Before dating my Hunk, I’d never heard of the city of Groningen. However, my hunk spends a good deal of his working week in this city so it was high time I went to visit him there.
Where is Groningen?
Groningen is situated in the North of The Netherlands, not too far from the North Sea.
Visiting Hunk At Work
After a late night socialising, we were up early to get to work (hunk begins at 7am… Craziness!) and once there I was given the grand tour!
How good do we make hard hats look? (I cannot show the background of my image, sorry!)
The Lone Tourist
While Hunk was at work, I spent the day checking out Groningen city.
First of all, it has a similar (albeit way smaller) look to Amsterdam. The architecture is the same and it culminates in Squares (Pleins) with cafes and bars and other good things just like The Dam.
The Groninger Museum
I decided I had to go in purely based on what the building looks like.
Within the museum were a few different exhibits. 2 floors dedicated to a Chinese artist called Song Dong. His work was very interesting, working with film, drawing and creating immersive art. One of the pieces was a map of the world with candies all over it – which you could take. It was interesting to see which countries had been uncovered first.
Another artists work on display was H N Werkman who was a painter and printer. He used a printing press to create his works, and used stenciling and stamping. During the war, Werkman created a series of images as a rebellion of the Nazi Occupation. He was shot by Nazi firing squad 3 days before Groningen was liberated…
The museum took me 90 minutes to explore – but I’m not the type to stand in front of every single painting and read ALL of the info.
It cost €11. Well worth it.
Martini Toren
Martini Toren (Tower) is located in the centre and heart of the city. It’s a tall bell tower (97 metres high) which can be climbed for its views of the city.
Costing €3, I decided to go up.
As the staircase is one winding route, thankfully there are 4 levels in which you can make stops on your way to the top. These stops have educational materials about the tower so you will want to stop even if you aren’t panting like a dog.
The 3rd level had the best view in the tower. You had a great view out of all 4 sides and the protective poles had big enough gaps to point your camera through to avoid having the wires in your photos… (or not..)
The very top was beautifully windy which was perfect. I was sweating from the climb so the breeze was a god send.
Der Aa Kerk (Church)
I had seen Der Aa Kerk throughout the day, as it has quite a prominent spire. As I was wandering the streets aimlessly, I stumbled upon it and decided to take a look inside.
It cost €4 to get in, and the church is actually a modern art gallery as well! Double score!
My favourite piece of art inside Der Aa Kerk was the Earthquake Room. The room has clocks all over the walls all shaking at different speeds and directions, which makes you feel like you are yourself shaking!
Highly recommend checking it out.
Groningen Wrap
As to be expected, the people in Groningen are delightful. I have little Dutch language skills and I was lost a lot of the time. However the bus drivers and shop owners and market stall vendors were all eager to help in any way!
It is not a town where I could continually be finding new things to do like Amsterdam, however if you are passing through, do yourself a favour and stay a while to check out this little gem in the North of Holland!
Have you been to Groningen?
Australian expat, married to a Dutch guy, living in Amsterdam. Previously lived in London for 3 years, too! Lover of travel, coffee, brunch, beaches, fresh flowers, and family. Now a new mum, navigating life with a baby!
