Excursion: Hague
The Hague contains the seat of the Dutch government and parliament, the Supreme Court, and the Council of State, but the city is not the capital of Netherlands, which constitutionally is Amsterdam.
This excursion sheds light on The Hague’s Binnenhof, which has always been the heart of Dutch politics – a role that it fulfills to this very day. There will be a guided tour through the Hall of Knights and the House of Representatives. There will also be a video presentation that focuses on the history of the Binnenhof itself.
The Hall of Knights has been the setting for the reading of the King’s speech at the annual opening of Parliament, where he announces the Government’s plans for the coming year to the parliament and to the Dutch people.
The building is a large Gothic hall with stained glass windows depicting the coats of arms of Dutch towns as well as a rose window with the arms of the principal noble families of the Netherlands. The heavy roof structure has the appearance of an upturned ship and there are wooden heads symbolizing eavesdroppers, which are supposed to deter members of the assembly from lying.
The House of Representatives is the lower house of the Parliament with 150 seats. The tour focuses on the transparency and symbolism behind the format and structure of the House. Constituents can chat with various members of Parliament and they can attend meetings by sitting at a specific area reserved for the public. There is also a discussion about the purposeful use of colors and shapes within this chamber, including the tulip-inspired shape of the chairs and the green-colored floor.
Free time is also built into this excursion since we arrive early to the Hague. We were given two hours to do other activities: a museum visit, casual shopping and a quick lunch before we started our tours.
There are several excellent museums in the Hague such as the Escher Museum (the works of graphical artist, M. C. Escher, can be seen), Mauritshuis (The Girl with the Pearl Earing) and the Louwman Museum (museum for historic cars, coaches, and motorcycles).
Do some research and decide what exactly you want to do. Two hours may seem like a lot of time, but it is actually limited. Having a plan saves you time and you'll have a better idea of what to do. Otherwise, you'll end up like me - lost and confused, walking around aimlessly and waiting for the tour to start.