Like many fortified old cities, Delft welcomes you with the twin tower of its city gate, graced by an old drawbridge and a canal moat. Its delightful architecture recalls the Golden Age, the 17 century pinnacle of Dutch trade and sea power.
Quaint scenes line intimate canals. If you happen to be there on Thursday that means market day in Delft. In towns all over the Netherland main squares become thriving markets one day a week.
Towering over the square is the church with its brick steeple rocketing skyward. And facing that overseeing the town’s commerce as it has for nearly a thousand years, is the City Hall. Much of the Netherlands is built on a soggy land.
The Oude Kerk, literally Old Church, was built in 1240 and has a characteristic architecture.
The City Hall with its heavy stone jail, was built on the most solid land in town. The Delft city hall, which underwent a 20th C restoration, is an original Renaissance architecture. Delft City Hall is besides one of the most important structures in Delft also a quite impressive one.
The leaning church just down the canal, not so much. The town’s historic canals both drained the land and provided a transportation network for barges. Today the old barges are retired , many are permanently moored in front of cafes and restaurants or outdoor dining.
The Blues Festival Delft is a free festival during which more than 50 blues bands perform live at more than 30 different locations in the city of Delft. It’s the perfect occasion to explore this quintessentially Dutch city’s cafes while discovering great music. So if you happen to visit Delft during February you are In for a treat.
Over the centuries the little canals in Delft shipped out countless barge loads, of the town’s fames earthenware.
Delftware is famous all around the world. Royal Delft the oldest surviving workshop, welcomes visitors to drop in and see how it is made. Visitors to the factory follow the process . First the liquid clay is poured into plaster molds .
When dry it is removed and the seams are smoothed off.Than it is baked, after that lovingly painted by hand. A mesmerizing scene unchanged from centuries. After being glazed to fix the paint it baked second time and the paint turns blue.
