Colorado University Athletics
Keeping Up With The Buffs: Netherlands Blog
July 24, 2023 | Lacrosse
Day 6 - Final Day in the Netherlands
NETHERLANDS -Â With one day remaining of our foreign tour, we made sure to fit various activities in. When in the Netherlands, it would be frowned upon to not partake in biking since Amsterdam is considered the bicycle capital of the world. So, as expected, our team scheduled a local bike tour!
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Fun fact: did you know that there are more bikes than people in the Dutch capital? If you've visited Amsterdam you will notice that bikes massively outnumber cars and the city is designed around two-wheeled transportation with bike paths, bike traffic lights, and cycling signs. Coming from America, it was extremely fascinating to observe as it's unlike anything I've ever seen before! We quickly learned that you have to be aware at all times when out and about so you don't get hit by another biker.Â
Our first destination of our all-day bike tour was the local field hockey club for our scheduled team practice. In honor of our last day abroad, we had a super fun practice consisting of various group competitions. Participating in creative and friendly competitions was the perfect way to wrap up our lacrosse portion of the trip.
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Following lacrosse practice and lunch, we continued our bike tour. Our second destination was the beach! At the beach, we walked to the strip to shop and eat. It was a bit too chilly to go in the ocean, so most of us strolled on the sand instead. The sounds of the waves and the feel of sunshine on my skin was very peaceful and calming. The final part of our tour was biking back to the hotel.
My teammates and I LOVED the bike tour! I felt like a local as I joined in on a huge part of Haarlem's city culture. Not to mention, the scenery was stunning. As we biked further away from the center of town, we entered a more suburban and residential area. I was awestruck as I soaked in everything around me. The area included lots of green, big trees, and Dutch style homes. I had no idea that the type of geography changed so drastically from the center of town to the outskirts. It reminded me of riding my bike in New Jersey, the state I grew up in. The combination of biking, one of my favorite activities, and scenic views led to an incredible experience for me!
My heart fills up when I reflect on my foreign trip with my Colorado Lacrosse team. I'm beyond thankful for the opportunity to travel to a foreign country with my teammates and make new memories together. Being abroad allowed me to gain new experiences, immerse myself in Dutch culture, and grow more confident. In addition, our foreign trip was excellent team bonding before our fall season starts on August 28th. Although our Netherlands adventures are over, it's just the beginning for CU lacrosse as there will be many more adventures ahead!
Thank you for following along and I hope you enjoyed my blog! This is Taylor Smith, signing off.
Day 5 - Amsterdam
Before we knew it, it was already day five of our foreign tour. I was especially looking forward to today because it's when we were visiting the Netherlands' capital city—Amsterdam!Â
As a team, we took a quick train ride from Haarlem to Amsterdam in the morning. Once we arrived in Amsterdam, we wasted no time as we wanted to make the most of the day and see and do as much as we could. Our first stop in Amsterdam was a canal cruise tour! I was in awe when I saw the city's picturesque canal and surrounding buildings. I loved that my team and I got the chance to tour Amsterdam on a canal cruise because it's considered a must-do tourist activity. It was well worth it!Â
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Next, we had a few hours of free time to explore the city. A few of my teammates and I ate lunch at a recommended bakery café named "De Laatste Kruimel", which translates to "The Last Crumb''. De Laatste Kruimel is a quaint tea shop in a tiny old Dutch shop, overlooking a canal, where little old buildings are higgledy-piggledy stacked against each other in narrow cobbled lanes. Its charming and old-fashioned aesthetic appealed to me right away before I even had a chance to take a sneak peak of the food. We ordered the café's acclaimed menu items. Our lunch consisted of iced lattes and sandwiches: roasted chicken thigh, cheddar cheese, onion compotes, and sundried cherry tomatoes on spelt bread—so much flavor! Plus, we shared a piece of carrot cake and red velvet cake, which were absolutely scrumptious! I highly recommend eating here if you ever find yourself in Amsterdam.Â
Post-lunch, we explored Amsterdam and went shopping! I thoroughly enjoyed taking in my surroundings as we wandered through the city. I had never seen anything like Amsterdam before. The streets were bustling with people, all from different parts of the world. I overheard different languages being spoken. I adored the old Dutch buildings and canals. Being exposed to a new culture was very beneficial because it opened my eyes to the world.Â
Late in the afternoon, our team toured the Anne Frank House. Although it can bring up a lot of emotions, it was a powerful and moving experience as we walked through the rooms of the house and heard and read stories detailing Anne's life during the horrific time period of the Holocaust.Â
Before taking the train back to Haarlem, I wanted to take advantage of being in one of the top ranked cities in the world. So, for my remaining time in Amsterdam, I made it my mission to experience more signature Dutch food. I tried bitterballens, which are made by making a very thick stew thickened with roux and beef stock and generously loaded with meat, refrigerating the stew until it firms, and then rolling the thick mixture into balls that then get breaded and fried. When eating bitterballens, it's typical to dip the balls into mustard. I also ate the famous Flemish fries with mayonnaise on top in a paper cone from Manneken Pis. They lived up to the hype because they were not like American french fries; instead they were thick fries made from Dutch potatoes. And of course, I had to end the night with a sweet treat: gelato!Â
Day 4 - Gouda
On day four in the Netherlands, our team transferred from Amersfoort to Gouda. Gouda is a Dutch city south of Amsterdam in the province of South Holland. We explored the city's historic center, which was  full of authentic shops and restaurants, medieval streets and buildings, canals, and inner courtyards. The main building that stood out to me was the "Stadhuis van Gouda", which is the 15th-century city hall in Gouda. Its aesthetic is a Gothic style building with red and white shutters.Â
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Of course, Gouda is also known for its namesake cheese and seasonal cheese market, regularly held on the medieval market square. So as expected, another historic building in the town center revolves around cheese. The building called "De Goudse Waag" is a 17th-century weighing house with displays on cheese making & local crafts, plus a tasting room.
