Trams

[nybot]

Hi Guys,

I thought I would let you know that I got on a tram for the first time in life today whilst going to work in The Hague. Confusing at first as I couldn't work out which stop I was supposed to stand at, what with them using the wrong side of the road and the stops being in the middle of the street.

Anybody know what's good to do in The Hague by any chance or any building that are iconic of the city so I can film them for this job by any chance?

Thanks
Nybot

[Martin]

Hi Nybot,
Some nice things to see in The Hague is the Binnenhof, that's the place where the Dutch government is settled.
Other nice thing to see is the "paleis Lange Voorhout"
That is the palace where our Queen Beatrix uses as working palace.
When there is a flag on top, she's in.
Another nice place is Madourodam, The Netherlands on 40000m2.
You'll see a lot of important buildings of the Netherlands.
Also Het Vredespaleis, "The palace of peace" is a nice buiding (not to be visited).
Panorama Mesdag is a huge 360 D painting of the arrival of William I in 1813 just like the painting of the battle of Waterloo in the visitors centre on the battlefield.
So you see, a lot to do/see.
Have a nice time in our small but nice country.
BTW: we are not driving on the wrong side of the road: almost the whole world drives on the right side and not on the left side..................

[Benno]

I don't really know The Hague really well. I've been there only twice. What kind of work are you doing in The Hague? Only a week of shooting some film and then back to the Big Smoke?

You might want to do a tour in Het Binnenhof (home of the Dutch governement). A few parts of this complex are dated back from the Middle Ages. There's also a secret underground corridor that was used to flee when it was under siege, now some ministers use it to avoid the press hehe.

[Benno]

You could also visit some other places, with the train you're anywhere in the Netherlands within two hours!

There's a very nice Medieval castle in Muiden, and a historic train in Hoorn (where I was born ). Hoorn is also an old VOC town, with some buildings dating from the 16th century.

Anyhow, I really suggest you should travel throug the Netherlands by train. You can buy a ticket now (herfst tour) for 35 euros, with which you can travel unlimited through the whole country first class for one day, together with a second person! Ask for this ticket at the NS Service Desks.

This train is the most relaxed one (I travel with it to Enschede every day). Also the international train (on which you can travel untill Hengelo as an intercity) is very relaxed.

Prices of train tickets here aren't as high as they are abroad.

Almelo sucks big time, don't ever go there. It's a waste of time haha.

[nybot]

Hi guys and thanks for the pointers.

I am working at the World Forum in The Hague. Symantec have a big conference on at the moment and I am editing the closing video. What we wanted was some landmarks to set the film in The Hague. Kind of like Big Ben automatically says you are in London.

My friend the cameraman will be going out around the city today so I will pass on what you said. I think I passed the Peace Palace on the tram yesterday morning and most certainly today in the taxi.

The tram took some getting used to as I said but thankfully I met a good looking lady who spoke excellent English which I suppose isn't really a surprise in Holland. I did have a strange moment after I got off the tram and had to give some directions in Spanish to a couple of tourists. Especially as I had no real idea of where I was myself.

The main thing I have noticed about The Hague is that you have the bicycle thing sorted out a lot better then we do in London. Its safe for a start.

I would love to have some free time to see the place properly but I doubt I will get it as I go straight home on Thursday.

Thanks Again
Nybot

[Martin]

Hi Nybot,
Please post some photo's of your stay in The Hague.
It was the place where I was born, and I have still some relatives living in the area....

[Benno]

Sorry I couldn't help you out Nybot. The Hague doesn't has very distinctive landmarks except Het Binnenhof.

[nybot]

Hi Benno and Martin,

Sorry its taken me a while to reply to you both but jut so you know, you were both of help. And Benno that train ticket deal sounds to good to be true.

Martin sorry for the fact I only have a few photos to show you but as is often the case when I am working away, they just lock me in a dark room at the back of the venue and only let me out to sleep. I see so little daylight that on big jobs I end up looking something like Gollum.

Anyway here was my view waiting for my tram and also when I snuck out and tracked down the beer on my last night when they were holding a party. It was at a renovated church that is now used for functions. It was an amazing place and the band's singer was in awe of the place. He said there was nothing like it being used for this purpose in his home region of Bavaria.

[Benno]

Thanks for the pictures Nybot! That church looks awesome. In fact, in Enschede where I study there's also a renovated church used for these kind of stuff. Last year I played multiplayer games all evening in that church! Very strange, but fun.

That train ticket I mentioned is really sold, and they advertise a lot with it. Train tickets aren't very expensive here anyway.

[nybot]

Just as an example of the difference in price between Holland and England.

I live in London albeit the last town to the east of the city but I pay taxes into the Mayor of London's kitty. For me to get to work in the centre of London before 9:30 am costs £15. Yes fifteen English pounds. If you by a ticket last minute between London and Manchester (about 230 miles) it could cost you as much as £200.00 perhaps more.

Last you I bought myself a week B&B on the Greek island of Kefalonia for £250.00.

I can't make sense of it.

[nybot]

Oh I forgot to mention,

The guy on the right in the bottom picture was an American who dressed in traditional Dutch costume for 4 days. The airlines lost his luggage so he just went to a hire shop and wore that costume for the duration. Clogs and all.

[Benno]

Haha. What a fool! Nobody here is dressed like that.

[Adam]

Its your own fault for living in London Lybot, we all ride whippets to work up here- much cheaper. (of course the rich still use carrier pigeons to fly to the pit for a days graft)

Sorry to all non Brits to whom this will make no sense.

And Benno- don't lie, you wear cloggs all the time I know it.

[Benno]

I do.

[nybot]

Benno when did you guys stop the clog wearing and what were they actually for because they are so impractical? Were they just ceremonial or was the number of broken ankles in the Netherlands much higher then everywhere else in Europe through much of history?

And Adam we were so poor when I was growing up we used to sit around a candle for warmth. And when it got really cold my dad would light it.

[Benno]

Ehm, somewhere around the 1900s? Clogs are still worn, mostly when people work in the garden and stuff. They are actually very pleasant to wear. In the beginning they can be a bit uncomfortable, but after you've worn them a couple of times they adjust to the shape of your feet.

[nybot]

And Adam I would be careful before ridiculing the cloggies.
I just found this on wikipedia

Today, Dutch clogs are available in many tourist shops. Wearing clogs is considered to be healthy for the feet. In England, clogs were traditionally made of alder and were commonly worn by all classes throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. The Lancashire cotton mill workers habitually wore clogs because of the wet floors maintained in the cotton mills. There is a theory that clogging or clog dancing arose in these mills as a result of the mill workers entertaining themselves by syncopating foot taps with the rhythmic sounds made by the loom shuttles.

[Adam]

Aye, but we called them pattens, and they rarely were one piece. I've go tmine on now....

Candles eh... ooo la di dah, when I were a lad we used to gather round rocks fer warmth, and gratefull for it too we were.

[nybot]

Aye but you were lucky We used to live in one room, all twenty-six of us, no furniture, 'alf the floor was missing, and we were all 'uddled together in one corner for fear of falling.