English title: Why should you visit Utrecht? (Translated to Dutch with Google)
Utrecht isn’t only the 4th largest city in the laid-back country that is the Netherlands, it’s also very much my favourite. And way quieter than it’s overflowing neighbour to the north, Amsterdam. At least tourist wise.
You can even use your OV card from Amsterdam for transportation in Utrecht.
In 2012, Lonely Planet included Utrecht in the top 10 of the world’s unsung places. (>Wikipedia; Lonely Planet)
One can spend at least hours, if not days exploring the cities medieval core, with the famous Domkerk in the middle.
Even locals can discover ‘new’ stuff by showing strangers their hometown. Like when a friend of mine showed me around and we ended up in some weirdly awesome back alleys.
Even if exploring isn’t your pair of shoes, Utrecht has a lot to offer.
You can easily spend the day in some nice bohemian cafe or stroll around the market and eat fresh Stroopwaffels (waffles baked with sirup in between), loads of cheese and delicious fish.
For dinner, you can have pretty much anything you can imagine, or you just eat some Roti here.
Give it a shot! It’s only 27 minutes with the train, when you leave from Amsterdam Centraal. (>Google Maps) You can also use your OV card for that, by the way.
I’ve taken that journey the other way around for New Years Eve 2016. And I’ll definitely return to Utrecht, and the rest of the Netherlands, one day. Especially since my OV card is still valid until 2020, and even have some cash left on it.
PS: I’m probably going to go to Assen, also in the Netherlands, for Formula Student (>FS NL) this July. But only if I’m not too deeply covered in exams.
Robin Ho Fotos 