A lovely day in Gouda

When we woke up it was overcast and very windy.  However, by the time we set off to walk into the centre of Gouda the sun was starting to shine.  We had a lovely walk along canals and residential streets, with plenty to look at.  We started the day by visiting the Sint Janskerk church to view the stained glass windows.  We did an audio tour which was most interesting.  Our next stop was the Gouda Museum, again an interesting place to visit.  We had a coffee in the café, where they were preparing for a wedding reception in the outdoor courtyard.  We actually almost bumped into the bride and groom as they left their hotel to walk to the reception with the photographer.  It took us a while, but we eventually found the Gouda Cheese Museum and, once again, did an interesting audio tour before having a tasting of Gouda cheese - young, goat and aged.  Usually I don’t like goat cheese, but this cheese was delicious.  The aged Gouda was a revelation - almost like a Parmesan.  We bought some to take to our friends in Sweden.

After leaving the Gouda Cheese Museum we wandered around the market square and chose a restaurant for a late lunch/early dinner.  It was a good choice - a white tablecloth and napkins, amuse bouche and a modern take on Coq au Vin, along with a soft red wine.  Delicious.  Afterwards we managed to find our way back to our hotel, so we’ve had a good walk and a most enjoyable day.

The staff in the Information Centre at the Gouda Cheese Museum suggested somewhere for us to cycle to tomorrow, so when we arrived back at the hotel MrMacD prepared the cycling route and I found and booked a hotel. 

The main blip shows various buildings in and around Gouda.  The extra shows interesting things we saw and did during the day.