Groningen, Netherlands

I did a one-week course for HDS Academy in Groningen back in May. While I've done a bunch of classes in Nederland over the last few years, they've all been at the European Education Center in Waardenburg (which is now moving to Frankfurt). Thus, my exploration of the country has always been vertical, along the A2(E25) motorway.

Groningen is a 3-hour train ride to the northeast of Amsterdam, on your way to the German border with Denmark. The train trip was not bad, though; an InterCity runs from AMS to Groningen, so it's sit down, connect to the Wi-Fi, and all is well.

The office where I taught was on the western side of town, with the hotel nearby. I'd walk into the city center for dinner/exploration on the days when it wasn't rainy. The tower in this photo is the Aa-Kerk, which dates to 1247. The Aa is a river near Gronigen, and the original name of the church was Onze Lieve Vrouwe ter Aa (Our Lady at the Aa).

Like most cities/towns in Nederland, canals dominate the landscape.

This was a neat ad near the train station, capitalizing on Potter Movie 7.2 to sell sets of the books.

Overall, it was a good week in Groningen, and I hope I get asked back at some point.