Diplomat Magazine organised a friendly walk throughout Haarlem. The walking tour – organized for diplomats only – highlighted some of the most exciting sites to be visited in this beautiful city, which is unfortunately too often overshadowed by Amsterdam.
Haarlem, an incredibly authentic ‘Hollandse’ city, welcomed the group with a sunny day – the perfect whether for a walking tour.
A large number of diplomats – from Switzerland to Canada, from Rwanda to Cuba, from Azerbaijan to Sweden, from Peru to Germany, from Ghana to Vietnam and more – enjoyed this beautiful city, with its canals, windmills and 17th-century narrow houses with huge windows.
They learned about Haarlem’s history and its absolutely beautiful and peaceful hidden gardens.
Besides admiring the beauty of Haarlem, the group was privileged to benefit from the expertise of two unique tour guides, the expert Sherman McGrew, as well as Mr. Johannes Enschedé, one of the most notorious lawyers and historians from Haarlem, and a direct descendant of Izaak Enschedé, the first printer of Dutch bank notes in 1703 and of the local newspaper “Opregte Haarlemsche Courant” in 1737 (one of the oldest newspapers in the world).
Mr. Enschedé accompanied the group from Haarlem Central Station through all the key places in the city, explaining details about historical buildings, churches, statues, plazas, as well as about the Enschedé Museum, a part of the Dutch history and of his own too. We will never thank enough Mr. Enschedé for the privilege of his personal engagement with our group of diplomats.
The tour started at Leonardo Royal Hotel at 11:00, with the group getting into the bus at the parking lot of the hotel. The walking tour was about four hours long, including time to shops at the market in the center, as well as to enjoy good food and drinks to cool down at the end of the day.
