24 hours in Volendam

I recently spoke to two Americans who had never been to New York, and I found that quite strange. Until I realized that I myself had never been to Groningen. Or to Schiermonnikoog. I only know Volendam from the internet. Say whuuut. That last village of the best singers is really only half an hour's drive from our office. So Bel and I jumped in take the Renault TWINGO for a day of eel villages. Also for the first time in Volendam? This is where you're going.

Start the day with…
Yeah duh, a walk along the dike of course. With the harbor and the IJsselmeer on one side and a mix of shops, terraces, restaurants, fish stalls, and souvenir shops on the other: the dike is always cozy. Watch out that you don't trip over the tourists, goodness, those people are everywhere, I tell you.

Savoring culture
Jan Smit. The 3J’s. Nick & Simon… I don't know exactly what it is with all those artists coming from Volendam, but the village is proud of it and the world should know. How is it possible that all those musical families come from this small fishing village? You’ll find the answer in the Palingsound Museum. Just laugh a bit while taking a look.

Lunch
During a round of questions ‘where should we hang out around one o'clock?’ our own Adeline came up with the answer. ‘LOOK! Go. To. Pavilion. Smit-Bokkum. The. Best. Eel. Ever. Period.’ You don't have to tell me twice, you know. And she was damn right. Pavilion Smit-Bokkum is home to the world-famous artisanal eel smokehouse where the only genuine, genuine, really famous flavor maker of Volendam has been smoked since 1856. Buttery fat. Fingerlicking good. Maybe I went home with thirty euros worth of eel in my bag.

And of course, you take that ridiculously staged tourist photo in traditional costume.
You wouldn't go to Paris without seeing the Eiffel Tower, would you? That's what I thought. Cliché or not, this is just a must. Annabelle and I almost cried in that shop. What a delightful experience. Fifteen euros to go solo in the photo, twenty euros if you go together. By the way, there are several shops that offer the service, but Foto de Boer on the dike is the one you need to have.

Wines, wines, wines
Honestly: nothing beats cozily settling down on a terrace by the harbor with a good glass of white wine. My favorites of the day are Lotje Wine & Dine and De Dijk.

And well, further…
Our day in Volendam was mainly about food. Is that normal? We thought so. Herring tasting. Eating ice cream. Poffertjes. Warm waffles with chocolate. More eel. To be honest, I have to say that we got a little nauseous getting back in the car, but hey, you can't say we didn't make the most of it. Volendam is really a place you should see at least once, I think. Does anyone have a pen for me? Can cross off some of that bucket list, woohoo.

In collaboration with Renault