Harbouring dreams by a Dutch dam

Situated close to Amsterdam, Volendam is a calm fishing village, a far cry from its glitzy neighbour

Holland is a country of contrasts — from magnificent windmills to placid lagoons and glittering nightlife, you can find it all within a 100 kilometre radius. I wasn’t looking for a debauched travel experience when I landed in Amsterdam — the usual run-of-the-mill hash-offering coffee shops or floating aimlessly on the meandering canals. While this has its own charm, I suppose age always plays a big role in being a discerning traveller.

My interest in photography takes me to hitherto unknown places, and in this case to a quaint fishing village just a 20-minute tram ride away from Amsterdam. I like to do a bit of research about the places I plan on visiting and the indigenous food on offer. I was really looking forward to eating Patat, basically French-fries, and Pannenkoeken, thin large pancakes, so imagine my surprise when a push-cart vendor offered something called Haring, a soused raw fish with garlic and onions as accompaniments. The vendor explained that the fish was sourced from a nearby harbour and this really roused my curiosity to visit the place.

Having landed at Volendam (literally meaning filled dam), a traditional fishing village with working class roots, I wasn’t disappointed. People of Volendam are welcoming tourists as an additional source of income. The harbour area offers spectacular views of the Ijsselmee, a shallow artificial lake, which comes alive with water sports during the summer. I stayed at a hotel called Van der Valk, a few minutes away from Volendam. All hotels in the area serve delectable seafood and as a Malayalee my palate truly appreciated the fare.

Strolling down the boardwalk at the top of the dyke one comes across restaurants that overlook the harbour where fishing boats gently bob in the water. Pastel-coloured houses flank the boardwalk and transport you to another era. To think that for centuries, fishing families stared out over the water from this vantage point; waiting for the safe return of their loved ones makes you really appreciate the place.

Another interesting aspect on the boardwalk was the life-sized bronze statues celebrating the fishing community. I noticed that unlike in Amsterdam which is a lot more commercialised, people of Volendam really take pride in wearing their traditional dress as was seen on the statues. Here men and women can be seen effortlessly strolling down the road or riding a bicycle wearing wooden shoes; I didn’t dare try although one can visit a studio to take pictures in traditional attire.

The quality of light makes for truly spectacular photography. I took a trip to Volendam to truly appreciate the maritime paintings which I’ve had the good fortune of viewing on a previous occasion. I now understand why the genre achieved great heights with the deft strokes of Dutch painters like Picasso, Van Gogh, Monet, and Renoir visiting this picturesque village for inspiration. Light is the most important currency for a photographer, and although I arrived at the fishing village in the peak of summer, there was something about the clouds and the pastel hues of the buildings that lent an ethereal quality to the pictures I clicked here.

My takeaway from the trip is not just the warmth and hospitality of the Dutch people which I best experienced in the small fishing village, but also the scenic laidback landscapes which really settles in your mind, leaving you enveloped in a sense of peace.

The writer is a businessman, photographer and travel enthusiast