We took a 2nd day trip from Amsterdam while we were there last month, but this one was a little closer than Madurodam was.  Once again, we took the train, but this time to a small town called Zaandam.

Let’s start out by admiring the central train station in Amsterdam.

It’s pretty spectacular, isn’t it?

It was built in 1889 and features a cast iron platform roof.

The train from Amsterdam to Zaandam takes just under 15 minutes.  Once you arrive in Zaandam, it’s just a short walk through town and then across the bridge over the river Zaan to Zaanse Schans.

I was delighted to discover that the typical historic color for houses in the Netherlands was green, and there were plenty of green houses lining the bank of the river.

And on the opposite side of the river were the windmills we’d come to see.

Zaanse Schans is a sort of open air museum filled with classic Dutch wooden houses, windmills, barns and shops.

It’s not strictly a museum though, because people actually live in some of the houses.

It is incredibly charming, but also quite touristy.

Several bus loads of tourists arrived shortly after we did, but that didn’t spoil the ambiance for me.

We still found quiet spots to enjoy.

Maybe because most of the tourists were in the cheese shop scarfing down the free samples.

My sister is always game to pose for a cheesy photo.

We’d picked this trip mainly because we wanted to see the windmills.

You can’t really get any more Dutch than a windmill, can you?

But actually, we really enjoyed visiting the clog factory and learning all about how wooden shoes were made.

And we enjoyed checking out the Albert Heijn Museum.

Albert Heijn is a chain of supermarkets in the Netherlands that began in 1887.  This little museum is set up to look like a small grocers from that time frame.

My sister is also one of those people who loves a good grocery store, and we always have to check out the local grocery shops when we travel.  We also have been known to pop into a grocery store and put together a picnic dinner rather than dining in a restaurant, so we did check out a couple of other Albert Heijn stores during our stay in Amsterdam.  So it was interesting to learn about their beginnings.

However, I don’t think it will surprise you to learn that my favorite spot in Zaanse Schans was a lovely little antique shop.

The Het Jagershuis is located in the oldest house in Zaanse Schans, built in 1623.

It’s easy to see why their courtyard drew me in.

If only I could have thought of some way to get one of those concrete garden ornaments home.

I did manage to find a souvenir there that would fit in my suitcase though.

It’s a hand-painted antique Dutch ice skate!

I’m sure the average Dutch citizen would think it’s a cheesy souvenir, but I love it.

Can you imagine actually strapping skates like that on over your boots and heading out on the ice?  I’d likely break an ankle.

The skate was only 21€, and I thought that was a total bargain.  I’ll definitely use it as Christmas decor, maybe hanging it from a wreath or sled.

We really enjoyed our day at Zaanse Schans, despite how touristy it was.  It may have helped that it was warm and sunny, it was one of the few days on our trip where it didn’t rain at all.  It was definitely worth the short train ride to get there!