags: Amsterdam, Austria, Bavaria, Europe, Germany, The Netherlands|7 Comments

My 2013 Highlights via Instagram

I've done a lot of review posts this year and you might hate me for it already. Fair enough. But I love reading reviews and I also love writing them. The idea of the year ending makes me nostalgic. I like reminiscing. And honestly, I'm one of those 21st century people with the attention span of a Buzzfeed list -- I mean, what offers more entertainment than a list of photos with witty headlines? Especially during the holidays when there's not much time to spend hours reading online in-between all the family dinners? I'm won't go all "27 Inappropriate Outfits [...]

By Julika|2014-03-09T23:46:39+01:002013/12/30|Categories: Specials|Tags: Europe, France, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland, The Netherlands|20 Comments

Around the World in Coffees: The 2013 Edition

About one year ago, I collected all my coffee photos from my previous years of travel and combined them in a photo essay called "Around the World in 80 Coffees". This post didn't cover the whole world, nor 80 coffees, but it presented a view of the world through the eyes someone who loves coffee and travel equally. From fantastic Portuguese galois on the beach to spectacularly good espressos in hip London coffee shops like Prufrock, 2012 was a great year in "caffeine travel" for me. So I ended my 2012 coffee post with the resolution to travel more and [...]

By Julika|2014-03-20T09:21:40+01:002013/12/09|Categories: Specials|Tags: Belgium, Europe, France, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland, The Netherlands|24 Comments

Utrecht’s Amazing Illumination Festival

My previous posts on Utrecht already revealed that I really fell hard for this gorgeous little Dutch city, but I saved the very best for last. Because among beautiful canals, delicious food and great museums there was one last thing that I loved even more than all of the above: The Trajectum Lumen Festival. These amazing outdoor installations are where the city's beautiful sights and landmarks meet incredibly creative light design. Illuminated Utrecht at night Utrecht's colorful lighting installations can be seen immediately after nightfall and all over the city. And the best thing about: It's free, it's absolutely unique [...]

By Julika|2013-08-03T18:30:49+02:002013/06/28|Categories: Destinations, Europe, The Netherlands|Tags: Architecture, Art, Europe, The Netherlands|6 Comments

Why Utrecht is a Museum Lover’s Paradise

Museums are tricky. At least when it comes to travel writing. Many travel bloggers openly admit that they "don't do museums". Some even say that they don't like museums in general. And from a travel writing perspective, I understand. Museums are not adventure sports. A visit to a museum won't include how I overcame my fear of heights while bungee jumping in the dessert. Or how I almost drowned while wild water rafting in a river full of piranhas. To be honest, writing about museums is almost doomed to be boring. And then sometimes you aren't even allowed to take [...]

By Julika|2013-07-16T21:53:39+02:002013/06/22|Categories: Destinations, Europe, The Netherlands|Tags: Art, Europe, Museums, The Netherlands|7 Comments

Photo Essay: Utterly Dutch Utrecht

I knew I would like Utrecht. My little sister has been there a few years ago and said it was like a mini Amsterdam. When I visited Amsterdam a while back, the city and I didn't really connect. I mean -- I had a great time in Amsterdam, I liked the pretty canals and enjoyed the cliché touristy stuff like visiting the Heineken Brewery. But somehow, Amsterdam felt too crowded, too crammed with the typical let's-get-high-and-see-prostitutes-tourists. So to me, a picturesque mini version of Amsterdam sounded very promising. And Utrecht did not disappoint. Whereas Amsterdam has complex ring-like system of [...]

By Julika|2013-06-25T15:05:12+02:002013/06/10|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Architecture, Europe, medieval, Photo Essay, The Netherlands|19 Comments

How Holland (Almost) Turned Me into a Foodie

By no means I'm a foodie. I'm a picky eater. I don't like experiments. I sometimes have to force myself to even try new flavors in the first place. Throughout the last years I have at least tried to become a more open eater and realized that it was probably dumb to have lived more than twenty years without eating pineapples and eggplants just because I was too scared to try them and they looked funny. Traveling of course has made me more curious and more open about food, but I would still call myself a very picky pescetarian. Yes, [...]

By Julika|2013-10-27T11:43:51+01:002013/06/06|Categories: Destinations, Europe, The Netherlands|Tags: Europe, The Netherlands|13 Comments

Rotterdam via Instagram

Ever since I upgraded my embarrassing (but beloved), old-fashioned brick stone of a cell phone to a 21st century one, I've developed a slight addiction with taking photos on the road and instagramming them. And I also love integrating my Instagram photos into blog posts as a destination sneak peek, which I have done quite frequently during last months. This time however, I decided to introduce Rotterdam through scenic dSLR photos with blue skies first, although they are not really representative of my stay there... The old harbor of Rotterdam on the one (!) beautiful May day I took most [...]

By Julika|2013-06-04T22:40:45+02:002013/05/31|Categories: Destinations, Europe, The Netherlands|Tags: Europe, The Netherlands|8 Comments

Photo Essay: Dissenting Rotterdam

Rotterdam is a city with a reputation. And that's not the very best one. I've heard people calling it the ugliest city in the Netherlands. I knew before I arrived that I wouldn't find anything I usually love about European towns in Rotterdam: No narrow cobblestone streets, no old-fashioned cafés, no breathtaking Gothic churches. All the words and phrases I normally use to serenade the picturesque cities of Europe can't be used when describing Rotterdam. Let's face it -- Rotterdam is not the typical European city, because it doesn’t have a medieval city center with ancient little shops and tiny [...]

By Julika|2022-01-05T15:14:23+01:002013/05/27|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Europe, Photo Essay, The Netherlands|13 Comments

Photo Essay: The Canals of Amsterdam

I have already revealed that I will be spending several days in the Netherlands this year -- I'm so excited to be back in the land of Gouda, tulips and Rembrandt soon! Going through some of my old photos reminded me how incredibly adorable this country is... and made me look forward to exploring Holland in May even more! Water is everywhere in Amsterdam! Amsterdam and the Netherlands in general are defined by the water. Its history, industry, and architecture are closely intertwined with the presence of water and it's pretty much impossible to not be aware of this all [...]

By Julika|2013-05-07T13:58:05+02:002013/03/18|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Amsterdam, Europe, Photo Essay, The Netherlands|14 Comments