Although I must admit that I am not a massive fan of Dutch cheese (apart from the
zeer oud), I find the objects and traditions around it very intriguing.
For instance, before moving to Holland I didn't know that the object called
kaasschaaf existed. Nor had I ever thought that millions of people could eat bread and cheese for lunch every single day.
So indeed, very fascinating.
There are therefore some must see places for Dutch cheese's aficionados and I think that the capital of the bright yellow stuff must definitely be Gouda. (
although I personally associate Gouda mostly with a former colleague with a passion for fossils and body building, but I'm digressing...)
In summer, the best day to visit is Thursday morning, when the traditional cheese market takes place on the Markt. Cheeses are weighted and then traded with a ritual involving loads of hands moving and shaking.
Free samples and plenty of photo ops are offered to the visitors and there's a market selling traditional crafts too.
Gouda cheese market
