Gouda say cheese!

The station

A walk around the historic Gouda city center will surprise you, it will take you along many ancient monuments quaint canals and picturesque  secluded courts alleys and streets.

I did the city walk and enjoyed it!

Gouda is a pretty little place some 25 kilometres of Rotterdam.

When you take the train from Rotterdam, it brings you in about 20 minutes to Gouda.

The town is definitely worth a visit.

It has a lot of charm and a lot of old buildings and about 300 monuments.

Gouda is famous for its famous cheese, smoking pipes and its 15^th century city hall.

Gouda takes the name from the van der Gouda family, who built a castle along the Gouwe river.

Gouda is world famous for its Gouda cheese (Goudse Kaas) which still is traded on its cheese market held each Thursday (starting mid-June and lasting until early September)

Cheese from Gouda is a yellow cheese made from cow`s milk.

Goudse kaas, Cheese of Gouda

In the middle of the city, there`s The Waag, the old weigh-house for cheese traders..

Now it`s a national monument across from the old city hall.

Now there`s a museum in it, called “The Gouda cheese and crafts museum”, which is open until 17.00 hours.

You can book a guided tour on request if you like.

On the market square there is the city hall, a unique construction boasting late-gothic and Renaissance elements.

It`s really great and many married couples were photographed here.

If there are no weddings you can tour the City hall between 10.00 and 12.00 hrs and during afternoons from 14.00 to 16.00 hrs.

Then there is the longest church of the Netherlands (123 metres) with the enormous collection of stained glass from the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.

Goudse kaas, Cheese of Gouda

There are some 70 windows created by artist from various cities called De Goudse Glazen (the Goudse windows)

The city bought the cartoons from the artists and now they are preparing the cartoons.

The St Jans church houses one of the world`s largest collections of stained glass.

And nowhere in the world is there such an extensive collection of accompanying cartoons.

The church is really worth a visit, also the beautiful inside of it!

I`ve also visit the pharmaceutical museum “de Mondriaan”  which is located in a historical 16^th century house.

This museum presents the fascinating history of pharmacy and the development of medicines.

Behind  the St Jans church is also a museum,  Museum Gouda, also very nice to see, it`s a historical museum.

The Waag

This museum gives you a good overview of Gouda, furniture, weapons, paintings.

Under the chapel there`s a dungeon.

There`s an interesting display of  torture equipment.

It s to awful to explain!

I made photo`s of it.

There`s also a prisoners cell.

When you pay 2,75 for visit the St Jans church you can also visit the Gouda Museum and the Pharmaceautical museum for the same price, it`s very cheap, I think too cheap!

It was really nice too see, all of them, there was no time any more for the cheese museum, so I have to go back to Gouda, also for shopping!

I saw lively shopping streets with many lovely shops!

So when you are in Gouda you will have more then enough for an unforgettable stay there!

Oh and don`t forget to try the traditional tasty syrup waffles (Goudse stroopwafels)  made of several kinds of sugar and pure butter.

So don`t forget to buy them, for yourself and your family, because  they are really delicious!