Zaanse Schans (Holland Windmills)

Zaanse Schans Windmills

On our way to Portugal we had a long layover in Amsterdam. Since we didn't get out of the city on our last trip to Amsterdam, we decided to take advantage of the long layover and book a tour to Zaanse Schans to check out the windmills.

We had an overnight flight into Amsterdam and arrived very early in the morning. We took a cab from the airport into the city center. It was a very expensive ride, and would not recommend traveling that way unless absolutely necessary (but it was a Tesla).

We had a little time to kill, so we walked around an area near the red light district. Everything was pretty dead since it was so early in the morning, but the narrow winding streets were still beautiful.

Amsterdam in the Rain

It started to rain pretty hard while we were walking around, so we headed into a little cafe for some coffee and pancakes. We had two types of traditional dutch pancakes.

After warming up a bit, we decided to head over to central station to walk around where it was covered, and we wouldn't be in the rain.

Central Station

Most of the shops were not yet open, so there wasn't too much to see. We then headed over to meet our tour guide just outside of Central Station and head to Zaanse Schans.

We'd seen the iconic images of the windmills of Holland and always assumed they were far out in the countryside, however they're basically located basically in a suburb of Amsterdam. Of the several windmills there, some are still used for industrial purposes and some are not, but they are all beautiful to look at.

Entering Zaanse Schans

Zaanse is a very picturesque little town with houses and shops interspersed with the windmills.

Cute little house in Zaanse Schans

We saw a clog making demonstration and even tried on a few pairs to see how they felt. We can't imagine actually wearing them all day.

Trying on some of their assortment of clogs

We also visited a cheese shop, and they explained their process and how aging the cheese makes a huge difference in flavor and texture. We also got to try some delicious samples.

Dutch Gouda Demonstration

We go to go up in a windmill that was actually still operational. They make pigments for paints there and use the mill to crush the pigments into powder. This is how paint was made back in the day, so their paints are now mostly used for restoration work on old paintings.

The inner workings of a windmill

They use lots of green paint

We also checked out a demonstration on how they make pewter and watched an old man pour the molten metal into molds. Then it was time for the 25 minute drive back into Amsterdam.

Pewter demonstration

Once back in Amsterdam, we decided to grab a bite to eat and headed to Mannekenpis for some of Holland's famous "frites" or fries. We ordered them the traditional way, Oorlog (with peanut sauce and mayonnaise). They were delicious, but very rich, so we were glad we decided to split one order.

Frites with peanut sauce, mayo, and onions

Then it was time to head back to the airport. Having learned our lesson with the expensive cab ride, we took the train from Central Station which was much more affordable.