I thought it was very intriguing to see the resemblances and differences between Gouda and Amersfoort. I'm still amazed at how old most of the buildings are as I saw many buildings that were built in the 1600s to even the 1100s——crazy to fathom that time period!
In addition to the incredible architecture in Gouda, the main highlight of our quick visit was making stroopwafels. Stroopwafels are a thin, round waffle cookie made from two layers of sweet baked dough held together by caramel filling. They are an extremely popular Dutch treat because it originated in Gouda! Making this popular Dutch snack was a cool activity that made me feel a little more connected to Dutch culture. I could taste the authenticity of the freshly baked stroopwafel compared to the pre-packaged ones.
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After experiencing Gouda, our team transferred to Haarlem for our next Netherlands adventure! We ended the night by exploring Haarlem's center of town and eating dinner as a team at a local Italian restaurant.
Day 3 - Amersfoort & Dutch National Team
Our second full day in Amersfoort was jam packed with lots of lacrosse! In the morning, we defeated the Netherlands in our final game of the foreign tour. Following the game we ate lunch with the opposition and then participated in our second Zag give back activity, which was a cooperative practice with the Dutch. Our CU lacrosse team combined with the Netherlands team for skills and drills led by our CU coaches. The purpose of the clinic was to expose the Dutch to our playing & practice style and teach them new concepts to expand their game, as well as to interact with each other.Â
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My teammates and I had so much fun talking with the Dutch players and asking them lots of questions about their culture. I find it fascinating to step out of the "U.S. bubble" and learn about the differences in ways of living in another country. We all especially enjoyed learning how to say certain phrases in Dutch. We learned that the word "lekker" in Dutch refers to anything good or nice. For example, if someone scores a goal, the girls will yell "lekker". Needless to say, our team enthusiastically shouted "lekker" quite a bit during the cooperative practice to embrace the Dutch culture.Â
In the evening, our team had free time to explore the town of Amersfoort more. A couple of my teammates and I ended up eating dinner at a restaurant called "De Vier Broers", which translates to "The Four Brothers''. I ate a phenomenal beef burger with a side of fries—in case you didn't know, the Dutch are known for their fries! The meal was absolutely mouthwatering——so fresh and rich in flavor WOW. To end on a sweet note, we walked to a new restaurant to eat dessert. I ordered the "appeltaart" (Dutch apple tart) with whip cream because I heard it was one of the popular foods in the Netherlands——so delicious! There are many enticing things about traveling, and trying local cuisine is certainly one of my favorite parts!Â
To close the night, our whole team found our way to the same restaurant, so we combined tables and shared many laughs and stories together! As we bonded and reminisced on the day, I knew our foreign adventures thus far were the kinds of moments we will be reflecting fondly on and wishing to relive. Overall, my Netherlands experiences have reminded me of what life is all about, along with importance of being present and soaking everything in!
Days 1 & 2 - Travel & Amersfoort
After a long day of traveling, we finally landed in the Netherlands on July 21st! As a team, we practiced at the local club in Amersfoort, walked to a nearby restaurant for our first dinner abroad together, and got settled into the hotel. My teammates and I couldn't wait for tomorrow's full day of adventures to start!
— AND FINALLY, on July 22nd, our Netherlands adventures were here at last!!!! In the morning, our team hit the ground running with our first game and win against Germany. We played according to the International Lacrosse Rules, which were slightly different from the NCAA rules (one of the main changes was that it was 6v6 instead of 7v7). It was a super cool experience, especially being able to interact with our foreign opponents after the game. Meeting new people and exchanging information and stories about each of our cultural norms was extremely fascinating. It definitely piqued my curiosity for the world because I realized there are so many different places with unique cultures to discover and immerse ourselves in. This realization made me feel a massive wave of gratitude for lacrosse because it's not just a sport; it's also giving me the opportunity to explore a part of Europe and expand my perspective on the world——such an invaluable experience!
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Following lunch at the local club, we had free time to explore Amersfoort. I walked to the center of town, and it was adorable to say the least! I was in absolute awe of the old Dutch architecture. As I roamed the side streets with some of my teammates, I romanticized every single thing I saw, from the canals, to the cyclists, the bakeries, and the farmers' markets. It felt like I was the main character in a movie. Everything was beautiful. If I could, I would have spent hours wandering every alley in the cute, traditional Dutch town.Â
I also thought it was super cool being exposed to the popular Dutch foods, such as Poffertjes, which are small pancakes, baked in an iron skillet, and traditionally served with melted butter and dusted with icing sugar——nutella was also drizzled on the ones I saw in town! I even observed locals enjoying their famous cheese french fries and worstenbroodjes (Dutch sausage rolls). As a huge foodie, I wanted to try all of the popular Dutch foods!
To make the most of my time abroad and see multiple sights, I walked to Koppelpoort, which is a historical landmark in the Netherlands. Specifically, it's a medieval gate in Amersfoort that was built around 1425 and combines land and water gates. I thought it was very pretty and awesome to see an old landmark because it's definitely not something you see every day in the U.S.
To end the night, our team participated in a Zag give back and adventure: stand up paddle clean up. In the beginning, we were all a little nervous and hesitant to get on the paddle boards in fear of falling in the canal. But, once we got on our boards, we all picked it up pretty quickly. While paddle boarding, we retrieved any garbage we saw in the canal. I'm so appreciative of the experience as it was something I would've never thought to try before. It was really fun trying something new as a team and having lots of laughs in the process!
Overall, Amersfoort broadened our horizons as it was a great opportunity for cultural exploration and going out of our comfort zones!
