The biggest village in the world

Ahh, long weekend. We decided to use this beautiful free time and have a oneday city-break... in a village. And though we were not surrounded with farm animals and idyllic landscape (rather the opposite... lovely old tenement houses, palaces, skyscrapers), I'll allow myself to be a bit sharp-tongued because of the historical facts.

The Hague, because that's the place I'm talking about, didn't officialy get the city rights. Neverthless it had a lot of city privileges since ages. True, in 1810 Napoleon gave The Hague a right to this title, but it was in a way an afterthought. In 1798 the tradition of giving city rights was officially abolished, so the generous gift from Napoleon was rather symbolic. Teases (including me) like to point it out and joke that the Dutch parliament, the monarch and the International Court of Justice are based in a village ;)

Skyscrapers with the following ministries: M. of education, culture and sciene (the white "sail"), M. of health (the blue-oragne "houses"), M. of justice (red brick) and M. of the interior (white) as a backgroud of the square Plein

We didn't have too much time for visiting and we really don't like to rush. That's why we skipped the museums (Mauritshuis was closed anyway because of the renovation), Madurodam (other words: The Netherlands in minature) and the most popular beach resort in the country Scheveningen. Instead we walked around the city the whole day. Of course we got lost somewhere on a way, but that's already our tradition. I actually believe, that's the best way to discover the coolest places and to get to know the city. 

Binnenhof

Het Torentje (meaning "The Little Tower") - an office of the prime minister ;)

Knight's Hall  on a courtyard

We started our stroll from the  Binnenhof and followed a direction of the Old Town. Passing by fancy, luxury boutiques sixteenth-century church Grote Kerk, cute oldschool trams and cafes and terraces filled with people, suddenly we've got lost. Wandering between small streets, quite unexpectedly we found a house where Spinoza lived! And from there, there's only few steps to get to China Town. 

House of Spinoza

The biggest and most famous attractions of the Hague were still waiting for us: the Royal Palace, the palace garden and the Palace of Peace, where the International Court of Justice is based. We didn't meet Maxima ;) but on a way to Vredespaleis, somewhere between many embassies and consulates we found the cutes square. Very sunny Anna Pavlovna's Square surrounded with tenement houses and white-blooming trees with few tables standing in a middel (a terrace of one of cafes). We had to stop there for a small white beer and to pose next to a statue of the Great Princess of Russia and the Queen of the Netherlands.

Royal Palace in the Hague

Anna Pavlovna's Square 

Palace of Peace

Moi and my new pal queen Anna Pavlovna

Not bad for a village ;)